Payment made online consists, at its most fundamental level, of the transmission of monetary value from one entity to another via the utilization of a third-party service. In this scenario, you would be considered the first party, your customer would be regarded as the second party, and an online payment provider would serve as the middleman between you and your customer.
Do you provide personal services, or are you self-employed in some other capacity? If this is the case, the ability to process payments through the internet could take on even greater significance. The transaction between you and the customer can be finalized without you having to be in the same room simultaneously.
It seems overwhelming to figure out how to accept payments online if you’re used to conducting business face-to-face or if this is the first time you’ve ever engaged in any commercial activity.
Let’s break the process of accepting payments online into parts and then look at some of the most common methods consumers use today to pay for online products and services.
What Are The Various Methods For Online Payments?
There are three distinct methods for your clients to make electronic payments that your business might accept:
Both Credit and Debit
If you are not ready for a merchant account, one of the simplest ways to get started is by accepting credit cards and debit cards as payment.
Customers can use their card at the checkout counter, whether a debit or credit card, without providing personal information such as their bank account number.
You will need access to a secure payment gateway and an SSL certificate to accept this payment method. To get credit cards through your website, you will furthermore want to ensure that your website is PCI compliant.
eChecks
An electronic check is an alternative method of payment that can be used for online purchases made by clients who do not own either a credit card or a debit card.
E-checks enable a customer’s bank account to be electronically deducted for the payment of any item they purchase through your website. There is no need for physical checks to be processed at any point in the transaction.
Mobile Payments
People are conducting more of their online transactions on their mobile devices than ever before these days.
A wide variety of payment software can be easily installed on a mobile device and then used to make purchases, thanks to the proliferation of apps.
What Are The Steps Involved In The Process Of Taking Payments?
You can move forward with setting up a merchant account when you have determined the form of electronic payment that will serve your company’s needs most effectively.
Most of the time, when you start accepting payments online, all that is necessary is to fill out an application and sign some contracts. After the procedure has been finished, you will, at that point, be able to begin receiving payments from customers immediately.
Five Ways to Simplify The Payment Process For Customers
It is crucial that your website or smartphone app makes it simple for clients to make payments when you offer goods or services online. For this reason, the payment system created for your online company is essential.
Give your Customers Multiple Options for Making Payments
Although it seems hard to believe, some websites only accept one form of payment. On the other hand, according to the findings shown in an infographic, 55 percent of respondents anticipate the checkout page to contain a choice of payment alternatives.
It is not wanted, nor is it realistic, to offer every conceivable mode of payment available; however, you will want to look at the people who make up your target audience to determine which means of payment they use.
For instance, allowing direct bank transfers and payments from all major credit cards would be an excellent support combination. Ultimately, everything is determined by the clientele you are catering to.
Make it Possible to Make Payments Without Needing an Account
Is it essential to keep another login and password in mind? And why would anyone want to erect such a barrier preventing customers from making a payment?
For first-time customers, it is simply too intrusive to be required to sign up for an account, and this is a significant barrier that prevents conversions from occurring.
According to a usability study, people dislike creating an account because they anticipate receiving many promotional emails.
It was also mentioned that many customers are confused about why they need to sign up to purchase a product. In contrast, traditional retailers do not demand customers to have an account to buy from them.
Don’t Try to Steer People in a Different Direction
You exerted a lot of effort to attract visitors to your website. Why would you send them to any kind of page to make the payment?
Using a provider like PayPal, which drives customers away from your website and to a separate checkout page, has this significant drawback as its primary disadvantage.
Customers may have the impression that they are handing over their money to a different company than the one they are purchasing from because they do not have control over the layout of the checkout page.
People will finish their shopping experience by checking out and making their payment; hence, you want your company’s name to be the final thing on their minds before they leave.
Make it Simple to Correct Any Mistakes
As well, it should not come as a significant surprise that humans are prone to error. It occasionally occurs that a person will forget to include their zip code. In any event, it is up to you to draw attention to the mistake and encourage other people to make the necessary corrections.
People don’t understand they have to scroll up the page to see an error notice displayed at the top of some checkout pages, so they miss out on the opportunity to learn what went wrong. If possible, you should aim to have an error message in the same field in which it was made.
Make Sure You Only Request the Necessary Information
In the same way that you want to ask for only the most essential information when you’re developing an email list, you want to keep the quantity of data you collect to a minimum!
A requirement to fill out a form with information that is extra to the process of making a purchase is the single most effective way to kill a conversion.
In addition, increasing the number of fields that need to be filled out raises the bar higher for individuals to clear before they can pay you.
This is a sprint, and you want people to move through the checkout line as swiftly and unobstructedly as possible!
Conclusion
There are various methods to accept payments online. The most suitable method for your company will be determined by the type of business you run, the effort required, and the kind of customers you are attempting to attract.
Choose the technique of receiving online payments that will work best for your company, and then begin offering this service to boost the number of customers who choose to remain loyal to your brand. On the other hand, it is worth finding out how many industries are embracing cryptocurrencies.
As a business owner, you should be concerned about how to grow your business with digital advertising. You must offer this service if you wish to maintain your position as a contender in the market, given the large number of consumers who already favor conducting their shopping activities online.
