Payment processing is an often-overlooked but vital part of business success. Gone are the days when it was mainly up to your customers to manage their payment methods. These days, it’s your responsibility as a business owner to decide what types of payment options you’re going to support. The decisions you make can have a large impact on present and future customers.
Why Offering Payment Processing Is Essential
In the past, credit card processing was optional. Many customers still paid with cash or checks. These days, credit cards are the bare minimum a company needs to accept. There are countless other types of payment platforms, from mobile apps to debit cards.
When your business supports a wide range of payment types, you support your customers’ freedom to choose. That’s what great customer service is all about. You allow people to select the payment option that is most convenient and practical for them. In turn, they may spend more at your store.
The opposite is true as well; if you don’t support certain payment options, some clients simply choose a business that does. At the very least, you can miss opportunities to make a sale because clients aren’t carrying or don’t want to use your supported methods.
How Payment Processing Is Changing
Keeping up with current business trends is important for many areas of business, especially where technology is concerned. Everything from business management software to e-commerce is continuously improving by leaps and bounds. Payment processing is no exception. Make sure your business keeps up with the following trends in payment processing.
E-Commerce Websites
If you’re like many retailers, you mainly sell products in a brick-and-mortar store. The majority of small retail businesses do have a basic website, but they mainly use it to highlight their products, not sell them online.
Without an e-commerce website, you’re missing out on great opportunities. These days, you need to be equipped to sell online or in person — whichever the customer prefers.
True, it’s more complex to create a website with secure payments, but the cost is worth it. Payment platforms offer convenience for clients who want to buy clothing, groceries, electronics and other items from home. Even people who prefer to shop in person often visit websites to compare prices and make a decision before heading to the store.
Mobile Payments
Smartphone payment apps have been around for a while now, but now they’re entering widespread use. Put simply, if you don’t have support for mobile payments, you’re making life a lot harder for your customers.
Take a coffee shop as an example. Forcing customers to pay with cash or credit cards means they have to wait in line so you can ring them up. This can take five minutes or more. With mobile payment apps, clients can pay in seconds. Even better, they don’t have to leave their table!
Unified Shopping Experiences
Many stores are designed to promote impulse buying. Once customers decide they want to make a purchase, your goal is to encourage them to act right away. You don’t want that feeling to fade because of hesitation or indifference.
New payment technology can help. With square QR codes, clients can add items to their mobile shopping cart instantly. These codes can work at a store, letting clients purchase items that are on sale quickly. You can also include QR codes on online advertisements or store posters. Users snap a photo of the code and proceed to checkout quickly.
How Your Business Can Benefit
Many of these payment processing trends are relatively easy to add to your business. Point-of-sale software systems can support many types of payments and help with business operations. These systems may save you time and money.