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Tag: Credit card payments

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Business

Contactless Payments: How Exactly Do They Work?

Person Paying Using Mobile phone

While contactless payments have been around since as early as 2007, their ease of use and tap-feature is more important today than ever before. It first started with credit cards having a chip that works by transferring data to a terminal that has a proper reader, removing the need for a swipe or a pin-input. Nowadays, technology has evolved significantly that even digital wallets and payment systems like Apple Pay and Google Pay require nothing more than your phone for transactions. 

Not only is this convenient, but 2020 has found this feature especially useful to avoid unnecessary contact with items that can transmit the COVID-19 virus. Thanks to the radio frequency identification technology, or also known as RFID, these signals can be picked up from a set range for ease of use. 

Contactless Payments

As mentioned above, contactless payments work through chips that have RFID technology to transmit radio waves to a reader. If you are using a credit card, make sure it has the chip for contactless transactions, such as Visa’s payWave and other similar markings on a credit card. When utilizing mobile device-specific payment apps like Apple Pay and Google Pay, your phone must have what is called near-field communication (NFC) to transmit data. 

When paying for items, the POS system will usually display an option to tap your card or phone, which should be just as easy as holding it nearby the screen of the terminal. This technology is often not perfect either, meaning it can fail and require you to input your pin instead. 

How This RFID Technology Is Used

Contactless payments are usable with many devices, as it is slowly becoming a standard for all technologies. While the most common are credit cards and mobile devices; fitness trackers, watches, key fobs, and stickers are also now utilizing RFID technology. These cards are also often used to open doors and gates, as security passes, and other kinds of payment areas. 

Where Can This Be Used?

This technology is great because it is now being recognized by places all around the world. Contactless payment can be used at retail stores, restaurants, bars, cafes, and other automated services for ease of transaction. In some countries, these have even been integrated with public transportation to expedite the riding process. 

What Are The Advantages Of Using Contactless Payment Systems?

Using this system saves a significant amount of time and effort you would normally be using to punch in your pin number. Having your phone set up to be your wallet means carrying less cash and cards all the time while also saving you the trouble of fishing around your bag. 

Nowadays, COVID-19 is serious, and the fact that you can pay with your credit card or even Apple Pay and avoid touching money makes going out much safer. It is known that the virus can be spread through money due to its fabric material, so going down the route of cashless transactions using contactless payment will expedite everything. 

What Are The Risks Of Using Contactless Payment Systems?

The issue with contactless payments is that if someone else gets a hold of your card, or your wallet or phone is stolen, they can use it to make purchases without any need for a pin input. The fraud activity due to RFID technology is high, so be sure to report any missing cards as soon as possible and check your credit card statements on a regular basis. Report any suspicious and unrecognizable transactions to your bank whenever you see them. 

Conclusion

This technology has proven to be extremely effective and efficient not only for payments and transactions, but also for other aspects of business such as security and identification. Thanks to RFID technology, there have been many advancements towards the ease of business, but has also come with risks due to fraud and safety concerns. 

Creating an easier way for your business to accept payments has never been easier with Payment Page, wherein our WordPress plugin can create a hosted payment page with ease. Sign up for our services on our website to be at the forefront when we launch our products. 

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Stripe Tutorials

How to Accept Credit Card Payments Through Stripe: A Guide

Various Credit Cards

Entering the global marketplace can be extremely daunting. It comes with magnified ups and downs, and the prospect of appealing to an entirely new marketplace is a challenge in itself. How do other businesses succeed? The answer is quite simple, and it lies in a little plastic piece that has changed the world of consumerism forever—credit cards. 

Credit cards are one of the leading international payment methods, which accounts for almost half of online payment transactions. Visa Mastercard, American Express, JCB, and UnionPay are some of the most well-known, but the list goes on. 

Why are credit cards so popular? They’re issued by banks, which then allows customers to borrow money under terms of credit. They pay the money back within a grace period, which keeps them away from paying for extra fees.

As a widely used mode of payment, eCommerce and marketplace from all around the world accept credit cards, including SaaS subscriptions, professional services, and even on-demand services. 

How do credit cards work through Stripe?

  • Step 1: Once the customer finds their needs met, they checkout and choose the credit card payment option.
  • Step 2: They will then be asked to input their credentials, which is a requirement to complete the transaction.
  • Step 3: Once credentials are placed, the customer will receive a notification informing them that the transaction has been completed. Keep in mind that all payments are immediate. 

Why should your business accept credit cards?

Regardless of your business type, it’s undeniable that accepting credit cards as a form of payment brings benefits to your business. It increases sales and boosts success, bringing forth conversions and sales like never before. 

To fully understand what credit cards can bring to your business, here is a quick rundown of the benefits you can enjoy:

Credit cards legitimize your business 

There’s no other way to place it—credit card payments are crucial to business success. Once you offer it as a payment method, your brand is welcomed to the industry as legitimate. Displaying credit card logos on your website commands authority, letting people know that you are worth transacting with. 

Providing your prospects with options also helps with customer satisfaction, especially when your business sells more expensive products, such as mobile phones. With an option to pay in terms, you gain a competitive advantage. In other words, you improve your place in an ever-competitive market just with the help of a card. 

Credit cards minimize the risks 

You may have dealt with fraud payments in the past, but with credit cards, risks are low. It eliminates the trouble of receiving bad or bounced checks, fake online transfers, and even fake paper bills. You never have to worry about tracking customers and filing lawsuits. With security by your side, you can now focus on other aspects of your business, such as growth and expansion. 

Credit cards are inexpensive business investments 

As a growing business, you may be reluctant to incorporate credit card systems out of fear of budget constraints. As a growing industry, credit card companies now offer merchant services packages, which allows you to work within reasonable budgets. Credit card rates are also low, which provides small businesses with the chance to offer credit cards payment methods. 

In Need of a Payment Page Builder Services? 

If your business does not offer credit card payment methods yet, now is the time to do so. Incorporating it into your business opens plenty of opportunities for success and growth, especially if you wish to expand into an international market. 

If you wish to diversify and expand your business, offering diverse payment options is the way to go. Allow Payment Page to help, a hosted payment page built with Stripe. Gaining a competitive advantage doesn’t have to be difficult. In a highly competitive world, working smart is the best way to get ahead—and that means offering various payment options for markets all over the world. Work with us today!

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eCommerce

What Entrepreneurs Should Know About Credit Card Payments

Online Payment Gateway

One of the biggest factors to consider when running a business is how you’re going to receive payments for any products or services rendered. Without a proper method for receiving payments from your consumers, your business won’t be able to operate as efficiently and as safely as it could.

The best and most secure method of payment is arguably through the use of credit cards. Not only are they safe to use, but they’re also incredibly convenient for making purchases online or through e-commerce platforms. For users, it provides a way to shop without carrying cash—allowing for safer travels and hassle-free payments.

How To Accept Credit Card Payments

Setting up a method for your business to accept credit card payments is quite easy. All you’ll need is to partner with a platform that can handle such a transaction. There are currently three approaches to this: merchant accounts, payment service providers, and e-commerce platforms.

Merchant Account

Merchant accounts are one of the most basic and traditional approaches when it comes to  the credit card payment process, and generally for brick and mortar stores that accept in-person “swiped” transactions only. This involves creating an account with a merchant acquiring bank that will serve as an intermediary with a credit card company, giving a measure of stability and security for both merchant and credit card providers.

Once you’ve selected a credit card company to work with, you’ll have to search for a merchant acquiring bank to approve your new account. They require you to submit certain documents, among which are your business activities, banking information, tax returns, and payment model.

E-commerce platforms

E-commerce platforms, on the other hand, are for online businesses that plan to sell mainly through the internet or accept payments through their website or a marketplace. There are multiple approaches to this, but the gist is to either create an e-commerce platform in itself, to implement an e-commerce capability into an already existing website, or to sign up for a marketplace like Amazon. 

Before setting this up with a third party, you’ll need to provide your employee identification number (EIN) and banking information—so make sure to have those ready before taking this step.

If you create your own ecommerce platform, you’ll still need to have your own Payment Service Provider or Payment Gateway. 

Payment Service Provider (or Payment Gateway) 

Meanwhile, payment service providers, also known as Payment Gateways, are available for many online and physical stores. This is probably the quickest way of accepting credit card transactions without having to create a merchant account. Some of the more popular payment gateways  are PayPal, Square, and Stripe.

Setting up an account is incredibly easy and free, and often utilize a month-to-month flat-rate fee for their service or a percentage based fee for each transaction. 

Factors to Consider When Choosing

It is incredibly important to choose the right provider to keep your business on the right track. Remember that there are two major considerations to think of when choosing a method to accept credit card payments: the overall cost and the specific needs of your business.

The overall expenses change over time—while payment service providers charge a flat-rate either per month or per transaction, it is assuredly more costly in the long run than a merchant account. On the other hand, it’s highly flexible to help you accept online payments with ease, including subscriptions, which can unlock a sustainable revenue stream for your business.

It is important to consider the time it takes to set up the various payment methods, as some are much quicker to process and create than others. 

Get Started Today

Setting up a method to accept credit card payments is essential to make your business more accessible to a variety of customers. Always remember to take careful consideration when choosing the right payment service provider or payment gateway for your business, or you could end up using the wrong provider for your needs.

If you’re looking to accept credit card payments with a simple and beautiful form on your website, then Payment Page is for you. You can easily build a custom payment form to help your business achieve real results, and integrate any of the payment gateways mentioned above.

Payment Page, an innovative WordPress payment plugin, helps you create a customizable payment form in less than 60 seconds.

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