Accepting Payment Online: Know all Pros and Cons

by Elna Abara Payment Service Provider

Learn the benefits and challenges of accepting online payments for your business.

Online shopping is growing steadily due to the pandemic. Many customers prefer to shop online due to the convenience and comfort of their homes. Online customers and merchants expect online buying and selling to be easy, efficient, and safe. New technologies have simplified and smoothened business processes for customers' experiences with mobile payments, e-wallets, etc. Customers can buy online with high confidence that the cards are secured with fraud protection and encryption.

The Benefits of Accepting Online Payments

There are numerous benefits to accepting online payments. You can also have more than one online payment gateway, so your customers can choose their preferred one and pay from their account quickly and without a credit/debit card! Your business might not likely survive without accepting online payments.

1. Save time

Online payments are much quicker than traditional payments, such as cash or cheque. Online credit card payment is faster than printing invoices. One can easily make payments while sitting comfortably at home or the office.

2. Secure Payments

A secure payment method is essential for your business and customers' peace of mind. Online payments must go through multiple security layers for each transaction to protect clients' card details from scammers. An online payment form typically stores sensitive payment information by a third-party processor, minimizing your liability risk. You also get notified of payments automatically via email to cross-check.

3. Better Customer Service

Online payments have eliminated the need to go to the bank, saving customers time from standing in long lines at banks. In addition, online payments can help provide a convenient payment experience for your customers.

4. Reduce Cost

Online payment reduces the cost of paper, supplies, and postage and helps save the environment. In addition, online credit card payment is instant and saves time on monthly billing and invoicing.

5. Automated recurring payments

Online payments help in automating regular payments. For example, it helps pay clients on time without the hassle of logging in or re-entering the payment details.

The Challenges of Accepting Online Payments

Running any business and accepting online payments comes with many challenges. Let's learn the most common points that e-commerce merchants face and some tips on combating them.

1. Handling Fraud

Your business needs to be proactive in securing customers' high-security credit card information. Auditing is an excellent way to ensure your online payment processing system.

2. System Integration

In this digital age, the technology used to take payments is very complex. Online payments have specialized technology that is sometimes difficult to integrate with other platforms and hardware used by different businesses. If there is a lack of integration, problems will result in expensive fees, payment delays, or even lost transactions.

3. Cross-border transactions

Cross-border transactions play a significant role in global trade. As a result, payment systems must improve their processes and take control of credit, liquidity, and cost risks.

4. Poor and Lack of Support

Some online payments don't offer easy and practical solutions to technical problems. As a result, customers face issues, and many payment service providers refer customers directly to the website. They have to find a solution to their problem or go to the service centre, where they have to wait a long time for their turn.

Conclusion

Ensure your business accepts payments online. Online payments are becoming the norm in the coming years. If you're looking for a payment service provider, the DPO group accepts payments online across Africa. It allows shoppers to choose from credit cards, debit cards, mobile money, and more.