If you’re a business that accepts credit or debit card payments online, you should select the appropriate payment processor. Online payment processors take care of all the heavy lifting, from recording sales to sending you a bill statement and working with your banks to make sure you get paid.
When a buyer purchases something on your site or in person at a brick-and-mortar store the credit or debit card information is processed by a payment gateway or PoS terminal. The gateway secures the information to protect it and sends it to a processor that then transfers it to the card network of the customer. The card network then contacts the bank of the customer to determine if they’ve enough cash to purchase the item. If the bank accepts the purchase, then the card issuer transfers funds from the account to the merchant’s bank. The processor for payment will transmit this information to the merchant’s website or PoS terminal and inform the customer that the transaction was successful.
When selecting a processor, be sure to consider factors such as security, ease of use, and compatibility with current systems. Select a processor that offers APIs and plugins to seamlessly integrate with your e-commerce platform or POS system. You should also look at the checkout experience for your customers as well as the reporting and transaction management options for your team. Make sure you know the terms of your contract and how easy it will be to switch suppliers in the future.
