How to Set Up Online Payments for Your Website
The growth in online commerce is undeniable; as a recent survey from the United States Census Bureau showed, online purchasing grew 23% year from 2016 to 2017.
With more and more people shopping online, it’s important to keep up with the trends and provide a safe and secure way for customers to pay you. While it’s tempting to simply accept any form of payment offered, understanding exactly how online payments work and what methods are available can help ensure you’re making the right decision for your business.
Set Up A Paypal Account
Paypal is undoubtedly the most popular online payment service, and for good reason: It’s easy to use, free, and offers an array of useful features.
While you don’t need a paypal account to accept online payments through your website, you will need one to make online payments yourself. You can find a paypal account for free in a matter of minutes, and you’ll then be able to integrate their services into your website for accepting payments.
Paypal’s easy-to-use interface and comprehensive set of features make their service very attractive for websites and businesses of all sizes. Plus, they’ll even provide you with a free paypal icon to use on your site.
Consider Setting Up A Stripe Account
There are many payment processors available to businesses, but few can match the simplicity and convenience of Stripe. Similar to paypal, integrating their services into your website is extremely straightforward.
One benefit of having a stripe account is that you don’t need to set up special accounts for each of your customers. Instead, you can simply authorize payments from their credit card on file.
Stripe’s API allows you to integrate their services easily into your website, and they also offer a free developer account that allows you to build out any feature you might need.
Use Google Pay
Although not technically a payment processor, Google Pay is definitely worth mentioning here. While you don’t need to have a Google account to use their services, it is necessary to have a Google Play Store account.
Similar to paying with a credit card, Google Pay is essentially a digital wallet that can be used to make cashless purchases in the Google Play Store. Even better, Google will give you a small commission when customers make purchases using your affiliate link.
You can integrate Google Pay into your website using their handy API, and you’ll earn a small commission for each purchase made using your affiliate link. If you decide this is a viable option, be sure to claim your affiliate credit through Google Adwords.
Consider Using A Credit Card
The credit card is one of the most trusted and popular ways to pay online, and for good reason. It’s safe and easy to use, and more importantly, it allows the purchaser to reverse the transaction if they feel they’ve been charged incorrectly. If you’re looking for a simple and affordable option, credit cards are ideal.
If you do decide to go this route, make sure to look into the various cards available to you. Some offer additional perks such as gift cards and frequent flyer miles that can be used towards your next purchase. Plus, you can get a credit card with a zero percent interest rate for a limited time. Just remember: The zero percent interest rate applies to new purchases only, and there will be an annual fee.
Accepting Payment Through Other Online Channels
If you’re looking for even more options, you could look into PayPal’s One-Click Payment or Amazon Payments. Both of these services offer additional flexibility and convenience not offered by the credit card.
PayPal’s One-Click Payment allows you to set up a simple PayPal account, and all you need is an email address. When a customer makes a purchase and selects PayPal as the payment option, you’ll receive an email with a direct link to their PayPal account.
This type of setup is perfect for businesses that want to accept online payments or gift cards via PayPal. It’s also a viable option for those that want to accept payments from customers in other countries as well; all you need is an international bank account and an email address.
Amazon Payments is another popular choice among online merchants as it’s extremely simple to use and offers added flexibility in how payments are handled. All you need is a merchant account and an email address. When a customer makes a purchase and selects Amazon as the payment option, you’ll receive an email with a direct link to their Amazon account.
This type of setup is great for businesses that want to offer an Amazon rewards program or those that want to accept donations via an Amazon charity. It’s worth noting that you can use your Amazon Payments account to accept credit cards as well.
Make Sure To Look Into The Security And Safety Of Online Payments
Last but not least, we have security and safety. Just like when making a purchase in-store, online shoppers want to be sure the website they’re visiting is secure, and they don’t want to risk being charged additional fees for using questionable payment processors.
The key factor in making sure your site is secure and that your customers are protected is via SSL. Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) was developed to offer consumers a secure connection between their web browsers and online merchants, providing an extra layer of security for credit card transactions. When an ecommerce site uses SSL, the customer’s personal information is encrypted before it travels over the internet. This ensures that it cannot be scanned by hackers or data thieves.
The above methods are just a small selection of the many options available to you when it comes to accepting payments online. Just remember, the more you can offer your customers, the better. With more people using mobile devices, online shopping is bound to grow even more in the coming years. Being up-to-date with the latest developments in online payments is a must if you want to stay in business.