Tweet

Integrated Payments

Written by: Will Atkinson

Article Overview: We live in an evolving society no longer based on cash and checks. Take advantage of integrated payment technologies to help improve customer service and reduce costs

Integrated Payments

Let's face it, most customers in stores pay with credit or debit cards these days. Checks are almost dead and some have even wondered how long cash has left as a mainstream tender type. That's probably an extreme assessment, but you can't ignore the prevalence of credit and debit cards in the retail marketplace today.

How can you use this to your advantage? Simply accepting credit cards is no longer a differentiator. Nearly all stores and businesses accept credit and debit cards as payment. BUT, not all retailers have embraced them and built them into their customer service model. How is that related to customer service you ask?

Simple. Making it faster and easier for your customers to pay using credit cards reduces overall checkout times, meaning that each customer can be taken care of more quickly, reducing checkout lines and overall wait times. Busy customers, who are increasingly concerned with security, value the speeds, efficiency, and robust security features of a truly integrated credit card payment system.

The customer shouldn't have to hand their card to a clerk, and they shouldn't have to wait for a dial-up based system. They also shouldn't have to worry about third party credit card terminals or extra receipts floating around.

Make sure your POS provider offers you a fully integrated credit card system, including a secure pin-based debit option, to allow you to speed up the checkout process to enhance customer satisfaction.

Another benefit is that your POS system will have complete and accurate reports on all payments processed through the system, and you should also be able to view web reports from your payment processor.

Furthermore, eliminating the middle man, and the expensive payment terminals, can reduce your overall cost of doing business. Make sure you're getting competitive transaction rates from your processor and enlist the services of a good PCI security assessor to help make sure you have the best, most secure payment system available.

Related Articles
  Why PayPal Works Well for Online Business
  Mortgage Payment Options That Can Save You Money
  Remortgage report
  Why an Integrated Financial Accounts?
  Billions in economic stimulus payments already distributed

Article Tags: accepting credit cards, accurate reports, checkout lines, checkout times, credit card payment, credit card terminals, customer satisfaction, customer service model, debit cards, differentiator, middle man, payment terminals, retail marketplace, robust security features, secure payment system, security value, transaction rates, using credit cards, wait times, web reports



Related Forum Posts
Online Payment Methods - I'd like to know what Payment method do entrepreneurs use to process credit cards online? Here at RSC Business Group we have made a decision to go with Paypal in the short term. If we find that we have more than 10 transactions a month then we plan on going with a Bank Processor of Payments. What do you guys use?
Improve your Cash Flow - As we all know, the primary concern of proprietors and managers are cash flows. I would like to share some tips on how to improve the cash flow of your business. 1. Speeding up Collections - collecting receivables earlier, on or before due dates. Discounts for early payments can be one way to do this. 2. Slowing Down Payments - stretch your payables and pay only when it is due. But be careful not to mess up with your credibility. 3. Invest in Marketable Securities - use the money in Marketable Securities and other short-term investments to earn extra cash.
Re: Online Payment Methods - [quote="jvprosperity":1r67p3sb]I'd like to know what Payment method do entrepreneurs use to process credit cards online? Here at RSC Business Group we have made a decision to go with Paypal in the short term. If we find that we have more than 10 transactions a month then we plan on going with a Bank Processor of Payments. What do you guys use?[/quote:1r67p3sb] Hi Andy, I use PayPal (because it's so widely recognized and used) as well to buy and then re-sell tennis racquets, but I find that their "cut" and conversion rates are quite high. Isn't PayPal's cut like over 2% or something? Would you happen to have a breakdown of the other payment methods' service charges/fees?
eBlogging 101: Getting Your Internet Business To Stand Out F - Since the inception of eCommerce websites there have been a growing number of brick and mortar businesses expanding their sales online. With this growing trend it means more competition and less market share. I have mentioned that eBlogs are becoming more popular as well (an integration of an eCommerce shop with a blog) and I spoke more about it in the post I wrote: e-Commerce With Integrated Blog (e-Blogging). The question Internet businesses face is: how do you stand out from the crowd? Design and User Friendliness This is almost too obvious but I still see poorly designed websites lacking user friendliness and easy to use navigations. A well designed website is easy to use, looks professional and instils confidence in potential customers. This reassures them that they can safely buy on your website knowing their products or services will be delivered on time. Furthermore a professional website conveys high quality and strong branding, just how you would attend a business meeting in a proper suit and not a pair of Billabong shorts. Ease of use of your website is equally important. If a potential customer can not navigate through your website easily and find the information they are looking for, they will go to the next website on the list. It is very easy to lose a sale because of poorly designed navigations. One way to test the ease of use of your website is to watch friends and family while they complete a few simple task of purchasing and finding specific information. A few things to observe are: * Do they have to keep backtracking through the website? * Can they find what they are looking for quickly? * Can they easily click on images to enlarge the product? * Does the search function work and return the appropriate results? * Are the images of high quality without sacrificing time to load the website? * Is it easy to add items to the shopping cart? * Is the checkout easy to use? Additionally, ask them for their feedback and thank them for their time. Be sure to take these findings and implement them to your website. Once you get this right, you will have a higher conversion rate. Show Your Testimonials Testimonials is a powerful tool for any Internet business. In the past I’ve utilised this tool to promote and market my products for Dragonboating and it increased my sales by two fold simply by having them displayed. Prospective customers will also feel confident to purchase from you because they see positive feedback from others. With the right mix of testimonials including website’s easy of use, quality of product, speed of delivery and fast resolution of issues, it will cover all aspects of the buying process for a prospective customer. So next time when a customer receives their product, follow up with them 7 days later and ask them to write a testimonial for your website. Help Customers Find Your Delivery And Returns Information It’s important to show a link to your delivery and returns page which should be displayed prominently on your website. Most customers want to know whether or not you can deliver to their location, how much it will cost them and how you will handle returns if there is a problem. I have had customers tell me how frustrating it is to find the cost of delivery at the end of the check out page, which is why I have it clear displayed on the website. It shows you are transparent and operate with integrity. This builds stronger trust with your customers as well. They will thank you later in repeat and referral business. Extra eBlogging Tips With these basic principals in place, your eBlog should start appealing to more customers. We want to give them that extra incentive for them to buy from you because you will be competing with other popular websites in the marketplace. eblogging101_2Offer Customers To Join Your Loyalty Program: A great way to attract more customers and to keep them coming back for more is to encourage them to be part of your loyalty program. In the past I have set up e-Commerce websites with an option to reward them with 1 point for every dollar they spend. The more points they accumulate, the more chances of earning a nice reward. Your customer will be able to exchange their points for a new gadget - an iPod for example or a product in your range. Reward Purchases: You can reward customers who come back and order from you by giving them a discount on their next order. The more purchases they make, the more discounts they receive. It encourages them to purchase from you every time. Bulk Discounts: If you sell products that people buy in large quantities consider offering a bulk discount rate. It’s a great way to encourage larger orders and higher turnover of product for your Internet business. We love to think that we have saved money, even though we have spent twice as much to get that discount. Aldi, the supermarket chain is a classic example of buy in bulk and save, which encourages shoppers to spend more. The UPOD principle (Under Promise, Over Deliver): This is a principle I practise all the time in my businesses. Let’s say you offer normal delivery to deliver a product, which takes between 3 - 5 days to receive. What if you sent the product overnight via courier and it arrived the next day. Would your customer be ecstatic to receive their product earlier than expected? Of course they would! They would refer it to their friends and family because of fast delivery and good customer service. This is the under promise and over deliver (UPOD) principle that you can apply in your Internet business. There are a lot of similarities between a brick and mortar business compared to an online business. Businesses that offer good products and excellent customer service are able to capture market share much faster with smarter techniques. They will be the businesses that succeed and do well online. Gone are the days where you just put an eBlog website and hope for the best. You need to implement strategies and be smart to attract good quality customers for your Internet business, then you will reap the rewards. Tyrone Shum eBlogging 101


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Mistakes Made by New or Inexperienced Sales Staff

The OLD Way of Advertising, May Not be so OLD

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.