E-commerce has been growing tremendously in the past few years. It has been sustaining gains in double digits year-on-year. Customers are looking for more convenient and flexible payment options. A new study by the financial services provider has shown that there is an evolution in bill paying behavior and the need for businesses to accept credit card processing on their website. The competition is strong from payment processors like PayPal, tech enterprises like Google and Apple.
Online payments have revolutionized the way companies receive payments and how they are able to improve their cash flow. The changes are much more than what it appears to be. Some of the changes are:
Instant notification of payments – A new level of automation has been added to the business functionality through online payments. The company is instantly notified of the payment and at the same time the customer too is notified of payment having been received and the expected delivery time of the ordered items. Hence businesses need not float the cash for shipped goods.
Reduction of the manual process – It is has been made possible to implement recurring payments. Automatic collection of payment has drastically reduced the manual processes in the businesses. This has resulted in the saving of time, recurring payments like subscriptions fetching maximum revenue. This has also eliminated the human error of missing to bill or collect an installment of subscription.
Minimized training and setup – Training the people to handle payment transactions is not essential anymore. Setting up a payment gateway automates the payment transactions and business can begin easily.
Improved revenue – By offering a number of payment options to the customer, businesses are able to get a bigger share of the market. It is well-known fact that people shopping with credit cards tend to purchase more and impulsive purchases also increase which benefits the business.
Quicker establishment of credibility – Customers all over the world are becoming more and more comfortable using their credit cards for online payments. It has become a common habit. This enables companies to establish credibility quickly and streamline their marketing efforts thus saving time and money.
The advent of online affiliate marketing – With the online affiliate marketing system in place, businesses offer a commission on the sales generated from people referred by affiliates. The whole process of calculating the commission and periodical payments can be automated which is smoother than the offline affiliate model.
Reaching new Demographics – The millennials are looking for convenience and comfort in being able to make online payments. By integrating online payments into the business these demographics are easily reachable, unlike earlier times.
Preparing for fintech up-gradation – By integrating online payments to your business, you are preparing your business and people working to be ready for the upcoming innovation in the financial technologies in future.
Conclusion
Online payments have brought about great changes in the way businesses are conducted. The level of automation due to online payments, Credit Card payment processing options to the customers has resulted in better revenue collection, bigger sales, better cash flow, wider demographics and the opportunity to expand the businesses beyond the borders.