It is always good to have a choice in life and right now if you are looking for a payment gateway for your e-commerce business you will have plenty of options. With so many payment service providers (PSP) offering their solutions you should be able to find one which suits your needs perfectly. But how do you know what exactly is best for your business? Here are the three most important gateway features you should look for:
1. PCI DSS Compliance – It is now required of all e-commerce businesses in the UK to be PCI Compliant. This is achieved by processing payments through a certified provider or by gaining an individual accreditation. For start-ups and SME’s we recommend that you process through a Level 1 Compliant provider to help make the process less of a hassle and cheaper in general. Make sure to speak to the provider of your choice about this before you sign up and ask how they can assist you with PCI.
2. Up-time – it is essential that whenever a customer decides to purchase something from your website, they are able to do so. Unfortunately if the gateway you chose experiences regular technical problems then you could be losing many sales. Speak to different PSP’s and enquire about their system reliability and uptime. It is also good to check what reputation different gateways have on business forums and blogs. You can also speak to other business owners and ask about their experience using various providers. Thorough research is essential and could prove to be priceless.
3. Flexibility – finally, the ability to process a range of online payment methods through your payment gateway is also a high priority. Most shoppers will pay using one of the most popular debit or credit cards, but a growing number of consumers are choosing other ways of paying online. Ideally, you should choose the gateway which is the most flexible in this department and also speak to the provider about their plans for the future, because new payment options are appearing regularly.
All of the above features are equally important. Choosing a payment gateway which ticks all the boxes will not only make the day to day running of your business easier, but can also dramatically influence the level of customer service you are able to deliver. Offering your visitors a secure, stable and flexible shopping environment will increase your sales, so choose your gateway wisely.