Every business owner knows that if they want their eCommerce business to be profitable, they need an easy and efficient way to process online payments. However, many people do not realize just how important it is to choose the right payment gateway for their business and their customers.
With several payment processing options available for your eCommerce store, it can be difficult to choose the best for your business. This guide will help your business decide which is the best payment platform for you to use so your customers can make their purchases online.
Payment Gateway Factors to Consider
You probably wouldn’t make a serious business decision without consulting someone else, so you shouldn’t implement an online payment system without doing your research and weighing feedback and reviews from others.
See which systems are used by other businesses, especially your competitors, and find out what they have to say about their advantages and disadvantages. Certain gateways may seem like a good choice, but they can have certain issues or disadvantages that you will not know about right away. When you are looking at the various payment platforms available for your eCommerce business, there are a couple key factors that you need to keep in mind:
Cost
All online payment systems come with a cost. Before you choose a platform for your business, you need to consider the setup costs as well as any transaction, variable, or monthly fees you will accrue. The last thing you want is to select a payment option that ends up hurting your profitability.
Determine approximately how many transactions you anticipate in a given month, and see if the transaction fees for the different gateways you are considering are worth it. It is important you keep your businesses scalability and price model in mind when you stablish which payment system will be most cost-effective.
Ease of Use
Before you settle on a payment system, you need to test its usability. Customers who have a difficult time using an online payment system are more likely to abandon their items during the checkout process and buy from a site that is easier to use. In fact, 28% of online shoppers in the United States abandon their cart due to a long or complicated checkout process. While you may find a platform that you think is affordable for your company, it is isn’t worth the potential loss of sales if your payment process is confusing for customers.
In addition to testing the platform yourself, check online for consumer feedback about each system. Consumers know which payment platforms are easiest to use to make their purchases, and they know the ones that are the most frustrating. Use this information to help you make a decision.
Once you have done your research, and you have a better idea of which payment system will be best for your company, you are ready to finalize your decision. To help you out, we present you with three of the top payment gateways for eCommerce businesses and their benefits and disadvantages:
PayPal
With over 254 million active accounts across the world, Paypal is the largest and most commonly used payment gateway by eCommerce businesses. There are reasons why this platform is so popular and held in such high regard: it is affordable, easy to use, mobile friendly, and one of the most secure systems available.
Cost
Consider your pricing model when you decide whether or not to use PayPal for your business. While PayPal is free to set up or for individual use, it charges businesses transaction fees. Expect to pay 2.9% of the money received from purchases plus an additional 30 cent fee. This can add up over time depending on the number of monthtly trasactions.
Ease of Use
While this transaction fee might seem hefty, it is a small price to pay for the benefits that come with PayPal. Because PayPal is the such a popular platform, most consumers are already familiar with it. This familiarity means they had positive experiences with the platform and have a higher level of trust in its security than for a relatively unknown payment gateway.
PayPal is also mobile friendly, so your customers will not have problems making purchases from your eCommerce business using their phones. With 34.5% of eCommerce sales coming from mobile eCommerce, it is more important than ever to make sure that your website and payment systems are accessible from mobile devices. PayPal offers one of the most user-friendly payment experiences for your customers.
Stripe
Stripe is one of the more popular alternatives to PayPal. Stripe is known for its security and affordability, and it is used by over 23,000 companies.
Cost
Stripe offers the same transaction fees as PayPal with 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction. It does not require any setup fees or monthly fees. However, this payment gateway is not compatible with every eCommerce platform, so, depending on your platform you may have to pay for Stripe integration.
Ease of Use
Stripe is known for its clean, intuitive API and its 24/7 live chat and phone support. This means customers will likely have a quick, easy and positive experience using this payment gateway.
While Stripe is easy to use overall, accepting any major credit card, it is harder to integrate onto an eCommerce platform than PayPal or other payment systems, which is one reason it is less frequently used. Because it is only available in 25 countries, it does not have the reach or familiarity of larger platforms, and consumers may not be able to use it as easily.
Authorize.net
Authorize.net is another commonly used payment platform. One of the major benefits of using this system is that it allows consumers to go through every single step of the checkout process without leaving your website. This platform is also one of the most secure; it offers Net Advanced Fraud Detection Suite and a Fraud Management Department to help make it trustworthy.
Costs
Authorize.net has the same transaction fees as PayPal and Stripe, but it also charges businesses a $25 monthly fee for use, making it a more expensive option. Depending on the number of transactions received each month, this platform may not be an affordable option for some businesses.
Ease of Use
Because customers never need to leave your website or log in to a different account, Authorize.net is one of the most user-friendly payment gateways you can use for your eCommerce business. This system will eliminate some of the hassle of the checkout process, which will lead to satisfied and repeat customers.
While all three of these payment platforms have distinct advantages, it is important to weigh all the key factors when you are deciding which one to use for your business.
For more information, or for help developing a website for your business, contact Wagento.
