One of the most challenging aspects of running your own business is keeping track of payments from customers, especially if you only sell online.
While PayPal or Google Checkout can be effective, not every customer will want to use them, and you need to have a fallback plan in case they don’t work out. Luckily, there are other online payment solution providers that are suitable for small businesses as well.
But which one should you choose? Learn more in this guide on how to choose the right online payment solution for your small business needs.
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The Different Types of Solutions
Before you can pick a solution, you need to know what your options are. There are several types of online payment solutions that have specific advantages and disadvantages.
The most common types include merchant accounts, virtual merchant accounts, gateways, and shopping carts. Each has different benefits depending on what features are important for your business.
Take some time to look into each type of payment solution in order to make an informed decision about which one is right for you. Remember that technology moves quickly so you should do your best not only to choose one solution but also to keep up with trends and changes in technology.
You may decide that a combination of solutions works best for your company; there’s no rule saying it has to be one or another when it comes time to make a choice.
Tips When Choosing a Payment Gateway
The first thing you need to think about when looking for a payment gateway is whether you’re willing to make your customers register in order to use it.
If you want a seamless checkout process that requires no user registration, then having them enter their payment information is an important part of that process.
On the other hand, if making them register or setting up an account is too much of a hassle, then look elsewhere. Next, you need to make sure you’re choosing one that will fit into your company’s digital marketing and branding plans.
Once people have registered with your payment gateway, they will be interacting with it over and over again as they check out each new purchase they make from your site.
Transaction fees & Pricing
Shopify offers three pricing plans $29/month, $79/month, and $299/month. All of these plans give you access to all features on their platform.
For example, they offer 2.2% + 30¢ per transaction with Shopify Payments powered by Stripe in Canada. Payments are made via credit card but you can add support for PayPal once your business becomes more established.
However, at 2.2% + 30¢ per transaction, paying $30+ a month might not be worth it if you make only one or two sales a day. You’ll want to do some math before deciding whether or not Shopify payments are right for your business!
For larger businesses, you can opt for a third-party payments provider like Stripe or PayPal. Stripe charges 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction (maximum of ~4% if you’re making $10,000+ a month).
PayPal offers payment gateways starting at 2.6% + 30¢ and 3.2% + 30¢, depending on whether you’re based in Canada or not.
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