7 Key Factors to Consider When Choosing a Payment Processing Solution

Looking for a new payment processing solution for your business? Don’t underestimate the importance of this seemingly small choice. The right provider can have a significant impact on your customers’ billing experiences and their decision to continue doing business with you.

With the rise of digital transactions and the need for efficient payment processes, payment services providers have become invaluable partners for businesses of all sizes. However, with a multitude of options available, finding the right fit can be a daunting task.

In this guide, we will steer you through seven essential factors to consider when selecting a payment processing solution. From reliability and security measures to pricing structures and integrations, we’ll provide you with valuable insights and practical tips to simplify your decision-making process.

• Evaluating Payment Services Providers
• Refining Your Options for the Perfect Solution
• Making the Right Decision
  
  

Evaluating Payment Services Providers

While payment processing may seem straightforward, its impact on the user experience, cash flow, financial health, and the overall safety and security of your business means that the payment solution you choose can make or break the success of your business. Whether you’re a midsized business researching how to migrate payments from paper checks to digital transfers, or as a scaling organization looking to upgrade from legacy technologies, you need a payment partner that checks all the boxes. Here are the 7 factors to ensure you make the right choice:

Compatibility

The first question to answer is simple and direct—can the technology solve your problem?

Some payment solutions are compatible with all devices, while others are incompatible with select platforms. Learning how the payment processing solution works on various operating systems and platforms requires thorough research before moving forward. Ensure the payment services provider you choose is compatible with your business model.

The right solution will allow your business to control the payment experience which is an essential part to keeping users submerged in your unique brand while offering payment flexibility.

“A big technical risk is what are you going to do with your old data? The conversion aspect of going live with a new payments partner, that was where Dwolla really shined. Dwolla helped us convert from our old provider and managed all the imports of new data. It was seamless.” CTO, Groundfloor

User Experience

An intuitive user experience is a crucial factor when seeking a payment provider, whether online or on mobile. Nothing’s worse than a lengthy checkout process, especially for mobile transactions, which commonly lead to abandoned sales. Don’t falter right before the finish line, secure that conversion with this key feature. Don’t lose the conversion right before the finish line.

Consider integrating a white-label payment API to enable payments through your own branded application. Match the user experience, keep your branding in the spotlight, and power payments in the background with a strong payments API.

“Having any friction or delay while waiting for funds to clear can create a lot of user experience problems. By using Dwolla, we don’t see those problems.” CMO, Masterworks

Payment Options

Customers expect to be able to use various forms of payment. The ease of the transaction is vital, so offering a range of common payment methods in your target markets helps to boost customer satisfaction, reduce barriers to purchase, and enhance your reputation. Expand your reach by offering numerous e-commerce payment alternatives, and every potential customer will be able to pick a solution that suits their needs.

To get into the advantages of timing, data, and cost benefits inherent in account-to-account payments, consider partnering with a payment services provider that offers a comprehensive range of payment methods supported by a robust payments API. This ensures ease of use, competitive pricing, and security for your business.

“The key in money movement is speed – the faster the better. The ability to move funds and settle them in the least amount of time is both a win from our customers’ perspectives and from our operational perspective.” CFO, Tippy

Security

When looking for a payment services provider, safeguarding transaction data and personally identifiable information is paramount. End users’ trust is crucial to your success. To that end, your solution must have a top-tier security strategy, encompassing strong tokenization, statistical analyses, machine learning, and continuous platform monitoring to keep data secure.

When integrating a payment API, you start operating in a heavily regulated financial space, making information collection from the appropriate parties imperative. Your business should know your legal and regulatory requirements for owning CIP and KYC processes and bank account verification. Calm any fears over data security, protection, and compliance by requesting details about your payment services provider’s policies and accreditation related to payment services security regulations.

It’s important to be aware of the industry you are operating in and the risk incurred when offering certain types of transfers.

“There are instant payment solutions that our competition is using but we’ve found most of our users prefer ACH and linking a bank account because of the reliability and security. We’re pushing more users to ACH which all run through the APIs, and Dwolla was the solution we were looking for.” CTO, Tippy

Payment Management Tools

A top-tier payment services provider generates business analytics and transactional data for activity between the payment solution and your application. This allows you to monitor transactions in real-time and access data to view monthly statements and specific transactions.

To ensure business success, regularly tracking unique vital indicators is crucial. Asking providers to demonstrate their risk management policies and support methods for reducing transaction risks, including fraudulent activity, payment errors, and chargebacks, and inquiring about working with preferred partners can aid in minimizing these risks.

“There aren’t a lot of validations you can do with paper. The more data we collect, the more trends we can analyze. Electronic payments with Dwolla has given us a lot more insight into the program’s processes.” Enterprise Technology Consultant, Intouch B2D Solutions

Ease of Integration

Integrating a payment API should be straightforward and come with resources to help guide you through the process. The process should be streamlined to ensure each integration starts on the right foot and helps companies get up and running. If a bank API integration fails, your payment procedure may be difficult, and your customers may abandon their shopping carts.

“We don’t have a big team here, we couldn’t afford to have even one developer siloed off to a six month to year long integration. Dwolla impressed us with a tech stack that we could easily work with that allowed us to get up and as quickly as possible.” Director of Product, ForeUp

Dedicated Support

Businesses can benefit greatly from dedicated support provided by payment services providers. Beyond their robust payments APIs and developer resources, a reliable payments provider places emphasis on ensuring seamless money movement through prioritizing customer support. The personalization of assistance provided by dedicated support leads to efficient issue resolution, tailored solutions, ongoing communication and access to training and resources. This translates to an improved payment experience, ultimately helping businesses achieve their goals.

“Dwolla has this wonderful API and a great platform, but Dwolla provides a more personal experience with human interaction that other providers do not offer. That’s different and it really matters.” CEO, Routable