Accepting credit cards at your small business is a good business decision. But with so many options for payment processors and credit card processing gateways, how do you know which option is the best for you and your business? Keep reading to find out more about payment gateways and credit card processing.
What’s a Payment Gateway?
Before getting started, it’s important to understand payment gateways. Credit card processing gateways facilitate the transfer of financial information between you, your payment processor, the issuing bank, and the acquiring bank. This communication takes only a few seconds, but it determines whether the transaction is approved or declined. Now that you know just how important a payment gateway is for your business, you can see how critical it is to choose the right provider.
Type of Business
The first aspect of deciding which processor and gateway are right for you is to determine what type of business you’re running and how you’ll accept payments. Are you a brick and mortar store, a mobile business, or even an online only business? Maybe your business uses a combination of methods. Regardless, how you operate your business determines how you’ll accept payment.
Credit card processing gateways can be physical point-of-sale terminals or their online analogs. There are even mobile and wireless options available if your business processes payments in non-traditional locations. Knowing how you plan to accept payment will determine what type of account you’ll need to apply for.
What to Look For
Not all payment gateways are the same. When you start looking for your own payment gateway, there are a few features that are absolute necessities for your small business. The first is PCI compliance. PCI compliance is a mandated data security standard set by the major credit card companies. Since small businesses don’t tend to have the resources necessary to comply with this standard, gateways should supply this compliance for them.
Credit card processing gateways should also provide customer support. In the event that something goes wrong with your gateway, you won’t be able to process credit card transactions and your business can grind to a halt. You need a processor that offers 24/7 support. That way, problems can be remedied quickly and you can get back to business.
Choose the Best
Your choice of payment gateway is an important one. A good one can help you meet compliance standards, protect your customers’ information, and process credit card transactions wherever you conduct business. An ineffective gateway can cause you constant headaches and even hinder your company’s growth.
Allied Wallet offers credit card processing gateway solutions for businesses big and small. We can help you process transactions and grow your business. We offer affordable solutions, award winning security, and 24/7 customer support when you need us.
Visit us to learn more about credit card processing gateways and what we can do for your business.
