What is the Payment Gateway?
Payment gateway software is a transaction & payment processing solution with which an online business can safely manage & process payments & transactions from customers. It’s a software that allows customers to perform easy & secure online payments, for successful customer experience.
Payment gateway solution is a critical merchant service that authorizes websites to process transactions made through credit card, debit card, net banking, e-wallets or UPI. The main task of a payment gateway software is to securely transmit a customer’s sensitive credit/debit card and bank account data from the vendor website to the issuing bank and other entities involved in the transaction. Payment gateways send data pertaining to transactions to the corresponding bank and processes replies about whether a transac tion has been accepted or declined. In short, payment gateway software assists ineffective communication between businesses & banks.
An electronic payment system is a method of paying for goods and services online. Electronic devices such as computers and mobile phones are used for all financial operations. E-payment offers various modes of payment like a credit card, debit card or bank transfers.
Why Do You Need Payment Gateway Software?
Online businesses or companies with an e-commerce website need a payment gateway solution to make it easy for customers to make payments for online transactions. Such solutions are provided by e-commerce application service providers, who take the utmost care when building the software. Consequently, its security is ensured through enterprise-grade data encryption, Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocols, Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) protocols, etc.
The world is seeing a huge rise in e-commerce technology, which has disrupted the way customers and markets are responding & buying. Online selling comes with its own challenges, one of which is to bridge the gap between a website and a buyer’s wallet. That’s where a user-friendly and flexible payment gateway software comes into the picture. To successfully & securely accept payments online, a payment gateway is a must.
Aside from e-commerce companies, payment gateways can also be used to process direct payments for e-businesses, brick and mortar stores and, bricks and clicks stores.
The benefits that a payment gateway software offers to businesses include: -
- Capability to accept & process online payments for e-commerce websites
- Accept transactions through multiple payment methods
- Multi-currency acceptance capability
- Encrypted & secure online transactions
- Avoid unauthorized transactions with fraud protection technology
- Easily manage & process customer returns & refunds
Features of Payment Gateway
A payment gateway solution is a must-have solution for businesses that dabble in online transactions. Without the best payment gateway software, successful online transactions cannot take place, period.
Debit and online Credit Card Payment Processing for Small Business
With this software, you can accept payments made using credit & debit cards. Supported cards include those powered by MasterCard, Visa, American Express, PayPal, RuPay and more. International transactions made using either debit/credit card can also be processed, with the help of payment gateway software.
PCI Compliance
Payment Card Industry (PCI) is a worldwide information security standard that organizations handling transactions through branded credit & debit cards, must comply with. Payment gateway software solutions complies with this standard, ensuring that your compliance regulations are met, and secure transactions can be carried out on your website.
Recurring Billing Gateway
For subscription-based websites (newspapers, magazines, streaming services, SaaS), payment gateway solution offers a recurring billing payment option. The solution offers customers the chance to register their card or bank account details, from which payments will be auto-deducted on the due dates. Customers will not have to take the hassle of logging in every time a payment due date is near. The software comes with encryption and secure capabilities, which safely stores customer data and doesn’t allow it to fall into the wrong hands.
Real-Time Payments
Using the software, payments & transactions can be processed in real-time. In the case of gateway issues or payment failures, refunds & returns can be initiated immediately. Additionally, all concerned parties (customers, vendors, issuing banks) are informed of payment status immediately.
Fraud Protection
The best payment gateway software solutions come with fraud protection features, to prevent fraudulent activities and theft. These include PCI protection, SSL encryption, and other relevant systems, which ensure that transactions are protected at all costs.
Access Management
This feature of the software allows you to limit backend access, based on users & role. This lets you define software usability, by keeping information usage limited to main developers & shareholders, while others have access to the parts they need for effective functioning.
Reporting
Payment gateway software comes with report generation capabilities. You can generate different types of transaction-based reports, taking different factors into account. It lets you compare & analyze the success & failure ratio of transactions, to identify problems & fix them.
Centralized Dashboard
A centralized dashboard to manage all payment & transaction-related details & features is also offered by this software. Information access is simpler using this feature.
Invoicing Capabilities
Most payment gateway software can auto-generate invoices & bills. It saves you time in creating invoices manually and is a highly cost-effective feature for businesses.
Advantages of Payment Gateway
Without a payment gateway software, a business with an online selling component cannot effectively function. More & more customers are migrating towards online payment options and without this software, they cannot do such transactions.
Process International Payments
To have a global reach, online businesses need to be accessible & usable for everyone. With a payment gateway software, businesses can process online transactions made by international customers. This lets them expand their reach & have a viable global presence.
Multi-Currency Capability
Payment gateway software supports multiple currencies i.e. you can receive payments made in currencies different from the one you work with. Common currencies such as Rupee, Dollar, Euro, Yen, etc are supported while another support for other currencies depends on different products.
Completely Secure
Data security is an essential function for safe online payments. Payment gateway software comes with security & encryption tools that ensure online transactions are protected from data leaks or hacks. Payment gateway software comes with PCI DSS compliance and SSL encryption, among others. There are addon fraud protection tools, all of which combined ensures that your website is holding safe transactions with customers.
Multiple Payment Methods
Payment gateway software accepts multiple types of cards including MasterCard, Visa, American Express, RuPay, and PayPal, among others. Aside from cards, payment options like net banking, UPI, e-wallets & such, can be processed using a payment gateway software.
Dispute Resolution
In case of disputes arising due to transaction problems, you can use the software to identify the issue and come up with solutions. Dispute resolution can be done in real-time, which reduces the customer response time on tickets, emails & calls. Consequently, it improves your customer relations & streamlines the customer grievance resolution processes.
Multi-Language Support
The software supports multiple languages, so both users & customers can perform different functions in the language they are comfortable with. Most solutions offer the commonly spoken dialects while customization allows users to add more languages that they need.
Mobile Support
You can use the software to design a payment interface that works perfectly on mobile phones. As more and more users move to shop using mobile phones & tablets, this is an important feature to target such audiences and to allow future customers to make payments seamlessly, using their smartphones.
Autofill OTP
Payment gateway software also comes with OTP autofill capability. If users allow the gateway to read SMS messages, it can read incoming OTP and autofill it during the payment checkout process. This saves your customers time & reduces the likelihood of customers abandoning the payment process.
EMI Payment Support
Many customers, while purchasing costly goods, opt for an EMI payment option. Payment gateway software solutions support the EMI payment option. It informs the website admins & the issuing bank of the EMI details so that both parties can process the payment accordingly. After successfully processing an EMI, the software generates an invoice detailing the EMI information.
How to Get the Payment Gateway Software
Any business’s longevity & success is determined through customer experience. Using a payment gateway software in India, businesses can improve customer experience & simplify payment methods. But how to know which solution to choose?
Understand the Features
Before you buy payment gateway software, it’s of paramount importance that you know the various features offered by a payment gateway provider. This knowledge will help you understand how the software will allow your business to grow. Furthermore, you’ll be able to make an informed choice and pick a payment gateway software suited to your requirements.
Check with Your Web Host
Take a look through your website's control panel and check if there are payment gateway options. This will lead to the quick implementation of payment gateway services to the website.
Pick Between a Director an External Gateway
Direct gateways complete the payment processing within your online store by keeping customers on your site. External gateways redirect customers to a different website to process payment. Pick the type of gateway you wish to implement in your business, for maximum gains.
Check for Security Features
Online transactions are at higher risk of leaks and hacks. Go for a solution that provides security features that allow customers to safely transact on your website. Check for common security measures such as PCI DSS, SSL & such, as well as ask payment gateway provider for add-on security features offered.
Test the Gateway
Payment gateway software providers provide demos and free trials that allow users to check the service & test if it suits business needs. It is important to test the software beforehand, so as not to have unexpected roadblocks.
Frequently Search Software With Payment Gateway Service
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