The Benefits Of A Modern Payment System

If you run a business which provides goods or services to the public, there’s simply nothing that matters more than making sure you get paid promptly and securely. Modern payment systems work equally well for your business and for your customers, ensuring that cash flow remains steady and that the process of making a payment is as frictionless as possible. There are various types of modern payment systems, each with built-in advantages for your business.

Advantages of modern payment systems

The advantages of working with a modern payment system include the following:

Total flexibility

Meeting customer expectations is vital to any business, and for a retail business those expectations are for total flexibility. Customers now expect to be able to make a payment using a method of their choice, and if you don’t offer the full range then they could simply decide to shop elsewhere. The payment system you use should be able to work with all types of debit and credit cards, and switch between chip and PIN and contactless payments using EMV smart cards. At the same time, you need to have the technological framework in place to adapt to newer payment systems as they emerge, such as the more recent arrival of Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay. 

Affordable pricing

The interchange rates set by payment card networks are a fact of life for any business which processes card payments, and even the most advanced payment system can’t operate without these charges. Modern payment systems work to reduce the mark-up they charge on those fees. The result of a competitive market place amongst applications such as online payment systems is that the mark-up on the fees charged is driven lower to keep the transaction rate down. 

Prompt payment 

The kind of electronic transactions handled by different types of modern payment systems enable much faster reconciliation of payments than any traditional methods. Digital connectivity, as utilised by GoCardless, makes it possible for money to be transferred by buyer to seller at much greater speed. In the UK and Germany, the GoCardless system makes use of the latest open banking technology in order to offer the option of instant bank pay. This is a method which lacks the complication of bank transfers and the transaction fees of card payments. Traditional bank debits are ill-suited to one-off payments, while the instant bank pay system offers direct bank-to-bank transfers with instant confirmation, and has been found to be 54% cheaper than online card transactions.     

Security

The integrated nature of modern payment systems means that the transactions being handled are far more secure than those made using payment technology which is non-integrated. In addition to greater security, the seamless integration available means that the paperwork surrounding sales – invoices and receipts – are updated in real time, making accurate record-keeping much simpler.   

Operational costs 

Once a modern payment system has been set up across a business, the lines of communication between separate payment devices and workstations are operational. This makes it easier to manage the system as a whole and each of the multiple payment devices across that system. Ease of operation also means lower costs across the board and a smoother customer experience.  

We can help

GoCardless is a global payments solution that helps you automate payment collection, cutting down on the amount of financial admin your team needs to deal with. Find out how GoCardless can help you with one-off or recurring payments.