How to easily accept card payments online now

Are you searching for an online payment method that lets you accept card payments quickly and easily? With the constant growth of online shopping in the UK, your small business is not alone in this quest. But how can you choose the right online payment platform, making sure it has everything your business needs?

The answer is simple – you need various easy-to-work-with channels to get money from your sales. 

In the following sections, we thoroughly explore how to accept card payments online.

How to accept card payments

To understand the ins and outs of collecting payments via card online, it’s fundamental to acknowledge all of the involved parties in the process.

It includes the following:

• A payment gateway;
• A payment processor;
• A card network;
• An acquiring bank;
• The customer’s issuing bank.

You’ll need to follow these steps to take advantage of this process.

Create a merchant account

Merchant accounts are a must if you are a business looking to accept payments. 

After you’ve created your online shop or website, set up a merchant account with your bank or financial institution. Once a company accepts card payments, the transactions and money are stored in the merchant account. After verification, they are sent to the business bank account, where you can access them. 

In the UK, you can open a merchant account with most banks, including HSBC, Barclays, RBS, and more.

Choose the card payments you want to support

As a business, you can choose to accept a range of different card payment options. 

Based on your business type, you can accept card payments in-store, online, via payment links, over the phone, or through invoices.

Select a payment processing system 

Next, choosing a reliable payment processing system that meets your needs and expectations is key. 

Depending on your decision, you’ll also need to invest in hardware and software that will support the process:

• Software – You can rely on a Point-Of-Sale software solution (POS system) designed to help businesses track inventory and sales data. POS systems include card reader machines and other alternatives, like manual data entry. In most cases, card readers are the preferred option. 
• Hardware – When it comes to hardware, some of the options to explore include EMV readers, mobile credit card terminals, and countertop POS systems. 

Once you have all of these steps in place, you can start accepting card payments online via payment links, social media “but buttons”, online shops, invoices, and more.

What happens when you take card payments

Once the shopper inputs their card information at checkout and clicks on the “Pay” button, the payment gateway transmits a payment request to the payment processor.

Next, the payment processor or payment service provider sends this request to the card network, which then sends it to the issuer. 

Once the cardholder is verified and confirmed that they have enough money in their account, the payment is authorised. 

The approval notification is sent to the acquirer, who informs the merchant about the authorisation. The merchant then confirms the transaction with the cardholder, and the funds are successfully delivered from the consumer’s bank account to the business’s account. When you accept customer payments via card, the funds will typically be delivered to your bank account over a period of 2-3 working days. 

You’ll be notified about the incurred service fees for each transaction, which are accumulated and included in your merchant statement at the end of each month.

Ways to accept card payments

Here are 6 such ways to receive payments online with the help of myPOS.

Virtual Terminal

myPOS Virtual Terminal lets you take credit card payments and debit card payments online, on the phone or by email, no matter where your clients are located. All payments are completed online through a secure page that can be found in the user’s online merchant account. These types of payment terminals are the perfect solutions for businesses that often accept card-not-present transactions, like hotels and car rentals.

PayButton

myPOS PayButton is a simple and effective way to accept online payments by clicking on a payment button. PayButton is especially useful for websites with a single item purchase option – it generates a button with a pre-defined amount of money behind it and lets clients pay with a single click.

PayLink

myPOS PayLink is a very useful online payment option that lets sellers create a web link for making a secure payment. They can then send it to clients across the world along with their invoice and wait for their payment to arrive quickly and easily.

Checkout

myPOS Checkout is an online payment system, which offers a number of easy-to-use and secure shopping carts. They can be quickly and effortlessly integrated in your online store for increased sales results. From Magento through OpenCart and WooCommerce to PrestaShop and others, the choice is simply yours!

Payment Request

myPOS Payment Request is a very ingenious and useful online payment functionality that lets you accept payments from your clients with ease no matter where they are. Payment Request generates payment links that you can send via email, SMS or a chat app to your customers. They can then complete the payment process on a secure checkout webpage while you are tracking the entire process.

Payment Gateway

myPOS Payment Gateway for small business is a convenient tool that receives all payments in any web or mobile environment. It allows its users to accept payments online or via a mobile device and works as an online version of a credit card machine. It also keeps track of all transactions and shows real-time reports for added convenience.

Advantages of accepting card payments

Overall, most businesses that offer online payments or accept credit cards or debit cards increase sales. This is due to a number of different benefits associated with accepting card payments, regardless of whether you’re a small business owner or run a large business online. 

Research reveals that 47% of retailers (small businesses and large organisations) accept traditional card payments (credit and debit cards). Another interesting revelation that this study makes is that 48% of shoppers prefer a contactless payment method. 

So, what are the perks for small business owners and large retailers from accepting debit and credit cards online?

Here are the advantages of accepting card payments:

• Improved customer experience – Businesses that take credit card payments often provide an enhanced customer experience to shoppers. Accepting card transactions allows you to satisfy a rising demand for this payment method, especially with the rise of digital wallets like Google Pay and Apple Pay.
  
• The potential to increase sales – Business owners who collect payments via this method also can increase sales and minimise card abandonment rates. This is because shoppers will be encouraged to complete their purchase after noticing that you accept credit card and debit card payments.
  
• You get paid faster as a business – Accepting payments online via card means that you are accepting payments directly. When a customer pays using credit or debit cards, the payment is authorised almost instantly.
  
  This contrasts with other payment methods, such as checks or bank payments, which can take several days to clear. Although bank payments like direct debit are frequently used (especially by companies that rely on recurring payments), they are more time-consuming.
  
• Improved brand image – Supporting some of the most popular payment methods, like card payments, helps create a positive brand image. It helps create the perception that you’re a reputable business owner who works according to the highest standards. 

These are just a few of the top benefits businesses can take advantage of when accepting card payments online.

Based on the nature of your business and your specific niche, the advantages could be even more attractive and unmissable.

Costs of accepting card payments

When considering accepting card payments for your online business, it’s key to evaluate the monthly fees and transaction fees associated with the process. 

In addition, be sure to check for hidden fees or extra cost that may be accumulated for this service. 

In most cases, credit card processing fees span from 1.5% to 3.5% of the transaction amount. However, these expenses are not fixed and will change depending on different factors. 

When it comes to credit card fees, it’s essential to consider interchange fees, assessment fees, and payment processing fees. 

Interchange fees range between 0.3% and 2% of the transaction amount in addition to a fixed charge and are collected by card issuers for payment processing.  

On the other hand, assessment fees span from 0.12% to 0.15%. They are collected by credit card networks, which deduct this cost from each payment. In return, you can use their credit card network and accept their cards.  

Finally, payment processing fees are collected by a payment processor to manage the transaction and communicate with other involved parties. The payment processing fee depends on the size of your business, your business type, and other details and is usually negotiated.

How secure is card payment

Generally, card payments are considered a secure payment option thanks to a variety of safety mechanisms that can be put in place to protect sensitive payment information.

For example, some of the most popular security features implemented include encryption via SSL and TLS protocols, tokenization, PCI DSS compliance, and different authentication mechanisms.

Conclusion

With a complete set of online payment services by myPOS you will be able to accept any card payments online no matter where they come from. All it takes to start accepting more online card payments easier is to decide which tools among the six fit your business needs best. And, make sure to check our online payments acceptance web page. If you need more information on our services or simply get in touch with us now.

Accepting online payments is easy – simply start with myPOS!