Starting a business is an exciting adventure. The possibilities are laid out in front of you, and the future looks bright. Before you get going, though, you want to make sure that you have the infrastructure in place to deal with one of the most crucial aspects of business: streamlining your payment systems.
This may seem simple, but with so many ways to give and accept payment, you want to make sure that you give your customers plenty of options while being able to keep up with new technology. Gone are the days of cash and checks. Now, almost everything is done digitally, and with all of the options available, you want to make sure life is as easy as possible for you and your customers.
Here are 5 Ways to Streamline your Payment Systems
1. Flexibility
There are so many ways to process payments now, and your customers are going to expect flexibility. This will make them more likely to want to do business with you, and by offering flexibility, you are giving yourself a better chance of widening your customer base.
These days, the two main methods of payment are credit cards and ACH payments (automated clearing house).
Credit cards are widely popular because they work seamlessly with the digital process. ACH payments have become widely popular for their simplicity as well. Instead of having to process credit, an ACH payment does a direct transfer from one bank to another. This process is as quick as it is simple.
You should still give your customers the options to pay with cash (if you have a physical location) and check, but digital transactions are here to stay, and there are going to be even more options in the future (think cryptocurrency and the evolution of money).
2. Streamline billing
Processing fees might seem a bit scary, but in the end, you are paying to have more time. Processing payments manually can take so much time, enough that you might even consider hiring someone for the role.
Utilizing modern payment systems like ACH payments can wind up saving you time and money. Yes, there is a fee upfront and a fee for the processing but imagine how much money you could save when you don’t have to pay someone to do it for you. Plus, having a modern payment system that automatically does the processing work for you will save you more time than you could imagine.
Not only is the processing quick and easy, but it all winds up in one spot. This is to say that in the end, you will have more time, save money, and be more organized than if you did things manually.
3. Express options
As the world becomes more digitally focused, customers will demand more accessibility and more ease. A great way to accommodate this is the option of express checkout. Give your customers an option to set up a personalized account with your business, so they don’t have to fuss with filling out details every time they shop. They’ll also be able to save items to their cart, which could incentivize them to shop even more at your shop.
Another way to do this is to support payment options like Apple Pay and Google Pay. These should be available not only online but in a brick and mortar as well.
4. Automation
This is for your end of things. You are going to have to deal with vendors, and much like your customers, you want your payments to be as easy as possible. By automating your accounts payable, you will save precious time than if you did it yourself. You will also save yourself the headache of human error.
Automation is great not just for sending out money when it needs to be sent but for keeping track of data, stats, due dates, expiration dates, and others. If you have a fully automated system, you also have a security system working for you. Any odd activity will be detected, and you will be notified.
You will save valuable hours by automating this process, you will be more organized, and you won’t have to worry about defaulting on payments.
5. Stay up to date
Technology is moving fast, and you need to move with it. By having the proper infrastructure in place, you will be able to update software as newer versions come out. Truly, the best way to stay streamlined is by embracing modern tech.
