E-commerce & the “New Normal”

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2020 – a year filled with uncertainty, adversity, and surprises. All industries suffered massive losses, adjusted to ever-shifting consumer needs, and confronted both the challenging and inspiring sides of change. In the wake of the new environment, humanity has proven one thing: when push comes to shove, we do what we must to adjust and be better. One of the biggest changes this year has been the (close to) complete transition into e-commerce. Those with access to stable internet connection and working gadgets have dabbled in online shopping, whether as a consumer or as a product or service provider.

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With a few swipes and clicks, orders are placed, shipping details are finalized, and in a matter of days, your items arrive right at your doorstep. However, is the full transaction really that simple? Fortunately for consumers, it is. For providers, it’s a different story.

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Online Payments: What is it really like for providers?

In general, online payments follow these steps:

1.  A cashless transaction is made by the consumer via e-wallet, debit card, or credit card.

2.  Payment details are verified by a payment gateway.

3.  Payment is wired to a merchant account.

4.  Payment is transferred into the merchant’s official bank account.

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This process can seem technical, confusing, and intimidating – especially for providers who are trying their hand at e-commerce for the first time. To explain further:

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Cashless transactions are all payment methods that do not involve actual cash and/or cheques. As such, they include e-wallets, debit cards, and credit cards – the safest and most convenient payment methods.

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Payment gateways are basically security measures – they verify consumer information (to ensure there is no fraudulent activity), then they either process or decline each transaction. If for example, a consumer has insufficient funds linked to his or her credit card, the payment gateway will decline the transaction completely. This gateway is also a highly secure network since it verifies sensitive and highly confidential consumer information. Although this process seems lengthy, it all happens within a few seconds.

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Merchant accounts. Here lies the tricky, grueling, and tedious part for providers who offer online payment options. Merchant accounts are set up for both security and monitoring purposes. Each merchant account has a unique merchant identification number (MID) that identifies every online retailer and ensures that all their transactions are routed through the proper networks. This makes fraudulent activity less likely and easier to track in the case that it does happen – a win-win situation for both providers and consumers. However, getting a merchant account entails further steps:

1.  Providers first need an acquiring bank that will process consumers’ payments for them.

2. Then, providers also need a secure payment gateway that will verify consumers’ account information and eventually allow the payments to be transferred into the merchant account.

Getting both an approved acquiring bank and payment gateway is a rigorous process that may take several days or weeks, which can discourage providers.

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Is There an Easier Process for Merchants?

With the rapid growth of e-commerce, there must be a more convenient way to offer consumers online payment options, while still assuring the safety and security measures offered by a merchant account. This is where payment integrators come in.

A payment integrator facilitates quick, easy, and efficient processing of sub-merchant accounts for all types of businesses – whether you manage an established business, SME, government unit, or educational institution, payment integrators provide the best solution, so that you can offer any and every payment option to your market.

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How Do Payment Integrators Work?

Recall the intricacies and importance of owning a merchant account – with a payment integrator, providers are enrolled in a sub-merchant account that is part of the payment integrator’s master merchant account.

As a provider, you will only need to send an application and verification documents. The acquiring bank, payment gateway, and other tedious processes are taken care of by the payment integrator. Compared to the arduous process required of you to enroll in your own merchant account, using a payment integrator is quicker, easier, and overall, more convenient – for both you and your consumers.

Why is a Payment Integrator the Best Solution for Everyone?

There is no denying that the safest, most convenient, and ultimately most successful payment option today is cashless. With the social, economic, and scientific revelations of the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses big and small must consider joining the e-commerce industry completely. With the transaction process being tedious and time-consuming for providers, payment integrators offer convenience, ease of use, and quality without compromising the security and reliability of the merchant account system. With payment integrators, providers can offer consumers multiple payment options, transitioning into a fully operational e-commerce business with ease and simplicity.

What Payment Integrators are out there?

A great payment integrator for your business is GiyaPay! This is a service that provides all these benefits and makes payment transactions so much easier for everyone. GiyaPay is an easy-to-use online payment solution that unifies a variety of online payment gateways into one payment button. It aims to provide easy set-up with a simplified user journey for the payor and consolidated reports for the business.

You can learn more about the service by going to https://giyapay.com. GiyaPay can be your complete payment solution!

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SOURCES:
[1] https://www.bambora.com/en/au/news/whats-the-difference-between-a-payment-facilitator-payment-gateway–merchant-account/
‍[2] https://emerchantbroker.com/blog/merchant-identification-numbers-mid-what-you-should-know/#:~:text=Every%20new%20merchant%20account%20comes,processing%20payments%20through%20a%20network.
[3] https://touchsuite.com/merchant-identification-numbers-101/
‍[4] https://www.pymnts.com/news/payment-methods/2016/nmi-payment-facilitator/#:~:text=A%20payment%20facilitator%20is%20a,in%20the%20merchant%20services%20space.