Got an online business? Yes! Looking to make a profit? Sure am! Then choosing the right payment gateway for your e-commerce website can make all the difference.
Customers are constantly browsing online for the best products and deals, but without a convenient, smooth check out process in place, they’ll abandon their shopping baskets faster than the speed of light.
What is a payment gateway?
It’s how your website processes and accepts payments online – leaving customers feeling satisfied that their new purchases are ordered and on the way! Think of it as the red velvet rope to an exclusive night club where, only once all details are checked and authorized, customers can enjoy drinking and dancing until the early hours of the morning (or in this case a trendy top they’ve bought)
Types of payment gateways
Payment gateways are essential to helping your business grow and deliver a great online shopping experience for customers, encouraging them to buy from you again and again.
There are two types of payment gateways: hosted and integrated.
Hosted payment gateways are separate payment processing sites that take control over the customers journey once they clicked “checkout”. In other words they leave your website, which can unfortunately lower its conversion rate as a result.
Integrated payment gateways require more technical input to ensure your e-commerce platform is able to support it. Why? Because these kind of payment gateways are connected to your website, allowing customers to stay put – this is usually done by installing an integrated plugin.
Now that we are experts on payment gateways, let’s take a look at a few options!
PayPal
As one of the most versatile and recognized online payment processors, PayPal has gained quite a reputation since being acquired by eBay all the back in 2002 (the stone age era of the internet!)
Customers trust the name, it’s free to use and they don’t need to fill in their credit card details whenever it comes to purchasing a product. Plus, since it’s a hosted payment gateway, it works across all e-commerce platforms.
Stripe
A relatively new e-commerce payment gateway, Stripe has a lot to offer merchants, especially as it accepts international currencies. There’s no set-up monthly fees either and is ideal for businesses who run an e-commerce store, subscription service, on-demand marketplace, or crowdfunding project because of it’s function to support recurring payments.
Amazon Pay
Finally, another popular brand name is Amazon. It is an incredibly smooth checkout process which enables customers to pay with just one account for multiple items. Plus, because payment information can be processed on-site, your conversion rate won’t suffer for it either.
The best part? No monthly set up fees with affordable transaction costs on top!
How will I know if the payment gateway is a success?
The answer is simple – Do your research, understand your business’s KPIs, read the reviews, and compare costs to see which third-party payment gateway is best for you and your customers. Once you see an increase in orders and less cart abandonments, you know you’re doing something right!
At JAW Digital, we have the technical know-how to bring your e-commerce website up to speed with seamless payment gateway integration for a shopping experience your customers will love! Call us now on or send us an email at to get in touch.
