In today’s digital world, merchants have no shortage of payment processing platforms to choose from. Whether you operate an online store, a brick-and-mortar shop, or do business across multiple channels, the technology you choose to handle credit card payments can significantly impact your operations, customer satisfaction, and bottom line. Here are three key considerations to keep in mind when evaluating payment processing platforms:
1. Integration Value – Does the Solution Fit Seamlessly into Your Tech Stack?
When looking at payment processing platforms, one of the most critical factors to consider is how well it will integrate with the rest of your technology stack. Will it be able to communicate with the applications you already use to create orders, move them through to fulfillment, and manage customer relationships? What about your e-commerce platform? If it can’t integrate with these systems – either natively or through an API toolkit – you’ll be looking at time-consuming and error-prone manual data entry – not to mention disjointed reporting and reconciliation.
Integration can also go beyond just technology; it can also include your established business processes. If you choose a payment processing platform with rigid rules for how and when you can run a transaction, you’ll be stuck with those rules as long as you’re on the platform. Missing out on the flexibility to change (for instance) the way you issue refunds or take deposits for made-to-order products can limit your ability to evolve your processes as your business grows.
2. Data Security – What Controls Are in Place to Protect Your Customers’ Information?
Any platform that you use to process, store, or transmit your customers’ credit card data must be able to keep that data safe.
Data breaches can have severe financial and reputational consequences – and they’re more common than one might think. When evaluating payment processing platforms, take the time to ask about the controls that are in place to prevent unauthorized access.
Data Security Best Practices
At a minimum, you should only short-list platforms that incorporate industry-standard security protocols, such as encryption and tokenization. These technologies help protect sensitive information during transmission and storage. (In the case of tokenization, it means that physical credit card numbers don’t even exist on your system, so if a breach were to occur, there’s no sensitive data present for a hacker to take.)
For even more peace of mind, ask about the platform’s compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). A PCI-Validated Level 1 Service Provider must complete an annual audit to validate their security efforts; this certification allows merchants to put even more trust in the controls the vendor has in place.
3. Compliance – Can It Help You Navigate the Regulatory Landscape?
When it comes to PCI, it’s not just service providers (aka software vendors) that need to complete annual assessments. Merchants have their own requirements that they must complete to remain in good standing with their acquirer.
These compliance efforts can be a complex and daunting task – especially for smaller organizations that don’t have designated Information Security teams. However, the right payment processing platform can simplify your journey towards meeting industry regulations and standards.
Some credit card solutions can take parts (or all!) of your environment out of scope for your PCI compliance questionnaire. (This means that you don’t have to spend time collecting evidence and documentation about these systems’ security controls.) Payment processing platforms that prevent your environment from touching card data can considerably reduce your burden of compliance, save on associated costs, and reduce your risk of non-compliance fines.
Additional Considerations
These are some of the most important questions to ask, but they’re certainly not the only considerations. A few other factors to keep in mind when evaluating payment processing platforms for your business:
- Can you use the same platform across all of your sales channels? If you sell products online, over the phone, and in a brick-and-mortar store, you could easily end up with three different credit card solutions. However, one unified payment processing platform that supports all the ways you do business delivers a much more convenient experience. (Added bonus: you don’t have to deal with three separate implementations.) A single platform simplifies management, reporting, and troubleshooting, consolidating your data and making your business more agile and efficient.
- What are the costs – both up-front and over time? Credit card fees can be tricky; if you don’t have a clear understanding of what you’ll pay and why, hidden costs can quickly eat into your revenue. Get specific about pricing structure (including per-transaction fees and monthly charges) and how it may impact your bottom line.
- What can you expect when it comes to uptime and downtime? If you can’t process transactions, your entire business comes to a halt. Ask what you can expect as far as uptime and downtime, and whether you can point to specific SLAs that ensure uninterrupted payment processing for your customers.
- What level of support will you receive from the vendor? If issues do arise, how quickly will they be resolved? Even the most reliable payment processing platform still requires responsive customer support.
- Which acquirer(s) can the system support? This can ultimately affect your transaction rates and processing capabilities.
Choosing the right payment processing platform is a strategic decision that can have a profound impact on your business. With these priorities in mind, you can select a platform that meets your current needs and sets you up for future success in an ever-evolving payment landscape.
Discover Curbstone’s Fast, Secure Payment Processing Platform
At Curbstone, we built our payment processing platform to deliver the highest levels of integration, security, and compliance – without sacrificing reliability or support. With full support for all the ways – and all the places – you do business, it’s a convenient way to manage your credit card transactions.
Want to see it in action? Contact us today for more information or a no-cost demo.
