As a business owner with an online platform, it can be hard to decide on the best payment provider for your retail or hospitality business. There are plenty of great options out there, so how do you know which to choose?
To help you weigh up your options, we’ll look at the features of some of the most popular online payment providers and how they can work for your business.
User experience should be your number one deciding factor in which payment method to choose.
When customers decide to make a booking or purchase, they want to use their preferred payment options with as little hassle as possible; if they encounter any difficulty or holdup at checkout, you’ll lose them. With up to 80% of customers abandoning their carts before checking out, there’s little margin for error.
All the payment providers mentioned here are well-established with a good reputation for providing excellent user experience. However, your chosen method must also work for your business, budget, and existing software systems, so factor these into your decision too.
Payment Providers
Google Pay and Apple Pay
Google Pay (for Android) and Apple Pay (for iPhone) allow shoppers to save their card details to their smartphone so that they can make purchases with one click. Such a simple payment process removes barriers and speeds up the checkout process, increasing conversions and reducing cart abandonment rates.
Google Pay and Apple Pay integrate with eCommerce platforms and payment systems like WooCommerce and Stripe.
Neither Google nor Apple charges merchants transaction fees, although card-provider fees still apply. You may also incur fees from a linked payments provider, for example, if you offer Google Pay and Apple Pay as part of a Stripe integration.
Stripe
Stripe is a payment processing software company that integrates with eCommerce apps and websites to manage payments. One of the standout features of Stripe is that you can use it for both your online and in-person transactions, making it ideal for retail and hospitality businesses with a high street and online presence.
Stripe is the cheapest option for the retailer. Transaction charges range from 1.4% plus 20p for UK card payments, up to 2.9% plus 20p for international transactions. Stripe does offer discounts for businesses handling a large volume of payments.
PayPal
PayPal changed the face of online payments and continues to be one of the most well-recognised and popular payment methods on the market. Customers love Paypal for its security features and ease of use – and it’s always wise to offer customers what they want. PayPal has also recently introduced an option for customers to split payments into instalments, which is proving a hit with online shoppers.
Paypal merchant fees are different for every type of transaction and can be a little confusing. If you’re selling to UK or European customers, fees range from 1.2% plus 20p to 2.9% plus 20p per transaction. International sales have a 1.99% fee.
(Source: Paypal)
As a rule, PayPal seems to side with the customer in most dispute cases. While that’s an effective way of gaining customers’ trust, some companies feel that Paypal’s dispute process is slow and, worryingly, PayPal has been known to freeze merchants’ accounts while the investigation is underway.
WooCommerce Payments
Unsurprisingly, WooCommerce Payments is designed to fully integrate with WooCommerce, the powerful eCommerce platform (read our review of WooCommerce in this blog post). Your digital lead can manage the payments system and your website from the same hub.
WooCommerce Payments offers a range of payment options, including easy, one-click methods, like Google Pay and Apple Pay. It also supports Bancontact, Sofort, giropay and other dedicated payments systems for EEA customers.
Merchant fees for WooCommerce Payments are 1.4% plus 20p for UK and European card transactions, with an additional 1.5% for non-European transactions. Currency conversions incur an extra 2% fee on top (Source: WooCommerce).
Our Conclusion
Here at Zesty Digital, we’re familiar with all the above payments systems, and they all have their pros and cons.
However, on balance, we recommend using WooCommerce Payments and a mix of plugins on a WooCommerce site. You can offer all the leading methods this way, including Stripe, Apple Pay and Google Pay, managed from one digital hub.
This option works well for the merchant, but it also allows you to cater to your different customer preferences by offering the most popular payment methods all at once.
If you’d like help deciding on a payment provider or setting up payment processes, we’re here to help. Get in touch for a no-obligation chat.
