Is the Health of Your Payment Technology a New Year’s Resolution?

COVID has certainly challenged businesses of all types and sizes to rethink the way products and services are made available to their customers. Through these challenges, there have been numerous innovations and improvements that will outlast COVID. What will 2021 bring and is your business prepared.

Online Digital Payment Solutions

We’re all in this together, apart … at home and online … shopping. As we start to think about the new normal, how will your business proactively prepare for how customers want to shop in 2021? Adobe Analytics reports U.S. online sales in September increased 43% by year-over-year. If you’re exploring the option of opening an online store or recently began processing payments online, then it’s a good time to look at the health of your payment solutions.

• Technology, Compliance, & Chargebacks: Evaluate your current merchant services with a trusted provider. Validate you have the proper technology, such as a secure online gateway. Confirm you are meeting PCI compliance guidelines to protect you and your business from potential fraud and put in a place a strategy to avoid, reduce and dispute chargebacks.

• Mitigating Risk, Reducing Fraud: Businesses across all industries have transitioned to online sales as a method of survival through COVID. As a result, there have been higher rates of fraud and chargebacks. To mitigate risk, it’s best to include multi-layer fraud detection, adhere to best practices, make cancellations easy and promptly reply to customer inquiries.

If your business anticipates a higher volume through online business, it’s recommended that you contact your payment processor to make them aware of this increase. A sudden surge in online sales may appear suspicious and lead to funds being held or delayed.

In-Store Digital Payment Solutions

• Contactless and EMV: COVID has accelerated the adoption of contactless payments. Visa reports contactless payments have grown by 40% year-over-year. Contactless transactions offer the benefit of speed while following the same security as EMV chip cards. The extra advantage of contactless over EMV is that the card never leaves the possession of the consumer, leading to a lower risk of leaving it in the terminal. Your business will save time on every transaction and your customer experience and satisfaction will improve.

• Cash Discount Programs: The fees associated with card acceptance continue to chip away at business profits. Due to this, many businesses will consider cash discount or surcharge programs. Advancements in technology such as Aurora’s proprietary cash discount software, Rise Free, allows the merchant to continue accepting card payments while eliminating card processing costs.
• Gift & Loyalty card solutions: Gift cards are a great way for businesses to receive revenue and transact quickly. Take advantage of gift cards by stocking them in an area near your point-of-sale and accessible to online shoppers.

Aurora Payments is a leading digital payment services and solutions organization headquartered in Tempe, Arizona. Aurora offers a variety of best-in-class technology platforms and payment solutions supported by on-site technical support experts that make up an all-in-one ecosystem to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. For more information, visit https://go.risewithaurora.com/partner-asba.