Online shopping is an integral part of modern life. An ever-growing number of consumers turn to this kind of shopping, and more and more entrepreneurs open online stores. Statista estimates that e-commerce sales will reach $5.8 trillion in 2023 and could exceed $8 trillion by 2027.
E-commerce businesses need to accept online payments — in 2023, the volume of online transactions in this segment exceeded $6.6 billion. To ensure high conversion rates, you need to choose a convenient, functional and reliable service. This article tells you how to select an online acquiring service and integrate it into your website.
What Is Online Acquiring
Online acquiring is a system that allows you to accept payments on a company's or online store's website. The transfer can be made from a bank card or an e-wallet.
Payment by acquiring occurs as follows:
- The customer selects a product or service on the website, and then presses the payment button.
- The system redirects the customer to the page of the payment gateway.
- The customer enters payment information — for example, bank card details.
- The payment system transmits the information to the acquiring bank — the organization that accepts the payment.
- The acquirer sends a request to the issuer — the institution that issued the customer's card.
- The issuer checks the payment information: data validity, relevance of the card used, whether there are funds on the account. If any irregularities are detected, the transaction is canceled.
- If the check's result is positive, the issuer notifies the client about debiting the funds and sends a code to confirm the transaction (optional).
- Information on transaction approval is transmitted to the acquiring bank and payment system.
- The funds are debited from the customer's account and transferred to the acquiring bank.
- The acquirer transfers the funds to the seller's account.
From the buyer's point of view, the whole process usually takes no more than a minute. The receipt of funds to the seller's account, in turn, can take several days depending on the Internet acquiring service chosen.
Types of Internet Acquiring
Internet acquiring services can be provided by four main types of organizations: banks, payment systems, aggregators, and crypto processing. Let's examine them more closely.
Bank acquiring
Acquiring services are offered by most banks. This method of accepting payments is characterized by high reliability and usually involves lower commissions than when working with payment systems.
Nevertheless, this method of transaction processing only supports payment via bank cards.
Payment systems
In today's e-commerce market, there are many payment systems that offer integration of Internet acquiring to a website. Among them are Stripe, PayPal.
The entrepreneur receives funds to the account of his account, after which he can withdraw them to a bank card. The payment methods available to the buyer depend on the system chosen — for example, when paying via PayPal, the client can use his PayPal account.
Payment aggregators
Aggregators are the most universal internet acquiring for a website. Such services allow you to accept payment via bank cards, e-wallets and other methods.
It is not necessary to conclude separate contracts with different payment systems — it is enough to integrate the aggregator itself. Nevertheless, the acquiring fee will, in most cases, be higher than when using other payment methods.
Crypto acquiring
Crypto payments are a relatively new payment option for goods and services, but they are gradually gaining popularity due to their high transaction processing speed, security, and low commissions.
You can organize the acceptance of cryptocurrency payments through crypto processing, for example, CryptoCloud. The system will automate the processing and confirmation of transfers, making the payment process convenient for both parties.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet Acquiring
Entrepreneurs use internet acquiring to accept website payments for several reasons:
- Convenience. Payment is processed automatically: the seller does not need to manually place an order, and the buyer does not need to wait for confirmation.
- Audience growth. Integrating a system that supports payment not only by bank card is a chance to attract customers who prefer less common payment methods.
- Reduced payment time. Popular acquirers process transactions in seconds.
- 24/7 payment acceptance. You can accept payments at any time of the day and on weekends — allowing you to place orders even after hours.
- Recurring payments support. For companies working in subscription mode, acquiring connection will allow you to set up automatic renewal.
- Cost reduction. By eliminating the need to confirm transactions manually when acquiring is connected, businesses save time and money.
Nevertheless, online acquiring has disadvantages:
- Delays in depositing funds into the account. Withdrawing money can take up to a week, depending on the system.
- The size of commissions. Some services charge quite high commissions, which increases the company's expenses.
Selection Criteria
You can choose a service to accept online payments based on several factors:
- Fees. It is important to read the service's terms and conditions and consider both basic commissions and hidden fees that may be charged for additional services.
- Support of international payments. If at least part of the business' target audience is located abroad, it is important to make sure that the system allows you to accept payments from abroad.
- Security. The service should meet security standards and ensure that buyers' payment and personal information is protected.
- Withdrawal timeframe. Usually it is 3-5 business days, but some systems offer the possibility to withdraw money instantly — this can be an additional advantage.
- Support for various payment systems. The service should work with platforms relevant to the company's customers.
- Customer support. Prompt and available 24/7 tech support increases the likelihood of quick resolution of problems that may arise when using acquiring.
- Interface usability. Intuitive design is an important factor for increasing conversion: the payment process should be simple and not involve additional actions on the buyer's part.
- Variety of payment instruments. Acquiring systems that process payment in several ways (card, e-wallet, etc.) are a useful tool for increasing conversion and attracting new customers.
- Online reputation. User reviews will help to assess the advantages of the system in advance and identify disadvantages that can not be noticed when studying the official website.
Connection Requirements
To integrate Internet acquiring, the website must meet the system's requirements. Although specific services can set their own rules, several conditions are common to most of them.
First, companies are not allowed to engage in illegal activities or sell prohibited products. In addition, most acquiring services have their own list of goods and services, the sale of which is not allowed or requires separate approval.
Secondly, most systems check the company's website. It must work correctly and contain the necessary elements (user agreement, terms of delivery and return, information on the protection of personal data).
In addition, the company must be registered in the country where the system works.
Online Acquiring Connection: Step-by-Step Guide
To connect online acquiring to the website, you will need:
- Choose a plan. Most systems offer several packages with a different set of functions.
- Submit an application. As a rule, it specifies contacts, website and business specifics. All details are discussed later with the system manager.
- Provide the necessary documents. Their list depends on the chosen system.
- Sign the contract, having agreed all the peculiarities of connection with the service representative.
- Set up integration. Most systems offer ready-made solutions for ecommerce-platforms, as well as connection via API.
- Test payment. This will ensure that the service works correctly.
- Register the cash register with the Federal Tax Service.
- Configure receipts. A number of ready-made modules are available for this purpose.
Connecting Crypto Acquiring CryptoCloud
A majority of payment processors work only in particular countries. Cryptocurrency payments are an affordable alternative.
CryptoCloud crypto processor is a tool for working with clients anywhere in the world. The system connects simply and quickly, and also charges a minimal commission — from 0.4%, which allows you to save on acquiring.
The cryptocurrency payment gateway processes Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Tether and other currencies. Payments can be accepted both on the website and on other platforms thanks to payment links. Merchants can work with analytics, provide access to the project to company employees and withdraw funds within minutes.
Only email is required for registration. Connection is performed within an hour thanks to a user-friendly interface and ready-made plugins for CMS.
Internet Acquiring for E-commerce
E-commerce business cannot be run without accepting payments — and Internet acquiring will help to automate this process. There are many available systems that provide such services.
Crypto processing helps to accept payments from abroad — CryptoCloud will allow you to automate cryptocurrency payments and offer buyers a convenient checkout available in several languages.
