How To Accept Card Payments Over the Phone?
- New Payment Innovation Ireland
- July 26, 2022
With hard cash disappearing from our transactions, thanks to COVID and changing consumer behaviour, more and more businesses are inclining towards accepting credit card payments online. As we speak, an average consumer in the United States is making around 35 online payments every single month. Among these debit cards do for around 10 payments, credit cards for 9 and remaining with cash. (According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s 2020 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice). If you are planning a successful business in 2022, accepting credit/debit payments over the phone is an imperative prerequisite.
Whether you are running a retail store or a restaurant business, taking orders over the phone reduces your business’ collection times and helps give a good boost to your sales. It is because by enabling your customers to make their card payments over the phone, you are not just providing them with better financial freedom but are also boosting their satisfaction in terms of their online payments.
Most importantly, accepting payments over the phone is the best way to reach customers who are hesitant to use their credit card online or who do not have access to an online payment processor, such as NPI. Once you’ve established your business’s credibility and built up trust with customers, accepting credit card payments over the phone can be easy, quick, and safe as long as you follow the provided steps.
Is It Possible to Take Card Payments Over the Phone?
The short answer is yes. However, there are several things you need to do for it to be legal and secure. Accepting payments over the phone can be significantly beneficial for your business and falls in any of the below categories:
- Remote Services: All the delivery-based businesses that serve their customers at their remote places and do not require customers to call on them.
- On-the-Go Works: All the businesses that accept payments in advance or deliver their services at later dates are better suited by card payments over the phone.
- Less processing Time: All the businesses that entertain very small processing times and look for quicker modes of payment than check/bank transfer/wire.
- Cashless Business: All the businesses that don’t entertain cash on their premises and advise their employees to go for safer payment/transaction methods. NPI is the way to go.
- Upfront Payments: All the business models that only allow taking upfront payments must create certain safeguard layers to protect their business transactions.
In short, for all the customers and businesses that look for ways to constrain human interaction before and during the payments to make the transactions easier, safer, and quicker. NPI offers the most reliable over-the-phone options with their advanced virtual terminals and customized POS systems. How good would your business be if your customers are enabled to make their transactions without looking for an ATM or a card reader nearby?
How Safe Is It to Take Payments Over the Phone?
If you’re a small business, getting payment cards might seem like a daunting prospect. How will customers pay? How will you verify their identity? Will they claim on their card statement that they didn’t receive your product or service? Don’t worry! There are plenty of ways you can take payment cards safely and securely.
The safest and most recommended method for accepting card payments over the phone without getting overwhelmed by the risks associated with the process is complying with PCI DSS requirements. When your business ensures good compliance with PCI DSS guidelines, you are in one way giving confidence to your customers to invest their trust in you. And in another way, you are making sure that you uphold the utmost security when it comes to accepting, storing, processing, and transmitting data of the cardholder during all the card transactions to your business.
All the businesses associated with NPI are ensured 100% PCI DSS compliance. If you are a business owner who doesn’t wish to accept any fines caused by non-compliance and wants to ensure things running smoothly. Hiring NPI as your payment provider is the best suggestion one can give you today, from completing with virtual terminals to complaining about the legal work for your business. In short, NPI does it all, ensuring that simple errors, honest mistakes, and disputes are resolved equitably.
How to Take Payments over the Phone?
There is nothing more important for a business to make its payments easy, safe, and quick. Here are a few tips and tricks that will help you take card payments over the phone. You’ll be able to increase your revenue with a bit of extra cost and effort, so don’t miss out on these tips! Taking payments over the phone is simple and secure when you follow these steps:
- Virtual Payment Terminal
A virtual payment terminal is a secure device that allows you to accept credit and debit card payments through your smartphone or tablet. It will allow you to accept payments anywhere, anytime—all you need is an internet connection. A good virtual payment terminal makes it easy for customers to pay with a single touch of their mobile device screen.
- Mobile POS Systems
Quick and convenient, mobile POS systems are ideal for business owners who frequently visit their stores or use several different locations. These portable devices allow you to swipe credit cards and instantly process them on-site. You can also accept payments via your phone with apps like NPI that utilize near-field communication (NFC) technology. For more information about how to accept card payments over the phone, contact your local business centre today!
What Does It Cost to Accept Credit Cards Over the Phone?
While smartphone-based mobile payments and other innovations are great, if you don’t have a merchant account, you can’t accept credit cards. While it’s still possible to set up an online store without a merchant account, as we discussed above, accepting card payments isn’t exactly easy. Getting started with e-commerce and accepting credit cards at your business will cost you some money. Depending upon the category and size of your business, this cost will vary. But it is all worth it.
Conclusion
Accepting card payments over the phone is the best thing you can do for your online business. And NPI will help you every step of the way. But before accepting a credit card over the phone, it’s important to be aware of how much a transaction might cost you. The reason for these high costs is that customers are using their cards for purchases online more often now than ever before. To ensure you don’t pass on your costs, it’s best practice to make sure your customers aren’t hit with any unexpected charges and that you take precautions against fraud. This can save you money in transaction fees and losses due to fraud.
