Having a great ecommerce website is essential as an online seller of any type. At the same time, your site needs to be complemented by an efficient and easy to use payment gateway; anything less just doesn’t cut it and you may just find your buyers abandoning their shopping baskets one too many times.

Put yourself in the shoes of your customer and you will understand that the purchasing experience needs to be simple and seamless, particularly at checkout. Whichever 3rd party payment app your web developer chooses to add to your site, it needs to be solid and reputable, whilst being a recognised name that buyers will trust.

Why add a payment gateway to your website?
The payment gateway on your website will take charge of all purchasing tasks such as making sensitive information secure (think credit card details), whilst enabling you to comply with data security standards and ensuring that the transaction is safe. This saves you a lot of time as you won’t need to worry about inputting customer information manually. Buyers will also be enabled to use a choice of payment methods and cards, increasing the chance of more sales for you; this is an essential option as lack of payment options has been seen to result in shopping carts being abandoned at the final hurdle.

Your web developer will take all of the following into account before settling on the chosen ecommerce payment gateway provider, selecting the one that ticks the most of the following boxes:

• Security – being safe and reputable is essential in order to encourage customers to punch in their numbers.
• Cost – all payment gateway providers charge fees so these need to be compared, ensuring that there are no unforeseen costs for you or your customer.
• Accepted Payment Methods – offering a wide variety is good, given that 50% of online shoppers say that they would not proceed with a purchase if their preferred method of payment is not shown. 40% of buyers also feel more confident when shopping at an ecommerce site that offers multiple payment methods.
• Compatibility – the gateway and your platform need to gel together well, technically and from a design viewpoint. Some can be customised to match your site but not all and if the gateway jars with your brand, customers may be put off.
• Payment Location – some gateways allow payment to be made whilst still on your website; others redirect the customer to their own 3rd party site.

Choosing your payment gateway provider
Now for the final step, which is choosing the payment gateway app provider. With 46% of shopping trolleys being abandoned at payment stage due to customers not feeling happy to proceed, this is a crucial choice and not one that your web develop will take lightly. Here the top 5 most popular ecommerce payment gateway providers chosen by web developers, with key features highlighted.

1. Amazon Payments – a well-known name and one that you customers will immediately recognise. Purchasers can use their current login details for their Amazon account so immediately they feel a sense of familiarity and trust. API driven, it can be customised to match the look of your site, usually by choosing free plugins. Payments are made via your site and are not redirected and it works well on all devices, including mobiles. With 62% of users making a purchase via their mobile, this is essential.

2. WePay – free to set up, this can handle even complex payments such as those made via multiple payers. Suited to both domestic and international customers, is also comes with a useful support centre. Offers up-to-date payment options such as Apple Pay and Android Pay.

3. PayPal – incredibly popular and one of the most well-known and widely accepted payment gateways, PayPal states that it provides a 44% higher checkout conversion. Customer support and fraud protection is included as well as the fact that it works with all types of ecommerce platforms and shopping carts. Scalable as your business grows, it offers a choice of payment solutions and your web designer can add a PayPal button on your site in just a few minutes. Customers do have to leave your site to pay but because PayPal is so well known, this if not often a problem.

4. Authorize.net – great for SMEs, if your ecommerce website development needs to include a good choice of payment options then your web designer may opt for this one. Providing a secure service with a verified safety label and customised checkout pages, advanced fraud detection is included. They also offer a superb customer service option with telephone and chat support.

5. 2Checkout – with plenty of customisable options, moulding to suit your brand should never be a problem. Your web designer will be able to demo the buying experience from the customer’s point of view before putting it finally in place. With 15 different language and 87 currency options, this is a great option for businesses that sell internationally.

Making the final choice
Which one of these popular ecommerce payment gateways will be chosen by your web developer will depend upon the size of your business, your personal preferences, whether you will be selling in the UK or internationally and of course the fees incurred.

By also taking into account data security and how the payment gateway app blends with your brand, it will be possible to narrow down the choice. Both your web developer and you as the business owner should always consider how the payment options will appear to your customer once they have filled their shopping trolley and want to checkout and pay. As long as it looks good, matches your brand, is secure and reputable and well received by your buyers, then abandoned shopping trolleys should be a thing of the past.

If you find yourself spoilt for choice and not sure which payment gateway provider to opt for, take the time discuss it with your website developer. Because they are constantly working with ecommerce sites and updating themselves as to the suitability and efficiency of many types of providers, by tapping into their vast store of knowledge, you can be sure to end up with a payment gateway app on your ecommerce site that your shoppers will love. And that can only mean one thing – more sales via your ecommerce website.

What’s hot in 2019?

MangoPay!

This online payment processor offers the complete flexibility required for any ecommerce website or digital marketplace. Whether it’s an e-wallet or maybe you want to send multiple payments to different members across your website or accept payments and hold them until a future date or even take commission fees – The fully integrated MangoPay API is the ideal solution.