Payment Processing: Choosing the Right Solution for Your Business

Payment Processing: Choosing the Right Solution for Your Business

Whether your company serves customers in person or online, it is important to provide a variety of payment options to make it as easy as possible for them to do business with you. The customer experience you build should be as convenient for someone using a credit, debit or gift card, or paying by ACH, as it is for those paying in cash.

Statistics tell us that credit and debit card usage is far outpacing cash payments. According to The Federal Reserve Bank’s 2025 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice, U.S. consumers used credit or debit cards for 65% of their payments in 2024, while using cash for just 14%. Mobile wallets such as Apple Pay^® and Google Pay^™ are rising in popularity as well, accounting for 23% of all payments in 2024 — 45% among Gen Zers aged 18 to 24. Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions accounted for 13% of payments, checks 3% and other forms of payment 5%.

What’s clear is that there is a growing need for businesses to adopt payment processing solutions with the capability to process payments of all types quickly, easily and securely. Giving your customers choice and making their payment experience seamless holds promise in not only delighting your current clientele but also attracting new customers.

Leveraging end-to-end benefits

A payment processing platform, the digitized system that enables a business to accept multiple payment types, has the potential to deliver benefits that go above and beyond elevating the customer experience and attracting a broader clientele. For example, the right payment processing solution may help you:

Streamline operations. When your payment processing platform is set up to communicate with other technology components within your organization, those integrations can help you improve overall efficiency, productivity and profitability. For example, integrating payment processing with your customer relationship management (CRM) system can give you valuable insight into specific customers’ behaviors and needs, while integrating with your inventory management system can automatically update stock levels as purchases are made.

Improve data security. The best payment processing systems protect customer data, in transit as well as at rest, through safeguards including encryption and tokenization, which render customer data unreadable and this unusable to hackers, and multi-factor authentication (MFA), which requires the customer to provide multiple forms of identity verification, such as a password and a one-time text or email code.

Enhance transparency and insight. Automated recordkeeping and reporting can help inform your decision making, simplify accounting and tax preparation, and shape your business strategy. Most payment processing platforms have at least basic reporting capabilities, and some provide robust, built-in analytics that can help you see even more deeply into your payments data.

Bolster productivity. An intuitive interface and ease of checkout accelerate the process for not only customers but also staff members, freeing them to manage more tasks, which can boost a company’s overall productivity.

Heighten accuracy. Because they are automated, payment processing systems help minimize opportunities for human error. They also create clean transaction histories, organizing data to ease activities such as matching payments to orders, issuing refunds and tracking trends.

Scale your business more easily. By automating transactions, enabling secure multi-channel sales, improving efficiency and accommodating growing sales activity without added manual labor, payment processing systems can help businesses scale more easily and quickly.

What to consider as you choose a payment processing solution

Equipment options. Research the costs and capabilities of various POS equipment options, such as:

• Standalone POS terminals, which may be ideal for retail stores with traditional countertops
• Portable POS systems, all-in-one laptop or handheld terminals that may be more appropriate for restaurants, retail stores and other businesses that require location flexibility
• Mobile card readers, which pair with a smartphone or tablet to offer a lower-cost, convenient option for service providers, food trucks, pop-up shops, etc. that accommodate on-the-go payments
• Virtual terminals, which accommodate secure remote payments made by electronic devices

Customer choice. Ensure the platform you choose accommodates all the payment types your customers prefer — credit and debit cards, mobile wallets, gift cards, ACH transfers, etc.

Transaction fees and volume. Calculate what various platforms will cost, including any setup, monthly and per-transaction fees.

Security and compliance. Look for a provider that is PCI DSS compliant and offers tokenization, encryption, and end-to-end security and fraud protection tools.

Ease of integration. Your payment processing platform should integrate seamlessly with your existing platform, software and applications.

Technical support. Make sure the payment processing vendor you choose provides 24/7/365 technical support, so you are prepared in the event of equipment malfunctions or transactional challenges.

Deposit speed. Be aware that some processors deposit collected funds into your bank account instantly, while others may take multiple days.

Need support?

Keeping up with your customers’ evolving needs is vital to your business success. Part of that is ensuring they can use the payment method they prefer. Dollar Bank’s Merchant Sales team can help you determine which payment processing solution fits your business.

Reach out to Merchant Sales Officer Brandee Artinger today for a free consultation: artingerbl@dollarbank.com or 412-261-8130.

Google Pay^™ is a trademark of Google Inc.

This article is for general information purposes only and is not intended to provide legal, tax, accounting or financial advice. Any reliance on the information herein is solely and exclusively at your own risk and you are urged to do your own independent research. To the extent information herein references an outside resource or Internet site, Dollar Bank is not responsible for information, products or services obtained from outside sources and Dollar Bank will not be liable for any damages that may result from your access to outside resources. As always, please consult your own counsel, accountant, or other advisor regarding your specific situation.