Any software application having a requirement to accept payments will most likely need to integrate a credit card payment integration solution. Even applications with a subscription model will likely do so, even though ACH processing lends itself very nicely to models with a recurring payment component. The fact of the matter is that credit cards are the go-to payment modal in the card not present space. If you are part of a team on a SaaS payments project, here are some key areas that you should explore.

Having been supplying payment gateway integration solutions for over 20 years now, we certainly hear some common themes when discussing potential integration solutions with prospective clients. As one prospect put it, "I think it's now become part of the developers DNA that Stripe is the defacto integration solution." Who can argue with elegant API's and fairly ease of boarding, right?

What does the new NACHA ruling around WEB ACH transactions really mean and why has it been implemented?

If you work in the professional services industry then you likely have heard the buzzword, Fintech over the years. Fintech, or businesses that combine financial services with technology, have become somewhat of a phenomenon in recent years. These companies, often from Silicon Valley, are sleek, modern businesses that approach the finance industry with sophisticated technology to optimize business financing processes such as payments, banking, and more.

An ACH API integration enables a business or SaaS platform to automate ACH
payment processing and reconciliation. Any business that accepts recurring payments should leverage the ACH network for 2 compelling reasons:

Ease of IVR menu flow configuration and editing.

Legacy IVR systems can require developer assets to be used from the IVR payments partner when initially configuring a menu and IVR workflow and subsequent edits should the menu flow require a change. In many cases these can be extremely expensive to the using organization. We have heard instances where a using organization was quoted thousands of dollars to change from using a text to speech engine to using their own recorded voice talent. It should have be be as such.

SaaS businesses may run into billing errors every once in a while; however, it’s an unnecessary racket if the same mistakes are repeated, and they don’t have a functioning model that would save them from another billing error. To make matters worse, billing errors can cause your customers to lose trust in you as their billing authority, and might flock to your competitor(s).

How to Start Your Career as a Software Engineer in a SAAS Company

Nobody looks forward to a hospital visit, but collecting payments via SMS can make a patient’s hospital experience better. Paying by text means avoiding the crowded billing office, and  patients leaving the hospital, doctor’s office, etc. as soon as possible (instead of waiting to make a payment). 

PCI compliance doesn't apply to ACH Payment Processing, but to utilize a processing platform that is PCI DSS Level 1 certified certainly doesn't hurt security measures around your ACH origination method. NACHA doesn't have an established security certification process like the credit card world does, but they do require that processes, controls and procedures are employed to protect sensitive data like bank account information. Tokenization accomplishes that.

SMS stands for Short Messaging Service, and centers around cell phone texting. SMS Payment Solutions allow businesses to text customers with payment reminders/confirmation and accept payment via the cell phone.

Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR) is computer technology that offers automated secure payment by phone by replacing human interaction within call centers. A phone system offers voice prompts that route calls to an IVR system instead of utilizing live customer service operators. An IVR system can handle huge loads of calls that would otherwise require substantial man hours.

Agile Payments has been supplying various types of payments related tools for 20+ years, and one of those tools is Interactive Voice Response which allows companies to collect payments over the phone using automated IVR technology.

While we are flat in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, our payments related inquiries have changed a bit. More companies are looking for ways to accept payments and donations and either eliminating or reducing the normal methods in which they typically accept payments.

SMS payments, or “Pay by Text payments”,  allow customers to pay for services or goods via a mobile phone text message. The customer typically receives a text prompting them to initiate payment via a website interface or additional text messaging. Almost any business that takes payments for goods or services can realize operational costs savings and an uptick in collected revenues by choosing to accept payments by text message.

When rent payments come due, you don’t want your property management staff overwhelmed! If your property management complex is closed on the weekends, clerks are likely to be overwhelmed as soon as they open on the next available business day. Likewise, today’s customers expect to be able to make payments whenever, wherever.

ACH API Case Study:

Today’s consumer expects service easily and instantly, with practically 80% of consumers expecting national brand service leves from their local service provider counterparts. Pay by Text solutions, or Short messaging service (SMS) solutions, are a great way for your Utility Company to offer a simple, effective customer service option.

Despite the convenience of online payments, 62% of utility customers claim to prefer making a payment without logging into a system. Likewise, more than ¾ of general consumers have claimed to make at least one payment per month via the phone. 

Call center payment processing varies from organization to organization in terms of how it is managed, but the most used methods are from one of the following methods:

78% of consumers have reported making at least one payment per month via phone payments, with 60% preferring our phones to make payments. This means storage facilities are in a prime position to utilize an IVR Payments system in 2020.

The waste management sphere is seeing a major increase in the volume of electronic payments. More than 3/4 of consumers expect local service providers to offer the same degree of service as national brands, which simply makes having an electronic payments system that handles credit cards/ACH payments necessary in 2020. Short messaging service (SMS) solutions are a great way for your waste management company to offer a simple, effective customer service option.