Small businesses are an essential component of the fast-growing Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector in India. Research indicates that digital transformation plays an important role in their success.
For instance, in a survey conducted among small businesses in India, 36% of respondents shared that they earned over 50% of revenue from online sales, while 65% shared that they earned up to 50% of revenue from online sales.
Around 35% of the respondents indicated that they launched their businesses online by building up their social media footprint, while 34% and 33%, respectively, used online advertising and personal contacts to drive conversions.
With online sales across multiple channels playing such an important role in small business success, businesses can further accelerate business growth by using secure payment links, an innovative payment mode.
In this blog, we outline the four benefits delivered by payment links and how small businesses can drive sales and revenues by utilising this option. Read on!
What are secure payment links?
Secure payment links refer to a type of online payment mode that allows businesses to create a customised online link that can be directly shared with a customer on any channel.
The customer then clicks on the link and executes the transaction. The business and the customer both receive communication regarding the transaction’s status via email, SMS, or message.
Today, a growing number of customers are shopping directly via social media or messaging apps instead of visiting an online e-commerce platform or app.
The use of payment links ensures a secure, seamless transaction, thus helping to seed user trust in the brand. Small businesses can create search links directly via a single unified interface, such as a payment gateway. This innovation is driving payment security for small businesses.
4 benefits of secure payment links for small businesses
Top advantages of adopting a payment links strategy, which unlocks payment security for small businesses:
1. Consumer data protection
When consumers make a transaction using secure payment links, they do not need to share any financial details via social media, messaging apps, or other channels. Similarly, merchants do not need to share details like bank accounts on any public platform.
The consumer directly inputs details within the payment link, which strictly follows security protocols. This approach increases consumer data protection, a top concern of small businesses looking to build a credible enterprise.
2. Enables secure transactions
With the growth of cyber scams, secure payment links are a welcome solution. Using a superior payment gateway enables small businesses to ensure that the link is secure and impenetrable by hackers.
All transactions are secured with a two-factor authentication process. Secure transactions pave the way for business growth and scalability.
3. Multi-channel payment acceptance
Small businesses may or may not have their own website or app. However, most are building their digital presence across other channels, such as social media platforms and messaging apps.
The use of secure payment links enables them to accept payments across all channels. This approach helps them increase marketing ROI across channels by driving engagement, conversions, and sales. Small businesses can also deliver convenience, flexibility, and a superior payment experience to a spectrum of customers.
4. Customer growth & retention
A payment links strategy drives considerable value by unlocking payment security for small businesses. Customers using payment links have the flexibility of making a payment via multiple modes, such as debit cards, credit cards, and net banking.
This flexibility ensures that a larger spectrum of customers can complete the transaction. Additionally, adopting an omni-channel payment approach helps businesses improve customer retention. They can also attract new customers into the fold.
How to set up and use secure payment links
Here is a step-wise guide on how to use Plural by Pine Labs, a superior payment gateway, to set up the secure payment link feature and deploy it across multiple channels:
- Log into Plural by Pine Labs’s payment gateway platform, which small businesses can activate to accept payments using all modes, including payment links.
- Click on the Payment Links tab. Proceed to fill in relevant details such as the purpose of payment, expiry time frame, payment link date, and the customer’s mobile number and email ID. Small businesses can also add private details that are not shared publicly by the customer. Use the bulk upload feature to generate multiple links simultaneously.
- Once the secure payment link is generated, share it with the customer in their channel of choice.
- The customer clicks on the link, selects the mode of payment, and proceeds to complete the transaction. Payment modes include credit cards, UPI, debit cards, and net banking.
- Once the payment settlement is concluded, the customer and merchant receive a confirmation message via email and SMS.
- Use the payment reminders feature to gently nudge customers to make the payment before the link expires.
Popular use cases:
- A fashion brand that is using social media to promote its products is likely to receive inquiries via their direct messages (DMs). Instead of sharing their bank account details, the merchant can generate secure payment links and share them in the DMs. The customer can click on the link and proceed to make a payment, after which the product can be shipped.
- A neighbourhood grocery store may regularly receive home delivery requests for products from customers via a messaging app. The store owner can generate a secure payment link and share it with the customer via the messaging app. When the customer completes the transaction, the merchant can ensure that the delivery is made. This approach ensures advance payments. It also reduces the hassles of managing in-cash payments and needing to do payment follow-ups.
Wrapping up
The adoption of secure payment links via a superior payment gateway nudges small businesses to accept payments via multiple channels without the risks of data breaches, transaction errors, and payment scams. In turn, businesses can build customer trust and drive retention, attract new customer audiences across all platforms, and drive sales and revenues.
Plural by Pine Labs offers Plural Gateway, a comprehensive payment solution that enables small businesses to deliver a smooth, seamless, and secure payment experience to consumers across all platforms. Businesses can customise their payment links with their unique branding and relevant payment options.
Plural Gateway comes with completely customisable APIs, a dashboard solution, a bulk upload feature, and sharing via SMS, WhatsApp, and Instagram. This gateway also enables payment via debit card, credit card, and net banking, UPI Autopay for subscription-based businesses, EMIs, and Buy Now Pay Later. Plural Gateway is updated with all the latest RBI regulations.
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