The Key Benefits of Different Payment Methods

When determining the best payment methods to install on your website, it is important to balance the needs of the customer with business requirements and security. An accessible and secure checkout process builds trust and ensures customer satisfaction. However, selecting which payment methods to offer and integrating them correctly on your site can be daunting. 

Discover the advantages and disadvantages of three popular payment methods and how you can use Payment Plugins to seamlessly integrate them into your site.

PayPal

One payment method that has surged in popularity among customers is PayPal. PayPal offers a hassle-free way to check out in person and online.

Advantages

• • Multiple payment methods: One of PayPal’s most significant customer advantages is that customers can easily add multiple credit cards and bank accounts under one umbrella PayPal account. This allows customers more flexibility in selecting where to charge their payments to. By enabling customers to check out with PayPal, you are easily integrating with many of their payment accounts and encouraging quicker transactions.

• • International transactions: PayPal supports a wide variety of different currencies across the globe. This makes expanding your business into new markets much easier. PayPal instantly handles the necessary currency conversions so both parties can work in their preferred local currency.

• Credibility: PayPal’s popularity is not without merit. The company has worked for many years to build up a reputation for secure and dependable transactions. Offering a payment method like PayPal, with its widely known and positive reputation, will in turn support your own business credibility and ensure customers feel safe and comfortable making the first transaction.

Disadvantages

• Customer Disputes: While PayPal has established a strong reputation of being customer-first, this can sometimes become a pain point for vendors. PayPal offers customer disputes where customers can open a petition against a payment. Though PayPal remains neutral in its judgment toward customers and vendors, the process can be lengthy and time-consuming for businesses. However, PayPal has emerged as a highly favored payment method among customers, providing a hassle-free way to check out both in person and online.

By integrating our easy PayPal payment plugin into your payment options, you unlock several advantages, including the ability for customers to easily manage multiple payment sources, support for international transactions with various currencies, and the added credibility that comes with partnering with a trusted brand like PayPal.

Braintree

Braintree is another common payment platform that is leveraged by e-commerce businesses. In 2013 PayPal acquired Braintree, and though it has kept the two platforms separate, it still experiences many similar benefits as PayPal.

Advantages

• • Reporting: Not only does Braintree quickly and securely process online payments, but it also offers a range of reporting and analytics. Beyond the number of transactions, Braintree also offers real-time reports and customer behavior trends, making this an ideal option when deciding which payment method to use.

• Recurring payments and subscriptions: For businesses offering subscription programs, Braintree is a great choice. This payment method offers special tools to manage and analyze recurring payments, making it faster for both you and your customers to have a satisfying experience.

Disadvantages

• Account holds: Braintree reserves the right to place a hold on vendor accounts at any time. While not a wide-sweeping problem, businesses starting out should be aware of their account cash flow to ensure no account holds from chargebacks or monthly expenses occur.

Like PayPal, Braintree is a trusted payment method that comes with excellent security and real-time reports. If you want to take full advantage of this tool, check out our free Braintree payment processor plugin for WooCommerce–a simple and easy way to manage online payments.

Stripe

Stripe was founded in 2009 and it quickly gained traction as a payment method of choice. Offering Stripe at checkout will expand accessibility to new customers.

Advantages

• • Security: Stripe has always prioritized providing top-notch security, which ensures that customer data remains private. It has the highest level of security certification in the payment industry at PCI-DSS Level 1. This is a great option for building customer trust, especially for a new or small business.

• • Developer-friendly: Unlike other popular payment methods, Stripe hosts an active developer community with resources, documentation, and support for their platform. This can provide an additional layer of assistance should anything malfunction after implementation.

• Global reach: Like PayPal and Braintree, Stripe also accepts payments from customers worldwide. It supports several different currencies, immediately allowing currency conversion for localized payments. This is a critical feature for businesses looking to expand their reach and customer base.

Disadvantages

• Limited support: While other payment methods offer extensive customer and vendor support options, Stripe is more limited. At this time, Stripe customer service is reliant on email and chat, although they do offer phone support and have a Discord channel where developers hangout and answer questions. Those who prefer quick and accessible phone support may prefer to start with PayPal or Braintree instead.

Although it may have limited customer support options compared to some alternatives, Stripe has established itself as a trusted and secure payment method since its inception. You can start enjoying its benefits by downloading the Stripe payment plugin from Payment Plugins.

No Technical Difficulties

While each payment platform has its own unique advantages and disadvantages, the technical expertise to integrate it smoothly is one factor that can be difficult for any business owner to surmount. Avoid the stress of incorrect integration by using straightforward WordPress plugins from Payment Plugins. Broaden your payment options and get customers checking out in no time.