Doing business at a distance – some handy tools and tips to help you!

As many companies are now having to close their doors to their clientele, it has never been a better time to explore the options of taking your business online by offering your products or services to your customers at a distance.

This might seem like a daunting task at first, but there are some great solutions, tips, tools and tricks available for you if you’re embarking on this venture. In this blog post, we’ll explore some of these methods to help you stay ahead of the curve. 

Keep reading for more!

Online payment solutions

PayLinks

PayLinks are a great tool for accepting online payments without the need for an online shop or even a webpage! All you need to do is to generate a PayLink from your myPOS account, and add a description of the item being sold, the currency and the expiry date of the link. You can then easily send it to your customers via social media, email or SMS. PayLinks are often used for multiple payments at the same amount. It’s that easy.

PayButtons

Perfect for small online shops and websites, use PayButtons in your customers’ checkout experience. This is an easy solution that lets your customers check out quickly, conveniently and securely without the need for complicated integrations. You’ve all seen the ‘Buy Now’ buttons, right?

This is exactly what it is! It takes you to a secure page where payments can be made. All you need to do is set the amount, choose the size of the button and decide on which details you’d like to collect from your customers.

After that, simply copy the generated HTML code and paste it in your website editor. Customers are then taken to a secure payment gateway to fill in their card details and finalize the payment

Payment Request

A Payment Request is similar to a PayLink discussed above, but it’s a personalised payment link, used for single payments, allowing you to request money from around the world. This online payment acceptance function allows you to send a Payment Request to your customers by email, SMS from your myPOS account, the myPOS app or directly from your card payment machine. You get detailed reporting on your Payment Requests with information regarding whether your customer has viewed the request and how often a payment attempt was made.

MO/TO Virtual Terminal

Perfect for card-not-present transactions, use your MO/TO Virtual Terminal to accept payments online. Turn your computer, mobile phone or tablet into an online card payment machine. Your customers can simply call you with their credit/debit card details and pay you while you manually enter their card details in this secure Virtual Terminal. Again, there’s no need for complex integration, or additional software and hardware.

Shopping Cart Plugins

Great for online shops and websites, use the myPOS Shopping Cart Plugins for some of the most popular ecommerce platforms out there including – WooCommerce, Magento, Magento2, OpenCart, X-Cart, PrestaShop, osCommerce, Zen Cart and CloudCart. All the integrational work has been done by us to make running your business easy! This is a simple and secure payment solution!

Payment Gateway

With the myPOS Payment Gateway, you can accept all payments in either a mobile or web environment. This online payment solution enables you to accept card payments in any website or mobile app. The online version of a credit card machine is easy to integrate and also allows you to keep track of online transactions and run real-time reports.

Invoicing

Say goodbye to expensive invoicing software and long hours spent creating bills to send to your customers! Our latest functionality – Invoicing – allows you to create customised invoices to send to your customers in a couple of easy to follow steps. Send invoices and get paid seamlessly!

Contactless credit card machines

There has been increased encouragement during COVID-19 for individuals to make contactless payments using contactless payment machine. From traditional to Smart devices, you can avoid physical contact with your customers and keep both parties safe from infection. Choose a card payment machine that suits your business needs best!

GIftCards

GiftCards are another important element for many businesses to stay afloat during these hard economic times. They’re a great customer retention tool as well as a method of increasing brand awareness. By promoting GiftCards, you’ll be able to offer your customers products you offer at a later stage whilst getting paid now. Essentially, they’re a promise for future business and you’ll want to take advantage of these for your business.

Using marketing tools to boost your business

Email as a marketing tool

Email marketing is a marketing channel that enables you to communicate with your customers via email. Whether an actual email, a newsletter, a promotion or something else related to your company, email is an extremely effective way of getting your message across to your audience.

Now, with more people working from home, running a business from home, and paying careful attention to their inbox, you’ll find a more engaged and attentive audience which you can reach with catchy copy. Therefore, don’t hesitate to promote your company news, tell your customers how you’re dealing with COVID-19, promote your products and services and more via this channel of communication.

Social media as a tool to help you connect with customers

Small and large businesses are increasingly making use of social media for a variety of reasons. Whether it’s to improve brand awareness, drive more traffic to a website, increase sales or simply to get a company message across to the intended audience, quality content is key.

Social media is also one of the very first places which customers use to send complaints or to rate a company positively. That’s why monitoring your company’s social media platforms is crucial. The faster you respond, the less likely it is that a negative comment will escalate and spread to other customers.

Remember that word of mouth (through social media, of course) is a critical point for attracting and retaining (and sometimes distancing) customers.

Wrapping up…

From online payment acceptance tools, GiftCards and Invoicing to email and social media marketing tips, we hope we’ve given you a strong toolkit of advice for you to not only take your business online during the pandemic, but also to help you accept more payments!