In the payments world, those companies agile and hungry enough to constantly innovate will be the best positioned to stand the test of time. Paya is one of those companies. While they regularly help individual business owners, resellers and business partners they aren’t afraid to jump in and provide services to alleged competitors, too.
PayTrace, a payment solution provider that is sold exclusively through merchant service providers, needed a solution to fill in a missing piece of their system: eChecks.
As a payment gateway provider, Pay Trace processes credit card payments for small to mid-sized businesses both online as well as at traditional brick and mortar locations such as doctor’s offices, retail establishments, and coffee houses. “We work to help aggregate various payment software solutions for our customers in order to generate (additional) savings as well as streamline payment data so they can focus on tasks that drive business. But eChecks were missing the functionality that would enable our customers to process checks electronically,” said Amy Whitten, product analyst at PayTrace.
“Echecks are a fast, secure, and efficient way to offer an additional payment option to customers while saving on higher debit and credit cards transaction fees. Without the ability to add this functionality, many of our customers had to rely on the manual process of cashing, recording and receiving funds from traditional paper checks which was definitely not ideal,” continued Whitten.
In today’s digital economy, an electronic check (eCheck for short) gives customers an additional way to pay for goods and services, for both one-time and recurring payments alike. The merchant’s advantages of offering this extra payment method are numerous, including:
Speed of the transaction– When comparing the speed of e-check processing to paper check processing, there’s no competition. The paper check system is both resource- and time-intensive taking up to two weeks to process; this is compared to what can be accomplished in a matter of two to three days using an e-check.
Processing fees are lower– The cost of an electronic check is much less expensive than that of a paper check and credit cards. Because eChecks typically have a 0% fee associated with each transaction, and a nominal fixed per-transaction fee, compared to a 2-3% charge using a credit card, the cost savings can be substantial, especially for recurring payments.
Reduced risk– Echecks provide a variety of online security features not available with paper checks. Electronic checks have the benefit of automation and the reliance of the ACH Network (regulated through the Federal Reserve’s Regulation E and the NACHA Operating Rules). The electronic check is far more secure than a paper check, with an encryption feature that verifies the account number, dollar amount, and even uses a digital signature to check against the name of the account.
“When PayTrace looked for an eCheck provider, we were focused on finding a solution that met several key criteria,” stated Whitten. “First, it needed to be secure and reliable. Second, it had to be easily customizable. And finally, it needed to be quick and easy to implement. Paya fit the bill on everything.”
Paya’s unique business model caters to how businesses want to do business. With a modular and customizable payment platform, Paya’s suite of solutions and services deliver easy to use technology for every stage of a business’ growth. “We were very impressed that Paya had the capability to offer us a singular solution. We were able to pass along a standalone product that had all the benefits of coming from a sophisticated technology-based solution. Paya addressed our initial need but also provided our customers the ability to integrate their eCheck data into their accounting systems. Definitely a win-win for everyone!” Whitten remarked.