As we quickly surge into the final quarter of 2020 and look forward to 2021, there are more reasons than ever to adopt digital/touchless banking methods for your business in Canada and the United States.

Rapid advances in technology in recent years have made digital payments solutions more popular than ever- with businesses and individuals alike. Consumers can effortlessly tap their credit cards against processors to complete a payment; or simply press the “Pay Now” button to finalize a transaction.

When a payment is initiated, a complex informational flow is facilitated between different digital entities. The information involved includes merchant identification numbers, customer account information, and financial institution protocols- to name a few. What makes the flow of this data possible are established networks- which are known as payment rails. The function of payment rails is to ensure the flow of funds occurs correctly between the consumer and the business.

It sounds complex, and maybe even overwhelming at first with all the technical lingo- but payment rails are actually quite common and prevalent in our lives- and we use them practically on a daily basis. Examples of payment rails include card networks (which are the major credit cards we use that are maintained by four major players- American Express, Visa, Mastercard, and Discover. Another payment rail is ACH, or Automated Clearing House. ACH is the most popular payment rail in the United States- having processed over 23 billion payments in 2018 alone. ACH is most commonly used for direct deposit of payroll/salaries; and also for payment of bills like utilities and mortgages. Apaylo offers ACH for our clients. Ask us how we can help set you up with an account. For more information on ACH, check out our blog post: https://www.apaylo.com/2020/08/06/the-advantages-of-using-ach-transfers-for-individuals-and-businesses/

So, with all these advances in payment technology making our lives easier, why would you even consider sticking to the old methods of payment- like physical cheques and even cash? Here are a few reasons to modernize and ditch the old ways:

- Getting paid via direct deposit versus cheques.

These days, it’s a hassle having to wait for a cheque in the mail. Covid-19 has made mail delivery a lot slower; and after you finally get your cheque in the mail, you have to physically take it to the bank and sometimes wait a few days for it to clear, before you have the funds. Direct deposit eliminates all of this hassle and gets the funds directly to your account- freeing up your time so you can focus on running your business.

- Pay your vendors and employees instantly.

Forget having to go through the time and expense of signing singular cheques, and then having to stuff envelopes and mail each one out- incurring postage costs in the process. The facilitation of electronic payments between parties is much faster and easier- and it also minimizes errors by keeping electronic records of each transaction!

- Automated payments make life easier. Period.

By automating, you will never miss a payment for ANYTHING again. This is especially advantageous for people who deal with a large volume of monthly transactions and have problems keeping track of everything. Automated payments of recurring bills- including insurance, mortgages, services and utilities- ensures they come directly from your account on a regular schedule- and you don’t have to remember each and every single one of them!

Ask Apaylo how we can help you ditch the old ways of making payments and bring you the most modern, convenient methods available!