All You Need to Know About Online Payment Reporting Tools

There’s a lot to think about when you are running a business. From product sourcing to marketing and everything in between, making a profit takes a lot of hard work. Even something as simple and seemingly passive as taking payment can be time-consuming. Thankfully, there’s a way to make that process easier.

With online payment reporting tools, you can more easily manage payments and bring benefits to your business. They have the power to save you time and contribute to long-term growth. Here’s all you need to know to put them to good use. 

What Are Online Payment Reporting Tools?

Your merchant account provider will likely offer you a suite of tools as part of your package. These tools allow you to manage your merchant account in real-time. Generally speaking, they help business owners accelerate workflows and plan for the future more effectively.

For example, the best merchant accounts will allow you to easily make payments. This includes voiding, capturing, and refunding them. Ideally you want to manage all of this on the go, from a desktop or mobile device. It means you don’t always have to be onsite to manage transactions. As a result, this sort of functionality can improve the way you use your time.

As you collect and act on the payments you receive, your payment reporting tools will collect the data. Different tools work in different ways. But, with the payment reporting tools available from Cathedral Payments, your transactions will be automatically aggregated into customizable data sets. The result is full transaction lifecycle reports and thorough performance overviews. 

What Businesses Would Benefit From Online Payment Reporting Tools? 

The short answer is that all businesses stand to benefit from online payment reporting tools. As long as your enterprise accepts payments from customers through a point of sales system or payment gateway, they are available to you.

eCommerce business owners, in particular, can enjoy plenty of advantages. With the ability to manage transactions more effectively, owners can take payments from their customers as quickly as they could in person. These tools can also help to maximize transaction approval rates, improving income generation. They’re more secure which means they provide peace of mind to buyers and sellers alike.

‍Online payment reporting tools are great for businesses with physical stores as well. They allow for greater flexibility in payment management. So, even if you, the business owner, aren’t present in the store, you can still manage your transactions remotely. You also don’t have to be present for every single transaction to monitor them and act on your findings. 

The Benefits of Online Payment Reporting Tools 

We’ve already touched on some of the advantages of online payment reporting tools. However, it’s worth focusing on the three key things they can do for your business. You see, it’s not just about the shorter-term convenience they offer. It’s also about how they can support your business far into the future. 

1. Boost Profitability 

As mentioned earlier, running a business can be tough. With so much to keep on top of, it’s important to streamline key business processes wherever possible. With online payment reporting tools, you can do exactly that. They help you to minimize transaction declines and make more time for other tasks, giving you unparalleled opportunities to boost productivity and stimulate revenue. It is a simple solution for higher profits. 

2. Spot Trends 

Profitability might be the most appealing benefit, but spotting trends shouldn’t be far behind. For one thing, when you track patterns in consumer behavior, you can offer them more of what they want. That is also a real boon to profitability. For another, it’s a great way to see what’s going well so far and where things could improve.

Your online payment reporting tools will keep tabs on your transaction volume, total payments, conversion rates, and more. Round up easy-to-read reports and tailor them so you’ve got eyes on everything you need to know. It’s the best way to learn about your customers and see how they respond to changes in-store and online. 

3. Improve Your Strategy 

Crucially, online payment reporting tools aren’t just about monitoring the present or looking to the past. They can help you future-proof your business, too. By taking what you learn from the comprehensive reports generated for you, you can better inform your future strategy.

You might, for example, notice that seasonal products sell better than usual or that your customers don’t buy into certain lines. If that’s the case, then you have hard data to help you make the right choices moving forwards. The better you incorporate reporting information into your strategy, the better your performance is likely to be in the future. 

The Best Way to Manage Your Merchant Account Online 

Your merchant account can be so much more than a platform to accept transactions. With the help of online payment reporting tools, you can make your merchant account work much harder for you. Doing so means you can free up time immediately. Even further to that point reporting brings benefits that will give your business a competitive edge over hard to beat competitors.

Easily keep track of your success stories, stay on top of consumer trends, and stimulate revenue with quality tools from a reputable company. To find out more, get in touch on the Cathedral Payments website.