Asia-Pacific has grown into the world's largest market for cashless transactions. Find out what are the top APMs here.
You don’t invest large amounts of time and resource into attracting customers or onboarding new clients only to have the final step in the process, making payment, be the most challenging.
In this day and age, it’s important to meet your customers where they are online, when they are ready to purchase or pay, and offer the online payment methods that suit how they want to transact. Offering a secure, versatile method of online payment that ticks all the above boxes for consumers shouldn’t be difficult or expensive for merchants. That is where payment links come in as an essential and beneficial online payment method.
Here’s the low down on what payment links are and why they are one of the best online payment methods for you if you are a merchant.
Table of Contents
What are Payment Links
If you’ve ever clicked a ‘pay now’ button on an online invoice then you’ve used a payment link. Payment links are essentially shareable URLs that take consumers to an online payment gateway to complete their purchase or pay an invoice.
A payment link offers a secure online payment method for both you the merchant, and the consumer. Once consumers click the payment link, they are taken to a payment gateway that, depending on what payment link provider you use, usually provides a range of online payment methods for the consumer to choose from (e.g. bank transfers, e-wallets, and credit and debit cards).
Payment links are an incredibly versatile online method of payment as they can be used wherever you do business online; in emails, invoices, social media, your website, and checkout pages for example.
Learn how XanPay simplifies the eCommerce payments. 
How do Payment Links Work
You can insert a customised payment link in any form of communication to a consumer that you usually use; an email, invoice, website, or even an SMS. Once customers click the link they’ll be taken to an online webpage to securely complete their transaction. From the payment link webpage, customers can complete any necessary order information such as shipping details, then choose their preferred payment method (bank transfers, e-wallets, and credit and debit cards) and complete the transaction.
Payment links are one of the fastest and smoothest payment gateway options around, making purchasing simple for both consumers to buy and merchants to set up and run.
What are the Benefits of Using Payment Links?
Seamless set-up and use
Payment links are one of, if not the, easiest online payment methods for both merchants and consumers. For merchants, all good payment link providers have a few easy steps for API/integration with your systems that can be set up in a matter of clicks. Simply create an account with your chosen payment link provider and follow their prompts.
For consumers, it’s a payment gateway that is as simple as clicking a button or link and filling in their chosen payment details. Voila!
Secure
All good payment link providers follow the usual encryption standards and are SSL-certified and PCI DSS-compliant. That means your link and transaction page will be (and look) secure for customers, ensuring they feel safe completing their transactions.
Cost-Effective
Using payment links as your preferred online method of payment could end up saving you money. Seeing as you can easily integrate your business with a payment link provider, there are no setup and maintenance costs, and also means you don’t need any other third-party apps.
For smaller businesses, building and maintaining a website just to act as a store-front or purchase platform isn’t necessary, instead, a payment link can be sent. Meaning you save on all of the costs (and time) associated with a website. Plus, payment links can also replace POS in-store terminals, eliminating the costs associated with maintaining POS payment devices.
Different Payment Options
There’s no point in implementing a new payment gateway if it can’t offer your customers their preferred payment method. Payment links provide all popular and most commonly used payment methods, making it simple and straightforward for your customers to complete their transactions, whether it be bank transfers, e-wallets, and credit and debit cards for example.
Versatile and Scalable
As mentioned above, payment links can be used across numerous platforms and communication channels. Whether you transact via email, website, social media page, in-store, via SMS, or invoice - payment links can be used. Not only do they provide merchants with versatility, but it also means that if a business grows or changes how it transacts, your preferred method of sending a payment link can change too, without having to find or integrate with a new payment provider.
Implement Payment Links with XanPay
Payment links are a no-brainer when it comes to efficiently running or scaling your business. They benefit you, the merchant, as well as providing a seamless purchasing experience for customers. Use XanPay’s online payment gateway to attract, convert and retain consumers with popular local and alternative payment methods.
Explore XanPay’s offering, their competitive pricing, and why they are the preferred gateway to Asia Pacific.
Asia-Pacific has grown into the world's largest market for cashless transactions. Find out what are the top APMs here.
Asia-Pacific has grown into the world's largest market for cashless transactions. Find out what are the top APMs here.