Business Advice

The National Health Service (NHS) is an organisation like no other; it experiences almost continual change and has many challenges to address. Challenges such as an aging population, the rising demand for healthcare services, limited resources, and budget constraints can impact its ability to thrive.

Payments for everything from accommodation, catering, student activities and facilities at college or university can be made by young people, their parents or carers, even by grandparents. But that also means that payment processing for universities and colleges must be able to accommodate the variety of ways in which different groups prefer to pay.

If you take payments over the telephone and also continue to have some staff working from home, then read on. When did you last check that you have a suitable solution in place to ensure PCI compliance?

Are you a software provider looking for the perfect payment model for your platform? With so many options available, it can be overwhelming to make the right choice. In this helpful guide, we'll walk you through some important points to consider when selecting a payment model that meets the needs of your customers and your business.

Alternative payment methods have taken the online retail sector by storm over the last few years and the trend certainly looks set to continue. Read on to learn more about the top alternative payment methods available and why they’re so popular with customers.

Responsible gaming operators are continually looking for effective ways to meet their obligations. Whether that’s reducing the risk of customers developing problem gambling behaviours such as gambling addiction, or preventing issues such as money laundering and gaming bonus abuse: there are significant challenges facing the gambling sector. 

Whether a business is operating in retail, ecommerce, financial services and local government, customers expect convenience of choice when making a purchase. Even schools are offering a range of payment options so they can collect monies for a school trip or donation more efficiently.

New figures released in the updated 2023 Fraud Report show that reports of fraudulent attacks have increased yet again. An increase rise of 1,407 cases of fraudulent activity in April, May and June, in comparison to the first three months of the year, at a cost of £593 million. This takes the total fraudulently stolen cash to almost 3 and a half billion pounds in the past 12 months.

E-commerce offers a wide range of opportunities for your business, including increased revenues, growth in new markets, and greater brand loyalty. To help you navigate the process, including how to get set up to accept payments online once you’re up and running, we have streamlined the steps involved in setting up your online business.

Conducting credit checks on customers during the onboarding process is crucial to mitigate the risk of bad clients impacting your business activities. With research showing that more than half of businesses in the UK still have unpaid invoices from the 2022/23 tax year, credit checking clients during onboarding is a crucial part of the Know Your Customer (KYC) process to mitigate the risk of bad clients impacting on your own activities.

Do you remember the last time you paid for an Uber? You just tapped to book a ride. No keying in card details. No password. No ‘pay now’ button. That’s the definition of a truly frictionless payment. These ‘checkoutless’ experiences are becoming the norm and should be front of mind for software providers as we enter a new era in payments.

The increasing demand for online transactions has led to a growing need for businesses and software providers to facilitate online payments. However, the process of onboarding merchants to payment platforms can often be frustrating and time-consuming.

There is nothing more important for an online business than a reliable, secure link between its paying customers and the bank. And in simple terms, that’s exactly what a Payment Service Provider (PSP) is: your link to the bank. 

So you’ve chosen a Payment Services Provider (PSP) to provide you with the e-commerce solution necessary to accept card payments online, but how can you be certain it’s the right one for your business?

When it comes to paying for medical treatment - whether it’s a long-term health issue or something more immediate – in addition to feeling stress, worry and pressure, can bring the patient further distress in an already difficult situation. Yet such sources of income represent important additional funds for NHS trusts which they’re must collect - in a way which makes it as easy as possible for trust employees and trust patients.

In this blog, we will delve into the world of hosted PCI solutions, compare H2H (Host-to-Host) and API (Application Programming Interface) integrations, discuss the benefits of hosted payment pages, and explore the importance of PCI compliant hosting.

In today's rapidly evolving healthcare landscape, along with the need to address constant challenges, the National Health Service (NHS) should be seeking innovative solutions to increase income and drive transformation.

According to a recent survey, 55% of procurement managers, directors and supply chain officers at housing associations believe financial constraints have the biggest impact on their work and decision making.  

Implementing efficient payment processes holds the potential to not only reduce costs but also enhance customer satisfaction and boost retention rates. These factors ultimately contribute to driving revenue and increasing profits. So, how can we make this happen?

Healthcare and wellbeing businesses are operating in an increasingly competitive environment and delivering outstanding payments experiences will be vital to achieve growth. Transitioning from traditional cash or in-person card payments to a more versatile, multi-channel approach doesn't have to be a disruptive undertaking. Here’s how to maximise the potential of digital, omnichannel or mobile payments to grow your business.

As the cost of living crisis and wider financial headwinds continue to put strain on household budgets, there’s no doubt that these macroeconomic considerations must rank highly in employers’ wellbeing strategies. 

On-demand pay allows employees to access the wages they have so far accrued at that time of the month, rather than waiting for their scheduled payday, putting financial management and control in the hands of the employee. In this blog, we explore the cost differences between offering on-demand pay vs advancing salaries.

Chasing payments of any kind as a business is a pain. Not only does it hold up your cash flow which can end up causing major problems in the long run, but it also expends further time and resources invoice chasing. Not to mention the precipice you walk on in chasing payment that is owed to your business yet ensuring not to incense a customer so much that they leave.

Now more than ever, it is vital that all businesses have a process in place to send out an unpaid invoice letter. In 2021 it was estimated that UK SMEs were owed over £61 billion due to late payments and in early 2022 The Federation of Small Businesses estimated that over 400,000 small businesses could go out of business due to the late payments crisis. We covered some tactics for chasing invoices in another blog and today we will outline an outstanding payment letter template to help you through this process.

Sick of chasing late payments and overdue invoices? Take control of payment collections! In our handy guide, we reveal how businesses can better manage their payment processes and offer advice on how best to deal with late payments. Download it for free today!

The subscription model may not be right for every business. Is it good for you? Find out the pros and cons of the subscription model

Direct debit is a great way to take payments as a business but how do you get started and what should you know? Find out here.

5G, AI, IoT. What do the next 12 months look like for telecoms companies and how can they cope with a changing landscape? Find out here.

Insurers are finding it harder to attract and retain customers. Would a customer focus style help marketing towards millennials? Find out here.

How owners can restructure their business model. Care companies have had a difficult time over the last few years, so what can owners do to make their lives easier? Find out here.

The fintech sector used to be a novelty but now it’s a crowded market. How do you stand out in front of customers and investors alike?

Find out how to grow your memberships, through recruiting new members, as well as engaging and retaining current ones.

If you want to scale your business quickly, then there are some tried and tested ways to achieve this. Check out our tips, from strategic planning to upselling.

For charities that have limited resources forecasting can seem like overkill, but there are some very good reasons why you may want to look into the future.

Want to develop your business to 100k revenue+ but don’t know how? Don’t worry, our tips will help you make the leap. Starting a business can be a real challenge but often the owners find that they are able to develop to a certain level and then suddenly hit a roadblock.

When you are starting a new business, one of the first things you need to think about is what payment methods you are going to offer. Experts tell us that we’re heading towards a cashless society and this means that you need to have easy ways to accept cards both in-store and online.

The telecoms industry is one of the most competitive sectors in the UK, so if you’re looking to retain a competitive advantage then you need to be presenting your customers with a great user experience (UX). Read on to find out how to embed your payments processes in your telecoms software.

Businesses of all sizes are being affected by a lack of payments infrastructure or expertise. Here's a guide for all you need to know about integrated payments for your business - the future of payments.

For many companies, the key metric they look at is how many new subscribers they are bringing on board but this misses an important point about leaky buckets.The larger the hole, the more water you are going to need to put in to fill it, and if you stop filling then your bucket will empty very quickly indeed.

Direct Debit is a great way for businesses to take regular payments from their customers whether that is a standard monthly subscription or a variable amount. The payment method works well for companies and saves customers time and effort - a great example of a real ‘win-win’ situation! So what are the advantages of Direct debit? Read on and we’ll explain.

Everything you need to know about Indemnity Claims and the Customers Direct Debit Guarantee.