Payments technology is evolving quickly and so are merchants’ needs and expectations along with it. For independent software vendors (ISVs), becoming a merchant’s preferred provider during this time of rapid change may seem especially challenging.
ISVs need to provide the latest secure payment technologies, plus the value-added components -- data analytics, loyalty, inventory management, payroll and more – that are core to their offering across all the merchant verticals they serve. In addition, they need to do it in a way that is economical and quick for the merchant to roll out. Add EMV certifications and PCI requirements to the mix and you have a daunting proposition.
The good news is that it doesn’t have to be. ISVs can streamline the payments aspect of their offerings with a semi-integrated solution. With semi-integrated payments, cardholder data completely bypasses the POS environment and merchant’s back office systems during a transaction. While it seems like a subtle change, taking a semi-integrated approach can introduce big benefits:
1. Reduce costs and complexity
Semi-integrated solutions are pre-certified for EMV and essentially plug and play, making it much less costly to develop, integrate and support. This allows ISVs to focus on their core business: creating innovative, customized solutions for their customers.
2. Faster time to market
ISVs can get solutions to market that capitalize on today’s market trends much more quickly -- and add new features as they see fit.
3. Enhanced security
Taking card data out of the POS environment makes merchants much less susceptible to a data breach. Most semi-integrated solutions also support tokenization and point-to-point encryption (P2PE) to add to the overall security offering of the ISV’s solution.
4. Reduced PCI scope
Keeping the POS environment and back office out of the transaction flow can equal big cost and time savings and higher success rates with PCI audits.
5. Agility and flexibility
The best semi-integrated solutions provide a range of pre-certified form factors to meet merchants’ payment needs today and in the future -- in the lane, in the aisle, at a kiosk, at the table, and more. Because of the nature of the semi-integrated architecture, ISVs can add new form factors or features on the fly without concerns over re-certification.
For ISVs looking to stand out in today’s competitive environment, it’s critical to be ahead of the game in two areas: security and innovation. By going with a semi-integrated solution, ISVs can help get merchants get the best of both worlds and take them where they want to go -- much more quickly and cost effectively.
Interested in learning more on how a semi-integrated solution can help you provide the best in security and innovation to your customers? Get in touch.
Irfan Nasir is Head of Solutions Development & Deployment at Ingenico Group, North America
