Why ISVs, ISOs and Acquirers Need a Payment Terminal Management System

A leading payment terminal management system benefits acquirers and independent software vendors (ISVs) by improving merchant experiences and helping to increase merchant retention. With the system, merchants can do more with their payment terminals, adding apps and features that enhance processes and customer engagement. The system also provides visibility into device operation that improves uptime and data that helps streamline operations and PCI compliance. ISVs and acquirers benefit, too, with time savings, cost savings, and opportunities to build revenue.

Index

• What is a Payment Terminal Management System

• The Cost Benefits of a Payment Terminal Management System

• Benefits for Merchants

• Benefits for ISVs and Acquirers

• The Advantages of a Scalable, Future-Proof Payment Terminal Management System

For acquirers and point of sale (POS) ISVs, one of the biggest challenges is merchant retention. Payment technology advancements that have made it easy to onboard and implement solutions have also made it easy for merchants to switch to a new provider. But if an acquirer or ISV amplifies the value that merchants get from their payment devices, it’s harder for a competitor to convince a merchant to walk away. A key to creating a sticky, high-value relationship with merchants is building a payment terminal management system into the solutions you offer.

What is a Payment Terminal Management System?

A payment terminal management system moves device management to the cloud. It enables centralized management of payment terminals, whether across an enterprise or across an acquirer’s or ISV’s user ecosystem.

Payment terminal management systems can enhance device features and merchant experiences with them throughout the lifecycle of the device.

The right payment terminal management system will make device deployment easier with remote key injection. This capability allows the merchant to receive devices directly from the manufacturer and have encryption keys injected remotely. Remote key injection saves time, getting merchants processing faster. It also eliminates the risks of shipping devices after they’ve been configured for the merchant.

A payment terminal management system that can help you improve customer retention will also have features specifically designed to enhance merchant experiences. It will let you white-label a merchant portal so you can make information and assets easily available and help merchants handle ordering and service requests autonomously.

Remote management has real benefits for you and your merchants. It allows you to run health checks on devices, monitor their use, and even handle some maintenance tasks centrally to save time and avoid disruptions. The system can also provide reporting and analytics on the payment estate on demand, increasing visibility into devices for both you and your merchants. 

Your team will benefit from a payment terminal management system with a developer portal that has all the tools, information, and support your team needs to build apps or new features. This gives you the power to differentiate your offerings and add the value that improves your merchant retention key performance indicator (KPI).

The Cost Benefits of a Payment Terminal Management System

A payment terminal management system that truly benefits your business will have significant and fast ROI for you and your merchants.

Benefits for Merchants

Merchants will quickly see the advantages of deploying a system that helps them get more from their payment device investment. A flexible Android payment terminal managed with a terminal management system can reliably and securely run business applications, like inventory management, time and attendance, and loyalty rewards programs. With the right system, a payment device becomes a business management and customer engagement tool as well as accepting the full range of payment methods.

Merchants can add features and capabilities from the system’s app store, allowing them to build a tech stack with the precise capabilities they need for their unique operation. Adding features and applications also improves merchants’ satisfaction with their solution and creates a sticky relationship with their ISV or acquirer partner. Purchasing and maintaining software from various vendors can cost thousands of dollars. Giving merchants a single source for all their needs helps them lower their operating costs.

A leading payment terminal management system will also provide merchants with critical data they need for their back office, for PCI compliance, and uninterrupted operations. The system reduces friction and frustration for your merchants, letting them focus on the core of their businesses, not on keeping payment devices up and running.

Benefits for ISVs and Acquirers

Adding payment terminal management to your solutions will elevate merchant experiences, add value, and improve merchant retention. But remember that it can also have cost savings for your organization.

Remote management and merchant self-care reduce the time your team spends on the phone with merchants who need information or help troubleshooting issues. When updates are required, you can instantly see which terminals are affected, where they’re located, and, often, handle the update remotely.

A payment terminal management system can also create opportunities to increase revenue. By bundling the system’s features with other services, you may be able to build recurring revenue for your business.

The Advantages of a Scalable, Future-Proof Payment Terminal Management System

Another advantage of implementing payment terminal management is that it lets you lay the foundation for a system that can adapt to changes in the industry and your business. A leading system allows you to manage a growing number of devices without requiring a massive increase in staff. Furthermore, as merchants discover the value of software-based point of sale (SoftPOS) and use commercial mobile devices to accept contactless payments, the number of terminals they deploy may decrease. A payment terminal management system gives you more flexibility to scale up or down.

But in addition to scalability, the right payment terminal management system brings simplicity to managing payment devices, for you and your merchants. And in the new world of commerce, where advancing technology and evolving consumer behaviors are facts of life, a simple way to manage payment technology is a big benefit.

To learn more about Ingenico’s Manage 360, the industry’s leading payment terminal management system, contact us.