Hoteliers have to discover a lot of different systems and options to optimise their business. There are property management systems, channel managers, online booking engines and booking sites. But it doesn’t stop there; there’s also payments and everything that comes with it. We’ve explained virtual credit cards already, and in this article, we tell you all about the payment service provider.
A payment service provider (PSP) is a partner for facilitating payments. They take care of payment links, checkout pages and credit card payments. For credit card payments, the PSP needs an acquiring platform to check if the required funds are available in the bookers’ credit card account and to take the required amounts. After the process, the booker receives a confirmation or declined payment message.
The PSP communicates between the hotel and the booker, but there’s not always a direct connection between the PSP and the Property Management System (PMS). For this, you’ll need a payment gateway. You can offer multiple payment methods, making it as easy as possible for the booker to pay online.
A payment gateway is a system that sends the booker’s payment data to the PMS. Noteworthy is that the payment gateway secures payment data of credit card details.
Without the payment gateway, the data stored in the payment service provider needs to be (manually) inserted in the PMS. Besides causing unnecessary manual work; it is error-prone and difficult to safeguard guests’ data and privacy. The payment gateway ensures the payment details of your guests are safely transferred and stored.
As we now know, a payment service provider ensures the guest can easily and safely pay online for the booked hotel room. Which PSP you want to use is up to you; there are many types of systems available. Be sure not to pick the first one you find; do some research first. Find out the most used payment methods of your guests (debit or credit card) and check which PSP offers these. Also, check what the interchange++ fees are and what the quality of the customer service is.
We’ve listed a few payment service providers to get you started with your research:
The payment service provider saves you time, especially when linked to a payment gateway. But did you know that most PSPs also have financial overviews and administrational tools integrated?
Another benefit is that a payment service provider represents multiple payment methods and that makes it appealing for many bookers. The large supply also ensures that the PSP can negotiate competitive prices to keep the transaction fees lower.
The payment service provider also reduces the chance of fraud because the payment details are safely stored in their software. You’re still responsible for the data when you transfer it to your reservation system, although the payment gateway can help you secure that transfer as well keeping you from the risk of data breaches.
SmartHOTEL offers a direct connection between the PMS and the payment service provider. That direct connection is called SmartCONNECT for Payment. It’s the payment gateway that helps you protect your guest payment details and saves you significant time by having less manual work. As an added value, this payment gateway allows you to charge the right amount of money at the time that you prefer. Adding additional costs, such as tourist tax, has never been easier.
Do you work with a payment service provider that’s not listed here yet? No problem, let’s have a chat to see how we can arrange your PSP connection.
About SmartHOTEL
For more than 16 years, SmartHOTEL has been helping hoteliers navigate the exciting world of online distribution. From our office based in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, our team serves independent hotels, hostels and chains worldwide by providing channel management and tailored online distribution solutions. A lot has changed over the last years, but our goal remains the same: simply connect hotels to the world. For any questions regarding our services, please contact us at sales@smarthotel.nl or call +31 (0)182 75 11 18.