If your company operates with an Enterprise Research Planning (ERP) system, you know that it’s the command center of the business, integrating all the various operations - finance, inventory, manufacturing, and HR–whatever components your business encompasses.
A payments processor that understands your ERP is vital for providing ongoing customer support, optimizing ERP functionality, and ensuring smooth implementation processes.
Both the ERP software and payments processing markets are evolving with technological advancements, and their integration can provide seamless financial transactions and improved operational efficiencies.
Consider the analogy of an airline pilot and air traffic control:
Air traffic control (your ERP system) needs a clear and comprehensive view of all planes (business operations) in the area to manage them safely and efficiently.
The payment processor (pilot) must be in constant and effective communication with air traffic control (ERP) to smoothly navigate and complete flights (transactions) without disrupting the overall flow of business operations.
This coordination is critical to maintaining the efficiency of air traffic (business processes) and the safety of passengers (employees and customers).
A payment processor that understands your ERP – such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central – is essential for enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and mitigating risks associated with payment processing and ERP integration.
Understanding ERP and Payment Integration
ERP systems are invaluable champions for integrating various business processes into a single system, enhancing efficiency and data visibility.
Integrating a payments processor into your ERP bridges your accounting features with the electronic handling of payment transactions.
Payments from all channels are managed directly in your ERP as your single source of truth for sales orders, invoices, accounts receivable, and collections.
The result is the ability to manage financial data and payment processing in a single system, automating the flow of transactional data into the financial records – without manual entry.
This is especially important for SMBs, who are often strapped with managing crucial business processes using Excel spreadsheets because the proper automation hasn’t been incorporated into their ERP.
The result can be inefficiency, which exposes the business to errors that can lead to both quality and customer satisfaction issues.
A comprehensive ERP solution for small to medium-sized businesses, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, offers extensive customization and scalability options vital to SMBs seeking enhanced efficiency and streamlined operations.
Seamless Integration’s Transformational Benefits
In addition to accounting accuracy, enhanced efficiency, reduced costs, and risk mitigation, ERP compatibility with your chosen payment processor introduces the transformational benefits of streamlined operations across all payment channels, for incredible improvements to efficiency company-wide.
But the benefits don’t end there.
With any online payments system, there’s a need for customer support – it goes with the territory.
To provide exceptional and ongoing customer service, your payment service provider must understand how the payment software is integrated into the ERP, as well as all the possible use cases available to the user within the ERP.
Manual execution of transactions should be avoided at all costs, as they can result in duplication of charges to customers. or other errors, leading to frustration and a poor customer experience.
Clients will enjoy a smoother and less costly implementation when the payment provider is an expert in the ERP because there’s no reliance on additional consulting for sandbox testing and go-live implementation and troubleshooting.
With lower costs and decreased reliance on manual processes, employees have more time to focus on higher-value work, which leads to increased morale and progress on new initiatives.
What’s more, the data breaches, compliance issues, and errors that frequently plague payment processing are reduced or eliminated once integration is complete.
Optimizing ERP Functionality Through Expert Payment Integration
Hopefully, you now understand the benefits of integrating payment integration with your ERP to optimize functionality.
But the process takes planning and forethought—a strategic approach that will deliver compliance with security standards in addition to customized solutions suited to your business's unique needs.
Let’s look at how these aspects can work together to enhance ERP systems like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central:
PCI Compliance Best Practices
Adhering to Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) is paramount in ERP/payment integration to protect sensitive payment data and ensure compliance with industry regulations.
Using hosted iframes or hosted payment pages minimizes the risk of data breaches. Credit card numbers and other sensitive payment data can be entered directly into a secure, PCI-compliant environment, reducing that risk.
Once these elements are embedded in the ERP system, the business can safely process payments without the direct handling of sensitive payment data, storing only tokens and never saving the cardholder's CVV or CSC codes.
Provider Expertise and Solutions Customization
Accounts receivable processes are known for being complex and time-consuming.
A payments processor with deep knowledge of your ERP system can be a game changer in customizing AR solutions and increasing their functionality.
For example, in Microsoft Dynamics 365, a payment processor could develop a customized module to allow customers to see their outstanding invoices and pay online without utilizing your internal staff resources.
This process would allow the business to handle its financial operations more efficiently by reducing manual entries and ultimately improving cash flow management, leading to easier financial reporting.
By customizing solutions, the payment processing features can be aligned specifically with the business's unique operational needs.
In short, by partnering with the right payments processor – one that is well-versed in your ERP system – you can optimize your use of the system and improve employee satisfaction by streamlining business processes.
USTPay and Dynamics 365 - A Duo for Operational Success
Through seamless integration with Dynamics 365 Business Central ERP, USTPay easily becomes part of your organization’s workflow, enabling effective customization and implementation, as well as assistance with demos, training, and dedicated, ongoing customer support – all in one centralized location.
If your current payment processing solutions aren’t playing well with your ERP system to maximize operational efficiency, costs, and security, USTPay can help!
Reach out to learn more: https://www.ustranscorp.com/ustpay or contact us at https://www.ustranscorp.com/support
About the Author
U.S. Transactions Corp., a premier B2B enterprise service provider, collaborates with its clients to deliver an exceptional experience every time, from industry-lowest rates and cutting-edge technology to Level-3 processing that can save your organization up to 30 percent on costs!
Since 2009, UST has been a trusted source for Commercial Enterprises, Associations, and Nonprofits looking to maximize their success rate through superior payment solutions designed specifically for them.
USTPay is a product of U.S. Transactions Corp. and is available on Microsoft AppSource.