Since becoming a payment option in the early 1970s, ACH payments have reached a total volume of payments in the tens of trillions of dollars. Integrating ACH payment processing with an ACH API offers businesses a range of financial benefits, as well as enhancing the customer experience.
ACH payments are most often used with recurring payments, including subscriptions, salaries, mortgage payments, credit card bills, etc. Software as a Service (SaaS) platforms that deal with subscription or recurring payments with their users are required to offer ACH payments as a payment rail option, and ACH payments are typically the go to method for automated, recurring payments.
So, how can an ACH API Solutions benefit your organization?
Notifications
Notifications are key for efficiency and communication, and the modern consumer has come to expect notifications from any application. A proper ACH API integration will provide users with instant payment and account data via notifications. Webhooks or postbacks to create and deliver notifications for transactions should also be readily available .
Control Of Management
An SaaS applications’ development team(s) can determine how recurring payments are managed via the ACH API’s scheduling system, or with their own system software.
While pre-built portals allow payments through banks and third-party ACH Processors, many businesses need to integrate ACH API Solutions for their SaaS to be able to manage transactions.
User Experience And Data
ACH API Integration also allows for better control on the user end, with reporting data available from the processor for the SaaS implementers to allow for the tailoring of the end user experience. The availability of retention based data means that implentors can focus on a long term customer base management.
Personal customer data (name, driver’s license number, etc.) can mitigate fraud risk by verifying bank account ownership, while funds availability can also be referenced to help prevent non-sufficient funds (NSF) incidents.
Lower Costs/Decline Rates
Traditional credit card processing fees cost businesses around 2-3% of a transaction, while ACH processing costs are often a flat 25-50 cent fee. Savings are particularly effective in a recurring billing model, and larger transaction volumes mean better savings.
The frequency of credit card decline rates (around 15% for some businesses) is a major pressure point for businesses. ACH payments have a much lower decline rate, meaning last time spent tracking down new payment information from declined customers.
Onboarding
ACH API Solutions also assists with user onboarding, allowing SaaS businesses to capture new user underwriting data by displaying an application and agreement on the SaaS business’s website.
Regarding Buy Rates…
When seeking an ACH processing partnership make sure to look for flat buy rates, allowing you to sell at around 30%. Don’t consider a percentage or discount feem, as this leads to higher ACH buy rates and large expenditures can be added to your business’s outflow.
Meeting Your Business’s ACH Needs
For SaaS applications using subscription models, utilizing ACH API Solutions provides clear financial benefits, and a range of other positives for both the application and subscribers.
For almost 20 years, Agile Payments have been offering premium ACH API integrations to businesses of any size. Contact Agile Payments for more information.
