Why Your Business Should Support Multiple Payment Methods

When it comes to paying affiliate networks, contractors, and remote team members, you have options. The wide range of digital payment methods available today makes it easy for businesses to send payments anywhere in the world.

But here’s the catch: your business shouldn’t just pick one method and stick with it. It’s crucial to support multiple payment methods, so your payees have options. Offering a variety of payment methods will expand your hiring pool, strengthen your business’s relationships, and support healthy affiliate networks. A mass payout platform like i-payout makes it easy.

Common Global Payout Methods

There are plenty of digital methods a business can use to pay global contractors and affiliates today. Unfortunately, none of them are perfect. Every digital payment method has its pros and cons, and what works best for one payee might not be right for another — that’s why it’s so important to provide multiple options.

Here are a few of the most common global payout methods, and their advantages.

Wire Transfers

When paying someone overseas, many businesses choose to send a SWIFT, or wire transfer. These electronic transfers send funds directly from one bank account to another. They’re fast and secure, but often come with high fees. Sending multiple monthly wire transfers to recipients around the globe will get expensive.

ACH

Automated Clearing House (ACH) transfers send money from one U.S. bank account to another. This payment method, generally referred to as “direct deposit,” is one of the most popular for paying domestic team members.

The release of Same Day ACH in 2016 has made ACH transfers faster and more convenient. However, this method only works for U.S.-based payees — you can’t send an ACH transfer to an overseas recipient.

Global ACH

Global ACH transfers are similar to ACH transfers, but send money along international rails to reach bank accounts outside the U.S. Although slower than wire transfers, Global ACH is a more affordable method to reach international payees. This method only works for payees with a bank account in a participating rail network, such as SEPA in Europe, BACS in the UK, EFTA in Canada, and BECS in Australia.

PayPal

PayPal is a longstanding money transfer app that facilitates digital transfers all over the world. The platform supports payments in 200 countries and 25 currencies. The main advantage of using PayPal is that you don’t need a recipient’s bank account information. However, as transfers aren’t going through official rail networks, the sender is responsible for handling compliance requirements themselves.

Prepaid Debit Cards

Many affiliate marketing companies choose to pay their global affiliates with prepaid debit cards or e-cards. These cards are funded with the affiliate’s earnings and can be re-funded with each payment period. This is an easy solution for payees who are unbanked or don’t have access to traditional payment methods.

The Benefits of Supporting Multiple Payment Options

As you can see, there is no shortage of options when it comes to paying your global team members. So, why is it so important to support multiple payment options?

Simply put, the more payment methods your company supports, the easier it will be to pay a wide range of recipients. By offering a variety of options, you’re expanding your potential hiring pool and meeting the unique preferences of your existing team members.

Here are a few notable benefits of supporting multiple payment options.

Increased Accessibility

One of the biggest challenges of working with global contractors is meeting the needs of everyone on your payroll. For example, Southeast Asia is one of the fastest-growing markets for affiliate sales, but not all affiliates in the region will use the same currency or have access to the same banking services. Alternative methods like prepaid debit cards make your company more accessible, allowing for faster growth in emerging markets.

Lower Fees

Limiting your available payment methods to ACH and wire transfers means committing to the fees associated with those methods. International wire transfers can cost up to $50 per transfer — while it’s great to offer wires as a fast, secure alternative, relying on them as your main payment method will get costly.

By offering multiple payment methods, you can accommodate your payees’ preferences while still reducing fees wherever possible.

Improved Business Reputation

Satisfied team members means a better reputation for your business, which, in turn, means more opportunities for growth. Supporting multiple payment methods will improve your onboarding processes and encourage less turnover.

Healthy Affiliate Networks

Affiliate marketing companies rely on continuous growth. Healthy, happy affiliate networks are crucial, especially if your business is expanding into new global markets. Offering a variety of payment methods is just one way to improve trust, boost affiliate satisfaction, and continue growing your networks.

What Kinds of Businesses Will Benefit from Multiple Payment Methods?

Any modern business should offer multiple payment methods, regardless of your industry or reach. The majority of Americans today prefer digital banking platforms. That means more people would choose digital forms of payment when given the option. While some of your payees might still want a written check, others may prefer to be paid via PayPal or Same Day ACH.

The benefits listed above apply to any business. That said, certain businesses will benefit more from supporting a variety of payment methods, including:

• Affiliate marketing: If your business relies on affiliate networks, offering a range of payment options is a must.
• Remote or hybrid workplaces: Alternative payment methods make it easier to pay your remote team, especially if you hire overseas team members.
• International contractors: If you work with international contractors, you will encounter a wide variety of payment needs and preferences. Supporting multiple methods makes your business more accessible to contractors anywhere in the world.

How to Expand Your Payment Options

Sending payments through a wide variety of channels might seem complicated. Traditionally, it would involve a lot of paperwork and fees to address all the regulatory needs for each payment method. That’s why many businesses limit their available methods.

Fortunately, modern payment platforms like i-payout make it easy. i-payout supports mass payouts, a method of paying multiple recipients through multiple channels at the same time. Mass payouts account for all your fees and compliance needs. It’s easy to add or remove methods, schedule routine payments, and onboard new recipients to the platform.

Should your business support multiple payment methods? Yes — especially if you work with international contractors or are growing your global affiliate networks. With i-payout, you can pay your team members anywhere in the world. However, they want to be paid.