Electronic payments, also referred to as e-payments, are quickly becoming the norm in many countries across the world, including the US. According to a new survey, 82% of Americans prefer electronic payment methods to traditional forms. The convenience, speed, and security offered by digital payments are expected to accelerate the adoption of electronic payment systems even more.

Given the recent trends in the payments industry, it has become imperative for a vacation rental management company to opt for a PMS solution with different payment processing integrations that can facilitate quick, seamless e-payment transactions for its financial needs.

Since payment processors offer different digital payment services nowadays, reviewing the following key features could help you select the right payment processing solution for your company.

Types of Transactions

While most payment processors enable businesses to receive credit card, debit card, virtual card, and ACH payments, the best of them make available a series of additional services that allow vacation rental management companies to accept alternative transaction types. An example is the digital transactions made through e-wallets, such as ApplePay, Google Pay, PayPal, WeChat Pay, and iDeal. If you opt for a payment processor that facilitates a wide range of transaction types, your guests will have more flexibility in how they choose to pay for reservations.

Software Integrations

Another thing you should look for in a payment processing solution is its ability to integrate with other business tools that you use to optimize your operations. Overall, a payment solution that integrates seamlessly with your property management system, reservations dashboards, accounting tools, and any other software solutions important to your business can make payments faster, which can improve the overall guest experience. But service integrations bring another important advantage to the table: they save you a lot of time on redundant and labor-intensive activities, like manual data entry and account reconciliation. Also, the ability to sync, import, and export transaction data to QuickBooks, Xero, or any other accounting system you may use will help you improve the accuracy of your operations. 

Software integrations also ensure smoother transactions. For instance, the payment processing feature that is linked to our reservations dashboard allows you to easily and reliably collect reservation charges along with any other reservation-related fees. Furthermore, the system will accumulate all fees under the guest’s reservation, so you can charge the guest the total balance at check-in. Once the transaction is processed, you can track it from your dashboard and send the receipt to the guest within moments. Our payment processing features will also help you:

  • ensure PCI compliant payments;
  • charge cards on file;
  • set up payment schedules, automatic payments, and payment reminders;
  • update payment information whenever you wish, including during a guest’s stay;
  • adjust your taxes, fees, and nightly rates for different vacation rental properties;
  • view the status of all payments, including any processed, failed, and pending transactions. 

Payment Processing Time

The time it takes for funds to be deposited into your bank account depends on your bank’s policies, type of transaction, types of accounts the money is being sent to and from, and whether the reservation is made through an OTA or your own website. In general, payments can take anywhere from a few hours up to 5 business days to be processed. However, some payment processing services can expedite transactions and transfer funds in just a few seconds. On the downside, instant payment processing may include additional fees.

Cost Effectiveness  

The overall cost of a payment processing service, which may include setup costs, transaction fees, chargeback fees, membership fees, PCI compliance fees, and cancellation fees, is important when comparing different payment processors. However, a payment processor that offers the lowest price isn’t necessarily the best partner to have. When it comes to selecting the right payment processor for your vacation rental management company, the best option to consider is a comprehensive PMS system, which provides different features, including payment processing, at a lower overall price than the price you’d otherwise need to pay if you choose a few standalone solutions.

The payment processing solutions that are an integral part of our lodging management system deliver a variety of tools that can accommodate all types of transactions. As a result, you won’t have to use different systems to get all of your transactions in order.

Whether your vacation rental property management company oversees 10, 100, or 200 properties, your business depends on a steady cash flow. One way to ensure timely payments while reducing your collection efforts and lowering administrative expenses is to opt for a comprehensive lodging management system, like JANIIS. By providing a complete set of features and a secure online payment gateway, not only will our software solution allow you to make and receive online payments easily and quickly while also keeping track of all submitted payments and fees; it can also help you develop positive relationships with guests, property owners, business partners, and third-party service providers. For more details about the features and functionalities of our system and the reasons why it might be a good choice for your company, feel free to get in touch with our professionals today!