Why SaaS platforms add payments
Adding payments inside your product is a product decision and a business decision at the same time. Your customers get a smoother experience with no redirect and no second account. Your platform gets stickier relationships, because the payment data and recurring billing live in one place. And you open a new revenue line, because every transaction carries economics your platform can share in.
The questions we hear most
Should we build, buy or partner? It depends on your volume, your team and how central payments are to your product. We lay out the tradeoffs plainly, including when you are better off with a simpler option than ours.
How do we keep control of the experience? With a white-label approach, your customers see your brand, your onboarding and your checkout. We stay behind the scenes.
What happens to compliance? Card network rules, underwriting and monitoring do not disappear, but they do not have to land on your engineering team either. We handle them as part of the program, and we are clear about what remains yours.
How long will this take? The answer depends on your platform and how you want payments to work. We scope it together before you commit to anything.
Three ways to add payments
- 1Refer customers to a payments partner. Fast to start, with limited control and revenue.
- 2Use PayFac-as-a-Service. Offer payments under your own brand while a partner handles the underwriting, risk and compliance infrastructure. This is what linq provides.
- 3Become a registered payment facilitator. Maximum control, with the full operational and compliance burden.
Most platforms start with a referral and move toward PayFac-as-a-Service as payments become a core part of the product. See info on building versus buying.
PayFac-as-a-Service versus building it yourself
| PayFac-as-a-Service (linq) | Build your own PayFac | |
|---|---|---|
| Underwriting and risk | Handled by us | Your team runs it |
| Compliance load | Carried by the partner | Carried by your team |
| Time to launch | Faster | Slower, months to years |
| Control | High, under your brand | Maximum |
| Revenue share | Yes, structured with the partner | You keep it all, after your costs |
What we provide
- PayFac-as-a-Service so you can offer payments under your brand.
- Merchant onboarding built into your signup experience.
- Underwriting and risk handled by our team.
- A payment gateway with tokenization and hosted fields.
- ACH for bank payments alongside cards.
- Recurring billing and saved payment methods.
- Developer documentation and a team that answers questions.
Built for any software vertical
linq works for software companies across virtually any vertical, because the mechanics of embedded payments, onboarding and underwriting do not change from one industry to the next. We have had particular success with fitness and wellness, medical and healthcare, and unattended and car wash platforms, but that is a starting point, not a limit. Field service, property management, education, hospitality, professional services, nonprofit, retail, ecommerce, travel, events, logistics, and dozens of other software categories all fit the same model. See the industries we serve.
Who we work with
Payment partners are most successful when they understand how a platform's customers actually operate. We work with software companies of different sizes and stages, and we take the time to learn your product, your customers and your goals before recommending an approach.
How Merchant Focus helps
We have helped businesses accept payments since 2004, and we bring that experience to every conversation before you commit to anything. We help you choose the right model, plan the integration, onboard your first customers and improve the program over time, with a team that picks up the phone. If a simpler path than ours is better for you, we will say so.