Customers are already comfortable paying online. For many businesses, the bigger question is what it actually takes to start accepting payments in a way that feels simple to manage day to day.
Whether you are running an online store, taking bookings, collecting fees, or sending invoices, getting paid should not slow you down.
The right setup should work with how you already sell, give your customers options, and help you stay on top of what is happening with your payments.
Most businesses don’t start with a full payment setup.
It usually begins with bank transfers, payment screenshots, follow-ups on WhatsApp, and manual checks to confirm if something was paid.
That works at the beginning. But as orders or bookings increase, it becomes harder to keep track.
You might find yourself dealing with:
At that point, it’s no longer just about “getting paid.” It’s about making payments part of a process that works for your business.
There isn’t one single way to accept payments. Most businesses use a combination, depending on how they sell.
A hosted checkout gives your customers a secure page where they can complete a payment online.
This works best if:
It keeps everything in one flow, from product selection to payment.
Payment links are one of the simplest ways to start.
Instead of building a full checkout, you:
This works well if:
If your business already runs on an e-commerce platform or a custom website, integrations connect payments directly into that setup.
This means:
QR can also be part of your setup.
It gives customers a quick scan-to-pay option, especially in face-to-face moments. But it works best alongside your online setup, not as a replacement for it.
Once you have your core setup (checkout, payment links, or integrations), you can add extra tools that support how your business runs.
These are useful, but they work best when paired with your main payment setup, not on their own.
You might consider:
The key is to start simple, then add what fits your business.
If you’re not sure where to start, the easiest way is to match your setup to how you already sell.
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If your business needs to…
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Start with…
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Take payments on a website |
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Send payments through WhatsApp or email |
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Connect payments into a store |
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Offer scan-to-pay as an extra option |
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Charge customers regularly |
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Send invoices customers can pay |
Invoicing with payment links |
There’s no single “best” option. It’s about choosing what fits your workflow.
Before setting up online payments, it helps to ask a few practical questions:
If you can answer “yes” to most of these, you’re likely choosing the right setup.
For businesses across Africa, taking payments online is less about choosing the most complex solution and more about choosing the one that fits.
With the right setup, you can:
Network brings this together through hosted checkout, payment links, integrations, QR support, and add-on tools that can be introduced as your needs grow.
Network is also ranked #1 in MEA by Nilson, making it a trusted option for businesses looking for a reliable payments partner.
See how Network can help you set up a payment flow that works for your business.
