TouchNet Marketplace
Overview
With Marketplace, departments can easily create, manage, and operate online storefronts, registration sites, and secure payment pages.
Benefits:
- Customizable digital storefronts to support a wide variety of activities
- Flexible product database
- Integrated inventory management
- Conference/event management
- Online stores and payment methods
- Secure and efficient way to take payments
- Integrates to Banner/Peoplesoft
- Eliminates Cash and Check Handling
- Increases Revenue
- Does not require extensive programming skills to implement, deploy, or manage
- PCI Compliant
To learn more about the different applications/product offerings, email bankingservices@georgiasouthern.edu to setup time with you and your team to understand differences between the multiple offerings.
Marketplace uStores
Marketplace uStores let students, parents, alumni, etc. shop online, register for events, or make donations anytime, anyplace. As they do, Marketplace automatically updates Banner/the general ledger. This is an easy way to take payments and requires no IT customizations.
Marketplace sites are intended for use by the customer only. Due to Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) Georgia Southern University staff are prohibited from entering customer cardholder data for the customer. If your department is in need of in-person (point of sale) payment card processing, please contact the Banking and Investment Manager within the Finance Division.
Marketplace uPay
uPay is a payment gateway you can easily integrate with any website. Marketplace uPay provides secure, PCI-compliant payment processing that moves campus-wide payments into one centralized, certified payment system. uPay works with various 3rd party vendors, called Touchnet Ready Partners, collects all the payment information in a secure environment, updates Banner/Peoplesoft, and returns it to the original 3td party vendor app.
TouchNet has more than 250 certified partners to which higher education institutions have access. Partner applications integrate seamlessly with TouchNet to allow this third-party application to take payments.
Georgia Southern University currently has integrations between TouchNet and existing applications including Handshake, Aims Parking, Visual Zen, Enrole, StarRez, Slate, IMLeagues, CampusESP, Terradotta, and others.
- TouchNet Ready Partners are validated to accept payments through the U.Commerce payment software suite
- With any Touchnet Ready Partner, Georgia Southern can easily connect TouchNet services to provide a smooth experience for students and administrators, ensure PCI compliance and security, and improve transaction reconciliation.
- If you are considering implementing a third-party software and you need to process payment, check and see if the software provider is a TouchNet ready partner. View all TouchNet Ready Partners.
- If your software provider is not a TouchNet ready partner, ask them to become one. Becoming a TouchNet ready partner is easy and will enhance their software for you and other clients.
Marketplace POS
Marketplace Point of Sale (POS) allows departments to easily take payments in-person or over the phone through the uStores Marketplace application. It also allows departments to mobilize their POS to specific event-day locations and accept secure in-person payments anywhere on or off-campus including conferences, camps, sporting events, donations, dues, parking, and more. Marketplace POS uses the latest mobile payment technology to deliver unparalleled capabilities in a user-friendly way.
Departments who wish to take in-person payments continuously, without a dedicated CRM, can request to have a device permanently installed within their unit.
Departments who have a single event, or wish to infrequently accept payments can request a Loaner Terminal through the POS Device Loan Program
Payment Methods
Accepting ACH Payments
ACH electronic payments are accepted from customer’s personal checking or savings bank accounts. TouchNet Transaction Services validates bank routing and account numbers to ensure that ACH is connected to an existing, open bank account. This helps to prevent payers from submitting a payment with an incorrect routing/account number, when selecting and authorizing an ACH payment or recurring payments. This validation is not able to confirm that the customer’s bank account contains sufficient funds to cover the marketplace purchase or if savings account type (if chosen) is authorized by the user’s bank to permit ACH withdrawals. There is a risk that payment cannot be completed.
- For each ACH returned by the bank for any reason, the department must charge a $30 return item fee to the customer. The department is responsible for fee collection.
- The department should consider if transaction amounts warrant potential return fee.
Credit Card Processing Fees
Georgia Southern University accepts all major credit card brands. These card brands, along with the University’s payment card processor, impose fees for using their payment networks. For each customer card transaction processed, the merchant (Georgia Southern) is charged a processing fee ranging from 2-4 percent. These fees will be allocated to your department or unit monthly. It is the departments responsibility to incorporate the cost of doing business into the price of the goods or services being offered so we recommend adding an additional 5 percent to cover this cost. Additionally, departments must maintain sufficient funds in the general ledger (GL) expense account where your processing fees will be posted.
Recording Sales Transactions
Transactions are recorded automatically to the department/org and account code designated by the department. Units may have multiple dept/org/account combinations assigned to different products or services. These combinations are recorded using detail codes. This automation eliminates the need for departments to submit daily transmittal forms to the cashier’s office for manual input into Banner/PeopleSoft.
Reconciliation
Departments are responsible for reconciling sales transactions captured through their online storefronts with transactions posted to Banner/PeopleSoft. Administrators may create transaction reports in Marketplace to match transactions posted in Banner/Peoplesoft. If a discrepancy is discovered, the reconciler must contact Fiscal Services for assistance in resolving the error.
Credits/Refunds to Customers
To enable refund functionality, an individual must be assigned the role of “Fulfiller w/Refund Rights.” If a refund or credit is due to the customer, the Fulfiller w/Refund Rights will initiate the refund/credit in Marketplace.
Chargebacks/Disputes
Occasionally, Georgia Southern will receive notice that a customer has disputed a charge. A copy of the chargeback notification will be forwarded to the Marketplace Store Manager. The department is required to provide all requested information in response to the notification by the due date indicated. Even when adequate documentation is provided the credit card provider may proceed with the chargeback. If the chargeback is accepted the sales transaction will be reversed.
Sales Tax
Departments are responsible for collecting and paying sales tax on items that they offer for sale when appropriate. All tax must be collected at the time of the transaction. For questions regarding when it is appropriate to make sales tax collection, please contact the Controller.
Links
Touchnet Marketplace Employee Access
Point of Sale (POS) Device Loan Program
Point of Sale Device Loan Request
Marketplace Training Documents / User Guides
For a comprehensive costs and affordability analysis, please visit COSTS & AFFORDABILITY
Last updated: 11/9/2023