Online Payment Links for Small Businesses: How to Get Paid Without an Online Shop

A payment link is a web address that opens a hosted checkout page for a particular payment. You create it in your payment app or provider's dashboard, then send it to your customer. They open it, check the amount and pay on their own device.

Businesses use payment links when a sale is agreed directly with a customer: a quote that has been accepted, a booking that needs a deposit, or an item someone has asked to buy through a message.

Payment links are one of several ways to take payments online. Each suits a different kind of sale.

Service providers: a dog groomer can send a link after confirming a booking. Appointment deposits: a photographer can take a deposit to hold a date. Social selling: a maker who posts on Instagram can send a link to a follower who asks to buy. Custom orders: a florist can send a link once the arrangement and delivery date are agreed. Remote customers: a consultant can send a link for a session to a client in another city.

These are examples of how a workflow might look, not reports of actual results. What they share is a clear agreement before the link is sent.

Most payment providers follow the same pattern. You enter the amount and a short description, create the link and copy it. Then you share it wherever you are talking to the customer: email, text message, WhatsApp, social-media messages or a chat on your booking platform.

Send the link together with a sentence explaining what it is for. Customers are more comfortable paying when the message, the amount and the business name on the checkout page all match what they expect.

A payment link is only part of a well-run sale. The details around it prevent most problems.

Most customers will open your link on a phone, so the checkout needs to work well on a small screen. Hosted checkout pages from established payment providers handle the sensitive payment details, so you never see or store a customer's card number.

Help customers trust the link by sending it only in an existing conversation, keeping your business name consistent and never asking for card details by message. If a customer is unsure, invite them to contact you through a channel they already use.

Sending a link before the price is agreed. Sending several links for one order, which can lead to double payments. Leaving out what the payment is for. Treating a screenshot as proof of payment. Forgetting to explain refund terms. Sending links to people who are not expecting them, which can look like a scam. Each of these is easy to avoid with a short, clear message and a quick check of your dashboard.

Phesky lets eligible UK merchants create and share payment links from their phone. After signing in and connecting your own Stripe account, you open Get Paid, enter an amount of at least £0.50 and, if you like, add a product name, a photo and a tip prompt. Phesky gives you a link to copy or share, and a QR code for the same request. If you have a website, Phesky also offers an embeddable checkout widget.

Phesky checkout supports Apple Pay and Google Pay only; there is no form for typing in card numbers. A wallet button appears only when the customer's device, browser and wallet set-up support it and Stripe confirms it is eligible. Some in-app browsers, such as those inside messaging and social apps, restrict wallets, so customers may need to open the link in Safari or Chrome.

Customer payments are direct charges on your own connected Stripe account, so the proceeds belong to that account. Phesky receives only its application fee and does not hold or pay out merchant money. Payment status comes from verified Stripe information, and confirmed payments appear in your dashboard, where you can also start a refund. Stripe pays out to your bank on your payout schedule.

Phesky's application fee is £0.16 on a successful payment below £30, and 0.60% on a payment of £30 or more. That is only Phesky's share: Stripe's processing fees apply separately under your Stripe terms, so Phesky's fee is not your total cost. The pricing page shows worked examples that add both together for £10, £30 and £100 sales.

Payment links are best for sales you agree one at a time. If customers regularly want to browse a large range, choose sizes or buy without contacting you, an online shop may eventually suit you better. If you sell to other businesses, you may still need to issue invoices with your company details and VAT information where that applies, and include a payment link alongside them.

It is also worth thinking about volume. Sending individual links works well for a handful of orders a day; if you are creating dozens, look at whether a website checkout or a fixed-price option would save you time. Many small businesses start with payment links and add other tools only when their sales pattern makes it worthwhile, rather than building everything up front.

You do not need an online shop to take payments online in the UK. For one-to-one sales, deposits and custom orders, a payment link is often the simplest option. Agree the terms, send one clear link, confirm payment in your own dashboard and keep refunds and records in the same place. Read more about Phesky payment links, compare the pricing examples and create a free account when you are ready.