Connecting Stripe Account To Pinnacle360

How to Create a Stripe Account and Connect It to Pinnacle360 (Step-by-Step Guide)

Introduction to Stripe and Pinnacle360

Stripe is an online payment platform that helps businesses accept payments securely over the internet. It lets you process credit card payments, transfer money to your bank, and handle transactions in a reliable way. Pinnacle360 is an all-in-one software platform (often used by salons, spas, and other small businesses) that can manage appointments, services, and more – including taking payments.

To accept payments in Pinnacle360, you need to connect it with Stripe. This guide will show you how to create a Stripe account, verify your information, get your Stripe API keys, and plug those keys into Pinnacle360 so you can start processing payments.

We’ll walk through the steps in plain, simple language. Whether you’re a solo entrepreneur or a small business owner with a team, this guide will help you connect Stripe to Pinnacle360 without any jargon. By the end, you’ll have Stripe set up and integrated into Pinnacle360, ready to accept customer payments.

Who This Guide Is For

This guide is designed for any business owners in the U.S., especially those around age 23–57, who might be new to online payment systems. If you use Pinnacle360 (for example, to manage your salon, spa, or any appointment-based business) and you want to enable credit card payments through Stripe, this tutorial is for you. No prior technical knowledge is needed – we will start from the very beginning, like explaining things to an eighth grader.

What you’ll need: an email address you can access, basic personal or business information (like your address and possibly a tax ID or Social Security number for verification), and a few minutes of time. By following these steps, you’ll go from no Stripe account to having your Stripe connected to Pinnacle360. Let’s get started!

Setting Up a Stripe Account

Setting up a Stripe account is free and straightforward. Stripe offers accounts for individuals (solo business owners or freelancers) as well as registered businesses.

The process is very similar for both; the main difference is the type of information you provide during verification (personal info for individuals, or company info for businesses). Follow these steps to create your Stripe account:

The Stripe sign-up form is simple: you just need to provide an email, full name, country, and a password to create your account.

1. Go to the Stripe sign-up page. Open your web browser and navigate to the Stripe website. Click on “Sign Up” (sometimes labeled “Start now” or “Create account” on the Stripe homepage). This will take you to the registration form.
2. Fill in your details. Enter the email address you want to use for your Stripe account. Stripe will send a verification email here, so make sure you have access to this inbox. Next, type in your full name. Choose your country (for example, United States) from the dropdown menu if prompted. Then create a strong password for your Stripe account. You may need to check a box to confirm “I’m not a robot” as part of their security. Finally, click the Create account button.
3. Verify your email address. After signing up, Stripe will send a confirmation email to the address you provided. Go to your email inbox, find the message from Stripe (it may say something like “Verify your email to start using Stripe”), and click the “Verify email address” button inside that email. This step confirms your email is real. (If you don’t see the email after a few minutes, check your spam or junk folder.) Once you click the verification link, Stripe will confirm your email, and you can log in to your new Stripe account.
4. Log in to Stripe. After email verification, you can sign in to the Stripe Dashboard using your email and the password you set. The Dashboard is Stripe’s online interface where you’ll manage your account. At this point, your Stripe account is created but not fully activated for payments yet. Stripe will likely prompt you to “Activate payments” or “Complete your account setup” – which involves verifying your identity or business details. We’ll cover that next.

By this stage, you have a Stripe account that allows you to log in and use test features. However, to actually process live payments (for real money), Stripe needs more information about you or your business. In the next section, we will go through verifying your account (Stripe’s activation process) to ensure you can use all features and get your API keys for integration.

Stripe’s activation form will ask for details about your business type. For example, you can choose if you’re an individual/sole proprietor or a company. Then Stripe will gather more info based on your choice.

Verifying Your Business or Personal Identity on Stripe

After creating your Stripe account, the most important step is to activate it by providing additional details. Stripe (like banks and other payment processors) is required by law to collect certain information to verify who you are. This is often referred to as the Stripe business verification process. Don’t worry – Stripe guides you through it with an online form. Here’s what to expect and how to complete the verification:

1. Begin the activation process. In your Stripe Dashboard, look for a button or prompt that says “Activate payments” or “Activate your account.” Click that to start the verification wizard. You might also find this under Settings or in the Dashboard home where it says your account is in test mode. Stripe will now walk you through a series of steps to collect necessary informationtransportme.helpscoutdocs.com.
2. Choose your business type. Stripe will first ask about your business. You’ll typically see options like Individual/Sole Proprietor, Company, Non-profit, etc. Select the one that best describes you. For example:
   • If you are a one-person business or freelancer (and not registered as a company), choose Individual/Sole Trader (Sole Proprietor).
   • If you have a registered business (LLC, Corporation, etc.), choose Company (or the appropriate type like Partnership or Non-profit).
     This step just tells Stripe what kind of legal entity you are. Individuals will essentially use their personal info as the business info. Companies will provide company details plus an owner’s info.

1. Provide personal or business details. Next, Stripe will request more details based on your selection:
   • For Individuals/Sole Proprietors: You’ll need to enter personal information such as your full legal name, date of birth, home address, and last four digits of your Social Security Number (SSN) in the U.S. (Stripe uses this to verify your identity against government records). You may also briefly describe what your business does (industry) and possibly provide a website or social media link for your business (if you have one).
   • For Companies: You’ll need to provide your business legal name, employer identification number (EIN) or Tax ID, the business address, and perhaps the type of industry. Stripe will also ask for the name and information of a representative or owner of the business (usually this is you if you’re the owner, or an executive in the company). That includes personal info like name, date of birth, and SSN (or a passport/ID number if no SSN) for that individual. This is to verify the person behind the company. You might also list any additional owners if required by law (for example, anyone owning more than 25% of the company, in some cases).
2. Add a bank account for payouts. Stripe will ask for your bank account details where it will deposit the money you earn from customer payments. You’ll typically need to provide a routing number and account number for your checking account. If you’re an individual, this can be your personal bank account or a business bank account if you have one. If you’re a company, use your business bank account. (Double-check the numbers to avoid any mistakes. Stripe will later send deposits to this account.)
3. Secure your Stripe account. As a part of activation, Stripe might prompt you to enable extra security. For example, they might encourage you to set up two-factor authentication (2FA) to protect your account. With 2FA, you’ll enter a code from your phone in addition to your password when logging in, which keeps your account safer. We also discuss security tips at the end of this guide, but if Stripe asks now, it’s a good idea to set this up (you can also skip and do it later).
4. Review and finish. Stripe will show you a summary of the information you provided. Make sure everything is correct and complete. If any required details are missing, Stripe will highlight them for you to fill in. Once you’ve reviewed all the sections (business info, personal info, bank, etc.), submit the form to Stripe. In many cases, Stripe can verify your details near-instantly using databases. Sometimes, Stripe might ask for additional verification, like uploading a photo of your ID or company documents, especially if something couldn’t be verified automatically. Follow any on-screen instructions if further steps are needed.

After completing these steps, your Stripe account should be activated for live payments. This means you have essentially proven to Stripe that “I am a real person/business.” Once activated, you will be able to access your live API keys and receive payouts to your bank. You’ll know you’re done when your Stripe Dashboard no longer shows prompts to activate your account, and you can see live mode data. Stripe may send you a confirmation email that your account is now fully set up or active.

Note: You can actually get started with Stripe’s test mode before completing all verification, but you must finish verification to use live mode (real money). Now that your account is active, let’s find those API keys we need for connecting to Pinnacle360.

Where to Find Your Stripe API Keys (Updated for 2025 Dashboard)

Once your Stripe account is set up and verified, you’ll need to connect it to Pinnacle360 using API keys. These keys are what allow Pinnacle360 to communicate securely with Stripe to process payments.

Stripe provides two types of keys:

• Publishable Key (pk_live_... or pk_test_...) – Used on the front end. It’s okay to share this in apps or with integrations.
• Secret Key (sk_live_... or sk_test_...) – Used on the back end. Keep this private. This is what Pinnacle360 needs to charge cards.

Here’s how to locate them using the latest Stripe Dashboard (as of 2025):

🔎 Steps to Get Your Stripe API Keys

Click Submit and toggle Enable payment gateway to ON.

Log in to your Stripe Dashboard

Go to dashboard.stripe.com and sign in using your account credentials.

Locate the API Key Panel on the Home Page

Once logged in, on the Home page, scroll down slightly.

You’ll see a section on the right titled “For developers” with a green “Live mode” badge.

This panel displays:

Your Publishable key (you’ll see the beginning like pk_live_...)

Your Secret key (which is hidden by default with dots)

Reveal and Copy Your Keys

Click the small copy icon next to the Publishable key to copy it.

To view your Secret key, click “••••••••” or a link like “Reveal secret key”.

Stripe may prompt you to confirm your password for security.

Once revealed, click the copy icon to copy the full Secret key.

How to Input the Keys into Pinnacle360

Now that you have your Stripe account set up and your API keys in hand, the final step is to connect Stripe to Pinnacle360 using those keys. Pinnacle360 has a settings area where you can enable Stripe and paste your keys so that the two systems can talk to each other. We will walk through that process:

1. Log in to Pinnacle360. Go to your Pinnacle360 dashboard and sign in as an administrator or the user who can change settings for your business.
2. Navigate to Payment settings. In Pinnacle360, find the Settings menu. (In the screenshot example, Settings is at the bottom of the left side menu.) Within Settings, look for something like “Payment Gateway” or “Payments”. Click on Payment Gateway. This is where you can connect payment providers like Stripe.
3. Enable the Stripe payment gateway. On the Payment Gateway settings page, you should see an option to enable payments via Stripe. There might be a toggle switch or checkbox labeled something like “Enable payment gateway” or specifically “Enable Stripe.” Turn this on (for example, toggle it to the “on” or green position). This tells Pinnacle360 that you want to use Stripe to process payments.
4. Enter your Stripe API keys. Once Stripe is enabled, you will see input fields to enter your Stripe credentials. Typically, there are two fields:
   • Stripe Client ID – This corresponds to your Stripe Publishable Key (the one starting with pk_). Despite the label saying “Client ID,” it is actually expecting the publishable key stringhelp.agiled.app.
   • Stripe Secret Key – This is for your Stripe Secret Key (the one starting with sk_).
     Carefully paste the publishable key into the Stripe Client ID field, and the secret key into the Stripe Secret Key field. Make sure each field has the correct key (if they get swapped, it won’t work).

In Pinnacle360’s Payment Gateway settings, you need to input your Stripe keys. In the “Stripe client id” field, paste your Stripe publishable key (for example, pk_test_... or pk_live_...). In the “Stripe secret key” field, paste your Stripe secret key (for example, sk_test_... or sk_live_...). Then toggle “Enable payment gateway” on and click Submit. (The screenshot shows test keys as an example.)

1. Save/Submit the settings. After entering the keys, click the Submit button (or it might say “Save” or “Connect”) on that page. Pinnacle360 will likely validate the keys and attempt to establish a connection to Stripe. If everything is entered correctly, you should get a confirmation (maybe a success message or just seeing that the keys are saved). Your Pinnacle360 account is now connected to Stripe!
2. Test the integration (optional but recommended). It’s a good idea to test that the connection works. If Pinnacle360 has a test mode or if you used your test keys, try creating a test transaction (for example, a $1 test invoice or an appointment booking payment) to ensure it processes without errors. If you used test keys, you can simulate a payment without charging a real card (Stripe provides dummy card numbers for testing). If using live keys and you want to test a real payment, perhaps run a small charge on your own credit card to see that it goes through and appears in Stripe Dashboard. Verify that in Pinnacle360 the payment shows as completed and in Stripe you see the transaction. Testing helps confirm that everything is set up correctly before your customers start making payments.

That’s it – you’ve now connected Stripe to Pinnacle360! Whenever a client of yours makes a payment through Pinnacle360 (for example, paying for a service or booking), the money will be processed by Stripe and then deposited to the bank account you linked. You can manage and view all these transactions in your Stripe Dashboard (and possibly within Pinnacle360’s transaction reports as well).

Important: Remember, if you were using test keys for testing, you will need to replace those with your live keys in Pinnacle360 when you’re ready to accept real payments from customers. Using live keys will move real money. Using test keys will not charge real cards (transactions in test mode are simulated). So be sure to use the appropriate keys for your situation: test for sandbox/testing, live for actual business operations.

Common Issues and How to Fix Them

When setting up Stripe and connecting it to Pinnacle360, you might encounter some common issues. Don’t worry – they are usually easy to resolve. Here are a few potential problems and their solutions:

• Didn’t receive the Stripe verification email: If you signed up for Stripe but didn’t get the confirmation email, check your Spam or Junk folder. Sometimes emails get filtered. If it’s not there, go back to Stripe and try resending the verification email (Stripe’s sign-up page may show a prompt to resend if not verified). Ensure you entered your email correctly when signing up. Once you find the email, click the Verify email link to activate your Stripe login.
• Stripe account not activated (can’t get live API keys): If you can log in to Stripe and see your dashboard but not your live API keys, it likely means you haven’t finished the Stripe business verification steps. Make sure you provided all required information in the Activate payments process on Stripe. If you skipped something or clicked “Skip for now,” you’ll need to go back and finish it. In Stripe Dashboard, look for alerts or banners that say “Activate your account” or “Complete account setup.” Complete those steps (business details, personal identity, bank info) and then you’ll be able to toggle to live mode and see live keys. Until your account is activated, Stripe only allows test mode.
• “Invalid API Key” or connection error in Pinnacle360: If Pinnacle360 reports an error when you try to save the keys (or if payments aren’t working), double-check the keys you entered. Ensure that the publishable key (pk_…) is in the Stripe Client ID field and the secret key (sk_…) is in the Stripe Secret Key field. These can sometimes be accidentally reversed. Also, make sure there are no extra spaces or missing characters when you copied the keys. Another thing to verify is that you used the correct environment’s keys: if Pinnacle360 is expecting live keys and you accidentally put test keys (or vice versa), it might not work. Always match the pair – a common mistake is using one test key and one live key by accident, which won’t work.
• Payments still not going through (even after correct keys): If you have entered the correct live keys and a payment isn’t going through, a few things to check:
  • Ensure the “Enable payment gateway” toggle is ON in Pinnacle360 (the field should indicate that Stripe is enabled, as shown in the screenshot). If it’s off, the system will ignore the keys.
  • Check your Stripe Dashboard Payments or Logs (under Developers -> Logs) to see if Stripe is receiving requests or if there are error messages. Stripe’s logs can tell you if a request was made with an incorrect key or if something else is wrong.
  • Make sure your Stripe account has no restrictions. Occasionally, Stripe might require additional info even after activation (for example, if you start processing larger payments, they might ask for more verification). Check your Stripe notifications for any such messages.
  • If you are using test mode, remember that you must use Stripe’s test card numbers (real card details won’t work in test mode). For instance, Stripe provides a dummy visa card number “4242 4242 4242 4242” for test charges.
• Unable to find the API keys page on Stripe: If you’re lost in the Stripe Dashboard, remember to click on Developers in the left menu, then API Keys. On some mobile layouts or if Stripe changed its interface, the location might differ, but usually “Developers” is the section you need. If you still can’t find it, you can use the Stripe Dashboard’s search bar at the top by typing “API keys” and it should direct you there.
• Error: “You cannot use these keys in live mode” (or similar): This error typically means you might be using test keys while trying to run a live transaction. Switch to your live keys for real payments. Conversely, if you see an error about live mode when you intended to test, use the test keys or enable test mode.

If none of the above addresses your issue, consider reaching out to Stripe support or Pinnacle360 support. Stripe’s support website has a lot of articles, and their customer service can help with account-related problems. Pinnacle360’s support can assist if the issue is on the Pinnacle360 side (for example, if there’s a setting in Pinnacle360 not enabled or if your user role doesn’t have permission to change payment settings).

Most of the time, carefully retracing the setup steps will resolve the problem. Ensuring all info is correct and every required step is completed is key. Keep calm and double-check each field – you’ll get it working!

Final Tips to Keep Your Stripe Account Secure

As you set up and use Stripe, it’s important to keep your account and payment information secure. Here are some final tips to protect your Stripe account (and your customers’ payment data):

• Use a strong, unique password for Stripe. Since Stripe deals with financial information, you want to make sure your login is well-protected. Use a password that is hard to guess – ideally a mix of letters, numbers, and symbols – and do not reuse a password that you use for other accounts.
• Enable two-factor authentication (2FA). Stripe offers two-factor authentication, which means you’ll need a second step (like a code from your phone) to log in. Enabling 2FA adds an extra layer of security, making it much harder for anyone else to access your account docs.stripe.com. You can set this up in your Stripe Dashboard under security or account settings (Stripe might have even prompted you during setup). Typically, you can use an authenticator app (like Google Authenticator or Authy) or SMS for codes.
• Keep your Secret API key secret. Treat your Stripe secret key like a password. Never share it in emails or messages, and don’t post it online. The only place you should enter this key is in secure platforms you intend to integrate with (like Pinnacle360 in this case). If you have developers or team members helping you, you can invite them to your Stripe account with their own login or create restricted keys with limited permissions, rather than giving out your main secret key. If you ever suspect your secret key has been compromised (someone unauthorized saw it), you can roll (reset) the key in the Stripe Dashboard and get a new one.
• Be cautious of phishing attempts. Stripe will not ask for your password or secret key via email. If you get any email pretending to be Stripe asking for sensitive information, double-check the sender and never click suspicious links. Always log in to the Stripe site directly (look for the secure stripe.com address) if you need to verify something.
• Monitor your Stripe account activity. Regularly log in to your Stripe Dashboard and review the payments, payouts, and notifications. Stripe provides logs of all requests made with your keys – you can see if there are any unexpected activities. This is more of a technical check, but if you only integrate Stripe with trusted platforms (like Pinnacle360), you shouldn’t see any odd activity. Still, it’s good practice to keep an eye on it.
• Keep personal info updated. Ensure that your Stripe account’s contact information is up to date (email, phone number). This way Stripe can reach you for important account alerts. Also, if you ever change your business structure or bank account, update those details in Stripe promptly to avoid interruptions in payouts or verification issues.

By following these security practices, you’ll help guard your Stripe account against unauthorized access and fraud. Stripe also has many built-in security features and fraud prevention tools working in the background, so you’re in good hands. Just do your part by using good security hygiene.

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Conclusion: You have now successfully created a Stripe account, verified your identity/business, obtained your API keys, and connected Stripe with Pinnacle360. 🎉

Your Pinnacle360 system is ready to process payments through Stripe, meaning you can accept credit card payments from your customers seamlessly.

Setting this up is a one-time process; after this, you won’t have to repeat these steps unless you need to update your keys or account information. Going forward, when customers pay you via Pinnacle360, you can trust Stripe to handle the payment safely and deposit the funds to your bank account.

You can manage transactions and view your earnings on the Stripe Dashboard, and manage your bookings and services on Pinnacle360 – a powerful combination for running your business smoothly.

We hope this step-by-step guide was helpful. If you ever run into questions, you can refer back to this article, reach out to Stripe’s support, or our support team. Now go ahead and confidently use Pinnacle360 with Stripe to grow your business! Good luck, and happy processing!