For some e-business people the idea of navigating the process of adding credit card processing seems as byzantine as divining the mystery of the Egyptian pyramids. In reality, however, the learning curve is very short, the process itself has been simplified and the benefits can be enormous.
What most e-business people need to know is that after they are approved by a merchant accounts company they will be given access to software that will allow them to accept/process credit cards, accept checks by phone/fax/internet and provide them the wherewithal to give their customers a Web shopping cart to use while navigating their site.
All of the above should come for free from the provider. If you run across a company that puts a price on any of these, it should be considered a red flag, insofar as doing future business.
There are some fees/charges that legitimate - or as many say, these are "the cost of doing business." These will include internet/mail/phone order discount rate, internet/phone/order transaction fee, retail discount rate, retail transaction fee, statement customer service fee and internet processing software gateway fee.
The gateway, by the way, is the virtual version of the point-of-sale terminal your credit card is run through when you make a purchase at a retail outlet. These gateways have safe and secure connection/communication processes that allow the transmission of card numbers and expiration dates without putting the customer's information at risk.
It should be noted at this juncture that no good processing company will charge you for technical support, and that support should be available 24/7 to secure your ability to accept payments online.
The process of applying for merchant services, thanks to heavy competition among provider companies, has never been simpler. The online application takes about 15 minutes, and the information requested should be available at any e-business owner's fingertips.
The approval process should take no more than 24 hours. Indeed, some e-stores will be processing plastic in less than 24 hours. Any provider that needs more time for approval is likely dealing with a third-party vendor, which will slow down the process and add to your costs.
Upon approval is when your e-business should experience some growth and expansion. Numerous retail studies have shown that having credit card processing tends to bring more traffic to a site, more sales, more profits and more repeat business. And any store owner will tell you that any of the above are nothing but positive.
An intangible benefit of card acceptance is that today's consumer is more and more used to shopping with their credit card. As such they view any site that accepts credit cards as more legitimate. Indeed, they also look at a site without card acceptance with suspicion.
The bottom line is that anyone doing business over the internet needs to strongly consider adding credit card processing. The benefits will far outweigh the costs.
