Accepting Credit Cards Online - Its Easier than You Think
| Category: Online Payments | Date: 2001-10-16 |
Your very own merchant account! Accept credit cards online and SKYROCKET your sales!
Most of us have been told about the necessity of getting a merchant account. Online shoppers are impulsive people, and unless you can accept credit cards youre going to lose a lot of sales.
Well ... I do agree about that last part. People often do buy on impulse. But I *dont* agree that you need to get a merchant account.
Every so often someone will write to me expressing their interest in getting a merchant account. Most of these people have a product idea - sometimes even the product itself - but havent yet started promoting it.
But if you take a look at what it takes to get a merchant account, you will come to one inescapable conclusion: theyre EXPENSIVE.
They may even be the wrong decision for you if youre just starting out.
There are usually setup and application fees, monthly fees, sometimes transaction charges, statement fees, or other hidden costs. In addition, you may be "locked-in" to a contract so that even if your business isnt working out you are still liable for paying all fees for your lock-in period.
My personal opinion is that its better to start off with third-party processing companies.
These companies handle credit card transactions for you. Many will handle most major credit cards (not just Visa and Mastercard). They usually charge a small setup fee, plus a per-transaction charge typically somewhere between 7 and 20 percent.
Even with the transaction fees, third-party credit card processors offer a fabulous deal to home businesses: if you dont make a sale, then you dont pay anything. With merchant accounts, you always pay the monthly fees - even if you dont make a single sale all month.
Two third-party processing companies stand out for me. You may want to research others before you come to a decision, of course. These two companies are:
1. Clickbank, http://www.clickbank.com/.
Clickbank only handles those products or services that can be delivered electronically. Examples include newsletter advertisements and website memberships. I use Clickbank myself, and have had absolutely no problems whatsoever.
2. CCNow, http://www.ccnow.com/.
CCNow handles hard goods, shippable products. An example is a printed book.
You can always choose to switch to a real merchant account once your sales justify doing so. In the meantime, third-party credit card processing companies provide an excellent service for the fraction of the price.
About the author:
Angela has been fortunate enough to be able to quit her job to work full-time from home. Her website offers articles, tutorials, and tips for aspiring online entrepreneurs ... plus subscribe to her FREE newsletter, The Netrepreneurs Notebook, by emailing buildyourhomebiz-subscribe@listbot.com or visit buildyourhomebiz.com/
:To contact see details below.
angela@buildyourhomebiz.com
http://www.buildyourhomebiz.com/
Most of us have been told about the necessity of getting a merchant account. Online shoppers are impulsive people, and unless you can accept credit cards youre going to lose a lot of sales.
Well ... I do agree about that last part. People often do buy on impulse. But I *dont* agree that you need to get a merchant account.
Every so often someone will write to me expressing their interest in getting a merchant account. Most of these people have a product idea - sometimes even the product itself - but havent yet started promoting it.
But if you take a look at what it takes to get a merchant account, you will come to one inescapable conclusion: theyre EXPENSIVE.
They may even be the wrong decision for you if youre just starting out.
There are usually setup and application fees, monthly fees, sometimes transaction charges, statement fees, or other hidden costs. In addition, you may be "locked-in" to a contract so that even if your business isnt working out you are still liable for paying all fees for your lock-in period.
My personal opinion is that its better to start off with third-party processing companies.
These companies handle credit card transactions for you. Many will handle most major credit cards (not just Visa and Mastercard). They usually charge a small setup fee, plus a per-transaction charge typically somewhere between 7 and 20 percent.
Even with the transaction fees, third-party credit card processors offer a fabulous deal to home businesses: if you dont make a sale, then you dont pay anything. With merchant accounts, you always pay the monthly fees - even if you dont make a single sale all month.
Two third-party processing companies stand out for me. You may want to research others before you come to a decision, of course. These two companies are:
1. Clickbank, http://www.clickbank.com/.
Clickbank only handles those products or services that can be delivered electronically. Examples include newsletter advertisements and website memberships. I use Clickbank myself, and have had absolutely no problems whatsoever.
2. CCNow, http://www.ccnow.com/.
CCNow handles hard goods, shippable products. An example is a printed book.
You can always choose to switch to a real merchant account once your sales justify doing so. In the meantime, third-party credit card processing companies provide an excellent service for the fraction of the price.
About the author:
Angela has been fortunate enough to be able to quit her job to work full-time from home. Her website offers articles, tutorials, and tips for aspiring online entrepreneurs ... plus subscribe to her FREE newsletter, The Netrepreneurs Notebook, by emailing buildyourhomebiz-subscribe@listbot.com or visit buildyourhomebiz.com/
:To contact see details below.
angela@buildyourhomebiz.com
http://www.buildyourhomebiz.com/
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