Accepting Credit Card Payments: How to Accomplish Processing on an Ecommerce Site

A few items are required when a business wants to begin accepting plastic through an ecommerce website. Customers today prefer a credit card option over any other type of transaction choice. These payments take less time, paperwork, and can be completed at a faster pace. Online transaction integration may seem a little overwhelming to a business beginning to contemplate this website addition; however, any organization may accomplish this change with a little basic information. The process begins with obtaining a merchant account designed for accepting credit card payments via the web. This necessary transaction handling item is commonly labeled as an internet merchant account. A business may apply for this banking account through a regular financial institution or a third party processing company. The company or bank providing this service performs fund confirmation, transaction authorization, and the money transfer between accounts. These steps cannot be completed without this vital component being in place. Fees are typically charged by both the issuing bank and the party performing these services. Charges vary immensely, making it important to know the expense details before signing any merchant agreement.

Accepting Online Payments: What Does a Business Need To Make It All Happen?

In a regular retail setting, the merchant account and swiping or entry equipment is all a business needs to begin running this form of transaction. Accepting online payments involves a few more pieces as well as a more detailed setup. A payment service provider may be needed to provide the terminal used for processing each web transaction. This service may have to be acquired separately depending on what a particular provider offers. A shopping cart transfers all transaction details to a payment form which is integrated with a terminal used to collect all customer card details. The information is verified before being sent securely to the financial institution for processing. This component is often called a payment gateway and may be included as part of internet merchant services. A business has to first decide whether the transaction form will be hosted on their web server or handled by a third party provider.

The typical processing setup requires the capability of implementing technical solutions along with the merchant services factors. If a business does not want to deal with the technical portion of accepting online payments, everything is acquirable through payment processing companies. They provide a simpler application process, quicker setup, and offer an all-in-one solution to meet transaction handling needs. Some of these providers take the payments on their own website. This type of service can be convenient to a business just getting their site up and running or that is unfamiliar with the process. When utilizing hosted processing, a company should expect the settlement time to be longer along with higher costs. Settlement with this type of setup can be as much as sixty days whereas the traditional method averages one to two business days. Other companies may be able to perform the process in a much faster fashion. By researching each provider before applying, a company will find the exact service desired for accepting credit card payments far more easily.