Whether you have a thousand dollars or a few hundred – at least two hundred – and you’re offering a service, you may want to consider accepting online payments from your clients. It’s a kind of merchant status, and the first thing you’ll want to do is find the bank you’re doing business with. Just because you’ve been doing business for years doesn’t mean they’ll automatically grant you merchant status. If they reject you, don’t panic – you have options. You can try a few other banks, or you can look for other companies that specialise in issuing accounts for online merchants. Do a Google search for ‘credit card processing’ and you’ll find dozens of companies looking for businesses looking for merchant accounts. It won’t be cheap, though. Start-up fees for accepting online payments can run anywhere from $200 to $20 a month.
When you’re looking for your merchant account to accept online payments, you’ll also need to make sure your customers feel safe doing business with you. Wherever you purchase your credit card processing, it should also provide you with a safe transaction environment if they don’t find one elsewhere before you start accepting online payments. Despite what you might have heard about accepting online payments, credit card payments remain one of the safest ways to pay online. There are a variety of fraud prevention tools available, so make sure to check them out and find one that works best for you. You can protect yourself by using MasterCard’s card validation code 2 and Visa’s card verification value system {CVV2}. These verification services utilize the three digit codes printed on every MasterCard and Visa card to help you determine if your customers are using valid cards.
You may also want to ask potential processors about the cost of the storefront solutions you’ll need to make your site successful, such as shopping carts, web hosting, e-payments, virtual cheques, customer monitoring, order databases, and a system for calculating tax and shipping fees. All of these are essential for a successful web site business, so it’s important to shop around for the best credit card processor for your needs. Don’t be afraid to talk to multiple processors and ask questions. Learn more about:
What is a merchant account discount rate? A merchant account discount rate is the percentage of every transaction paid to a merchant account provider (the processor). If your monthly fees are below a certain threshold, the processor will charge a higher merchant account discount rate. However, it is important to read all the terms and conditions before you begin doing business with any services you may need to operate your business. What is your goal? Your goal is to make your customers feel safe and secure in every aspect of their business dealings with you. This way, your customers will continue to purchase your products, and you will be able to accept payments online.