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Things to know before you start accepting online payments

You are ready to start selling online, you have already uploaded the products and secured your site; or maybe you just came up with a great idea and decided it is time to join the vastly growing number of internet retailers and create your own shop? Then you should definitely consider how you would take online payments from your customers- you may get a merchant account or use a third-party payment processing service.

Which is the best option to choose before starting to accept online payments?

The obvious difference between these two options is that with a merchant account you will be able to take payments directly on your website by integrating it with your shopping cart, whereas a payment gateway setup in most cases will redirect your buyers from your own website to the third party payment processor when they check out. Which one should you choose?

If you have never dealt with such a thing my personal advice is to go with the second option. The process of opening your own merchant account is quite complicated, it requires a lot of time and tons of documents – this is where the third-party processors come in place to relieve the situation.

With a few simple settings one can start accepting online payments and make profit, providing their customers with smooth online shopping experience. Cash and checks are an old hat in our modern world! In the online business you want an instant payment – it is the best and also proven to be faster way of making customers buy something from you. This way you can increase your sales results and boost your online store success.

These third-party payment gateways are extremely popular nowadays namely because of the ease of use that they give you. This process is quite similar to when you go and buy something in the grocery store. You choose your products and put them in the market cart, then you just need to check out. This process moves the money from your pocket to the store owner’s one. The payment gateway is like the conduit between the bank and the shopping cart.

What is more, when you use such services the customer is redirected to an SSL-secure checkout page, which is PCI complaint and provides AVS checks. This brings trust to your buyers and makes them feel confident when they pay. If you decide to go with the merchant account option though, you should take care of these security measures yourself so that you can pass the thorough inspection that you will be subjected to.

You should always keep in mind that offering multiple payment options will attract more buyers and will increase your sales. That is why it is really essential for you to be sure that good payment gateways are available for the shopping cart application of your choice. Most payment gateways accept many types of transactions – from various credit cards, through debit cards, PayPal and even some local transaction options that you might otherwise miss. They basically do all the work for you, but as always – when someone else is doing the work – you need to pay. Prices are different and are configured based on some specific criteria like your monthly volume, your location , your ‘risk score’ etc.

Here is a comparison between the most popular payment gateways that you may choose from:

Payment Gateways Comparison

Whichever way you decide to go, make sure you don’t just choose the correct payment gateway and create a modern look, but also build your store with a thought on making a sale. Make it easy and fast for your customers to buy your products. And if you want your online shop hosted in expert hands, check out our plans and join our family!

Anna Georgieva

A charming and fun-loving girl that does everything for her friends and tries to appease all conflicts with a capable and caring hand - this is Anna. She loves the beach and goes to it every chance she's got - you won't find a more sunny person than her.

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