E-Commerce and Merchant Accounts
What is it?
Generically speaking, e-commerce is the facilitation of business done over The Internet. A Merchant account allows you to process credit cards
Is it expensive to start an e-commerce business?
The good thing about The Internet is that it is much cheaper to sell your products. Another advantage is the quick changing landscape and competition that are driving the costs of doing business on The Internet lower seemingly everyday. You can literally start selling products over The Internet with your $15 DaySite Web Hosting account.
What do I need to buy in order to sell products over The Internet ?
Many businesses start out by only accepting personal checks and money orders. To start this all you need is a checking account, a web-site that displays your products and an order form that sends the customers' order information to you. However, for most businesses this limits the audience to sell their wares to, and credit-card processing becomes the preferred method of receiving payment. To accept credit card payment it is necessary to have a merchant account.
Where do I obtain a merchant account ?
There are several resources for obtaining a merchant account. Financial institutions, such as your local bank can provide you with a merchant account. Unfortunately, most of the time your local bank will require that you have been in business for at least two years, and will want you to guarantee a certain amount of transactions or else face a higher monthly fee. Another way to obtain a merchant account is through an independant credit card processing company. These are companies that specialize in providing ONLY credit and debit bankcard transaction processing. Wired Hosting uses Card Services International as their processing company for billing the credit cards of their customers.
How much does it cost to open a merchant account ?
Card Services International charges a one-time setup fee of $295.00. Monthly fees are a minimum of $70 and will vary depending on the number of transactions that are processed credit cards charged)
How do I get approved for a merchant account?
Unless you have previously had a problem using a merchant account you are virtually guaranteed of being approved for a merchant account. If for some reason you are declined your set-up fee will be refunded. To get approved, please fill out the application form here
How do I use my merchant account to process credit cards ?
There are two ways to process your credit card. Online and Offline. Online means you are doing it using your browser(Microsoft Explorer, Netrscape navigator). You simply go to a web page, and fill out a form with information like: The credit card number, the expiration date, and the name on the card. Off-line means that you are either calling in your transactions using a phone or using a different interface (card swiper, 3rd party software) to process the card.
