Many business owners acknowledge that accepting credit cards is an important and necessary part of doing business. Yet while swiping a card is a fairly simple process at a register in a brick and mortar store, it can seem more complicated to set up credit card processing online through your website. Yet, by not offering this option to your customers, you risk losing one key group of customers, the impulse buyer.
When the payment process is not streamlined into your site, then they may change their mind about completing the purchase. So how can you set up online credit card processing?
Methods for Accepting Credit Cards
For a majority of businesses, there are two ways to process credit cards online. The first is by means of a merchant account. However, this will also require opening an account with a bank and comes with various additional fees. Using a third party merchant can provide a payment gateway, in exchange for various percentages or fees based on your usage. Therefore, it will cost you more to process credit card online, but only at higher volumes.
Benefits of a Third Party Merchant
Third party merchants may only have a smaller set up fee versus setting up your own merchant account. Depending on the service, you may have no set up fees at all. The service also handles everything and just sends the funds at the end of the designated period. Additionally, the more reputable the payment gateway, the safer your customers will feel their credit card information is.
Benefits of Your Own Merchant Account
While the fees associated with a merchant account might be higher at the initial set up, typically overall transaction fees will be lower than through a third party provider. A credit card processor can provide the benefits of a merchant account, while also providing some of the functionality of a third party provider.
When choosing a credit card provider, keep in mind the reputation of their customer service and support team. A customer can quickly leave your site if they cannot process their payment efficiently and securely. By working with a credit card processor, you can find the best options for credit card processing online for your website or online store.
Merchants Bancard offers options for credit card processing online. Additionally, they provide a variety of technology options for processing credit card payments.
