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Credit card processing for your online business
Here's a quick guide to get you thinking about accepting credit cards online. When it comes to online order taking, your business must have some type of merchant credit card processing account. A merchant account allows you to accept credit cards as forms of payment in a safe and secure manner. You apply for a merchant account by filling out an application and signing a fee agreement. Unfortunately, navigating the merchant account maze can be difficult if you do not have financial experience. There are many different companies out there, and they all have a deal to offer. But before you sign up for anything, read the fine print. The three main fees you need to look for are the set-up fees, the percentage you will pay for each transaction, and the monthly fees. All of these fees need to be taken into consideration. One company may advertise low set up fees, but they may take a higher percentage of the sale or the monthly fees may be considerably higher. There are two types of merchant accounts, your own personal merchant account or a 3rd party credit card processing merchant account. A bank will open your own account and although they may have higher initial opening costs, these accounts generally have a lower transaction fee (what you pay them for each transaction). Deciding which of these two types will work best for you is a personal decision, but if your business is established and thriving, the bank-based merchant account will probably work best. There are a large number of third party credit card processing providers out there, all offering what is sure to be the best deal ever. Let's evaluate some of the top providers and see what it is they really offer. 2CheckOut (2CO) offers instant acceptance for new merchants and has a $49 setup fee, no monthly fees, and an transaction fee of 5.5% plus $0.45 off the retail price of each total order. The account offers a built-in shopping cart and accepts one-time or recurring payments. They accept both physical and digital goods merchants. ClickBank offers a one-time setup fee of $49.95 along with a transaction fee of $1.00 plus 7.5% of the sale price. There is no monthly fee. They only accept merchants selling digital goods. Taking recurring payments is at this moment not possible. When you signup for PayPal, you can start accepting credit card payments instantly. As the world's number one online payment service, PayPal is the fastest way to open your doors to over 40 million member accounts worldwide. Paypal has no setup fee and a sliding transaction fee, all of them very low, based upon sales volume. They accept both physical and digital goods merchants and have various methods for you to tightly integrate their interface with your site. Subscriptions and one-time payments can be processed. This is just a general overview of some of your payment options. Before you decide, do some in depth research and find the account that will work best with your company's needs.
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