How To Accept Credit Cards At Your Business
Credit cards are an inescapable part of business these days. Whether you’re selling online, through mail order catalogs, or even in a brick and mortar store, you need to have the ability to take credit cards. Many people prefer not to carry cash on them anymore, and are hesitant to use checks. In our day and age it’s increasingly important for businesses to be able to provide this convenience for customers.
In this post we will teach you how accept credit cards at your business so that you can better serve your customer base in this ever-changing world economy.
Before we get started, it is important to keep in mind that as a merchant, you are accepting credit cards for money. You are not doing so in order to receive any money from your customers. However, you are doing so in order to receive the following:
A. The convenience of letting people charge their purchases on your card directly (even if they don’t ask for it)
B. A receipt or document stating that they have made a purchase with you (which helps other businesses know how much in sales you have made)
C. An increase in your customer base because of the ability to accept credit card payments online and through telephone orders.
That being said, let’s get started.
1. First of all, you need to have a merchant account with a credit card processor . You can contact your bank or go on the internet to find merchant services companies. Often times, banks will offer this service directly – however it is usually advisable to seek out a third party for processing services rather than relying on your bank – this way you are not obligated to “go through” them in order to get things done. It will also make it easier to switch over if you decide later on that you want to move away from your bank’s merchant services company.
A. Merchant services are the companies that take care of a business’s credit card processing needs. This includes issuing cards, taking payments, and charging back fraudulent charges.
B. When you choose to use a third party processor, you’ll need to identify a separate line of credit for your business because otherwise – they (the banks) will “own” your card numbers – which means they will have access to all the information on your day-to-day purchases that you have made on their card (such as addresses, phone numbers, etc.).
2. Next, you need to determine what processor you will want to use. There are lots of different processors and each one has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. Some of the most common ones include:
A. They all have similar features such as card verification codes (to make sure transactions are not fraudulent), automatic recurring billing, sales tax calculation for state-by-state reporting, the ability to print receipts right on your website, a free online account demo so that customers can see what they can expect in terms of charges when shopping on your site, etc. – They just have different ways of doing things.
B. Some processors charge lower fees while others charge higher fees. Some might require you to pay every month while others allow you to pay quarterly or in advance.
C. Some take a very long time to process large transactions, so if you’re in a business that needs to receive money fast or has a high volume of sales – it would be wise to find one that can handle your transactions on time.
D. Some provide things like virtual terminals, mobile processing, and even 3D secure infrastructure – so it is important to do your research and find out what is available from each company and what will work best for your business.
3. Lastly, after choosing which processor you are going use, you need sign up for the service . This can be done through the processor’s website and is usually very easy to do.
A. Just make sure to download and read through all of the agreements that are provided. Make sure you understand what is expected of you and have a knowledgeable adviser or lawyer look over any contract you sign if they are written in legalese – it can be difficult to understand. Make sure to review and understand all set-up fees as well as any monthly charges/fees that are included in your processor fees.
B. What happens next is that your business will receive a setup kit (usually it’s a box with some envelopes for you to send cards, information about your company and some sample terms & conditions included).
C. You also will get a starter kit with your credit card machine, or it can be delivered separately (along with the PIN number you will use to authorize each purchase).
D. You should be able to request extra equipment if you need it on your account – such as a PIN pad, extra paper and so on.
E. Your setup procedure is complete after you receive your card swiper and start processing!
F. Some processors may require training classes or webinars – don’t hesitate to take these as they are free resources that will make sure you are completely set up and ready to go.
4. Lastly, you need to make sure your business is ready for credit cards .
A. Your staff should be ready for credit card transactions – there are not a lot of points and fees involved in accepting credit cards compared to debit cards, so you do not need to teach your staff anything specific about accepting credit cards. However, you do need to make sure that any information that is shared on your site is accurate (such as address, phone number, email address and etc.)
B. You should setup a separate category on your site for sales made with credit card payments – this way you can easily keep track of all the sales that are made with credit card payments on your site.
C. You should be ready to receive payments in a timely manner as well – so you don’t have to keep your customers waiting for their money.
D. Lastly, you should make sure you are set up to handle online credit card payments and that your website is ready for such transactions (sometimes, it is easier to install the equipment and software after the website has already been built).
CHAPTER 43: How to set up an online shopping cart
The first thing you need to do before setting up an online shopping cart is determine what kind of list building service or affiliate program will work best for your business .
- For example:
A. Some businesses have a lot of customers that are repeat customers – meaning they have bought something from the business before and are returning to buy more stuff.
- For example:
1. If you own an ecommerce website for dog supplies – it is likely that some of your previous customers will be returning to buy a second collar or leash, etc. or maybe even recommend your site to their friends and family (this is called “word-of-mouth”).
2.
Conclusion:
Therefore, to reward repeat customers – you can offer them some kind of “points system” in the form of a list building or affiliate program that will reward those customers when they buy something on your site (all you need is a sign-up form).
B. You might also want to consider what types of products you are selling and how many people visit your website and how often they visit .
- For example:
1. If you own a website for dog supplies and most of your sales are from people that come from links on search engine pages, then it might be best for your business if you use an affiliate program because in this scenario, the majority of your traffic is coming from off-page sources.