It
is easier than ever before to accept credit
cards on your Web site. There are many companies
that offer a range of credit card processing
solutions that meet your needs and your
circumstances.
With 217
million online visitors to nearly 3 million
online merchants, total online consumer
spending for 2008 reached $71 billion and
businesses spent more than $638 online,
during the same time.
Apple Web site attracted
35 million visitors between Dec. 1 and Dec.
24 2008, up 20 percent from a year ago,
while Amazon saw an increase of 7% for a
total of 77 million visitors. The online
auction site eBay experienced 85 million
visitors while Wal-Mart recorded its Web
site traffic rise to nearly 52 million visitors.
With the convenience of
the Internet, lower costs, more selections,
quicker process, and your customers' desire
to avoid traffic jams and fuel costs - why
are you not offering your products and services
online ?
How to accept credit cards?
It is easier than you think.
An online shopper uses the
Internet to access the Web site of an online
merchant and browses to purchase an item.
When ready to purchase, he/she uses the
merchant's shopping cart software to enter
his/her credit card information and waits
for an authorization (approval) of the payment
for items ordered.
The merchant collects the
order information electronically and securely
and sends the credit card payment information
through to the transaction processing (or
payment gateway) and on to the banking networks.
The Acquiring bank validates
the credit card information for accuracy
and sends to the issuing bank to arrange
for the amount of the transaction to be
assigned for this sale. If the cardholder
has sufficient credit left, the issuing
bank will send an authorization code to
the acquiring bank that the fund has been
allocated. The acquiring bank sends a message
through the payment gateway and on to the
online shopper as well as the merchant that
the transaction has been approved and the
funds have been allocated.
The merchant ships the product
or fulfills the service and afterwards requests
for settlement (transfer of the funds to
merchant's business bank account). The acquiring
bank completes the settlement - also called
capture. |
(last 30 days) 
