By Marie-Claire Smith

Starting a business is pretty easy – almost anybody think of an idea and try to make it work. However, staying in business and actually turning a profit after 3 months, 1 year, 5 years or longer requires a serious set of entrepreneurial and all-around business skills.

Most small business owners, especially online entrepreneurs, get started by putting together a website to showcase their goods or services. Only then do they start to tackle each of the important details that are required in order to start turning a profit successfully. One of those details is how to accept payments from customers.

For Web-based businesses, being able to accept payments usually entails the ability to process clients’ credit cards. And, that usually means being set up to accept payments via the online shopping cart connected to the website. Note that even Web businesses who only accept orders by phone will still want a way to process credit cards, given that cards remain such a popular payment option on the part of most individual and business customers alike.

The fact is that when you open yourself up to accepting credit cards as a valid form of payment on your website, you are giving your customers a lot more ways to pay you. That will almost certainly translate to increased profits for your business.

If you want to accept credit cards online to increase your profits, here are 5 steps to doing so:

1. Think about how you will be accepting cards from clients:

There are four main ways to accept cards from clients: in person, over the phone, via mail, or online. For in-person card acceptance, you will need a terminal that allows you to actually swipe clients’ cards. For the others, a virtual terminal – operated via your phone or personal computer – will work fine. The virtual terminal is software-based, so there is no need to invest in any equipment.

2. Find a merchant account provider that offers a low discount rate:

One of the main differentiators between the various merchant account providers out there is the discount rate each one charges for their services. This is simply a percentage of each transaction that they charge against your account, deducting it from the total amount you would normally receive. It goes without saying that you would rather pay as low a discount rate as possible.

3. Ask about the other fees you would pay in working with them:

Merchant account providers will also charge you other fees, such as an application fee, a monthly service fee, and even a minimum monthly transaction fee. Be sure to meticulously ask – and then record – each fee from each provider you speak with so that you can easily compare them later.

4. Make sure that their payment gateway works with your e-commerce shopping cart:

If you will be primarily processing your cards online, check with the merchant provider to ensure that the payment gateway they offer is compatible with the e-commerce shopping cart you use with your site.

5. Compare at least 3-5 merchant account providers:

Now that you know what to look for, it is time to compare at least 3-5 merchant account providers. Keep track about what each one says about their discount rates, other fees, and types of terminals offered. Then, make your decision.

Take these 5 steps to setting up your business to accept credit cards online.

About the Author: Find out more on how to start processing credit cards online for your business at:

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Source:

isnare.com

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