Accepting online payments isn’t as easy as your favorite retail website has made it look. If you want your customers to have a great experience, you’re going to have to do your homework – and it all starts with finding the perfect online business merchant account.
So, how do you find it?
Just follow this checklist:
1. Take a close look at security features
Good ecommerce merchant accounts place a huge emphasis on security. After all, if people don’t feel safe punching their credit card information in on your website, you’re never going to make any money!
That’s why you need an online business merchant account that comes with SSL encryption and preventative fraud monitoring. If you think you’ll be successful accepting online payments without those two things, think again!
2. Get the skinny on technical support
Just like your website, good ecommerce merchant accounts need to be up and running 24/7. If your processing software stops working for even a few hours, it will affect your bottom line.
Even the best equipment will hit a technical speed bump from time to time, so you need an online business merchant account that’s available to fix it for you anytime of the day or night. Whether it’s three in the morning or three in the afternoon, they should have the ability to get your processing equipment back up and running!
If you see online merchant account services that are only available to help you during normal business hours, run!
3. Find out how much customer information they need to process payments
People like things to be quick and easy. When they find something they like, they don’t want to jump through a million hoops in order to buy it. So, if your online merchant account services require them to type in everything from their mother’s maiden name to their thoughts on the Industrial Revolution, you’re never going to make any sales. People are going to see your checkout process as too much of a hassle, and go do business someplace else.
That’s why it’s so important to look for ecommerce merchant accounts that stick to the basics – like name, credit card number, billing address, and shipping address. If you go too far beyond that, people will feel like you’re hassling them for information, instead of accepting online payments.
And guess what? No one spends money in places where they feel like they’re being hassled!
The team at Total Merchant Services makes accepting online payments easy and safe. Visit them today at www.total-merchant-services.com!
