Credit-cards..
If your website does not accept credit cards, you are losing business and losing money. Modern consumers expect to be able to find online everything they can find on the high street or at the mall, and they expect to be able to pay for it quickly and securely. So if you do not accept credit cards on your website, what can you do about it? You may think that credit card processing is only available for large companies with good financial track records, or that merchant accounts are costly and technically difficult to set up. But in fact, merchant account services are becoming more readily available than ever, as banks wake up to the potential of e-business, and third party companies offer a range of merchant accounts that are simple and quick to set up.
Whatever you sell online, whether it is high end electronics or your handmade knitted tea cosy designs, you should consider accepting credit card payments. It will make your business look more professional and get you more customers. If someone comes across your website surfing round in a quiet moment at work and takes a fancy to your knitted tea cosies, you want to be able to make a sale before they change their mind and head elsewhere. Nothing is more likely to scare off a customer than to see that they have to write you a cheque, or even come down to your shop to buy! Using a merchant account so that you can accept credit cards opens up your marketplace so that it is worldwide.
For large companies, setting up credit card processing can be straightforward, but for your online tea cosy boutique things can seem more difficult. If you have only just started trading and do not have a huge cash flow, an impressive business plan and twelve months of company accounts, your bank may not be too eager to offer you credit card payment services. It is risky for them because your business is new and you do not know how much you are going to sell, and because online fraud is widespread.
But do not despair! You can still enable people to pay by credit card for your tea cosies, using a method with a guarantee of success. There are many companies who offer merchant account services which are easy to set up. The company has a merchant account of their own, and your website can use their account to accept card payments. Then the company will periodically send you the money you have made from your customers. In just a few short steps, you will be up and running and accepting credit cards on your site. You will not need to give financial details or company records in order to get an account, so this is a great option if you have been turned down for merchant account services elsewhere.
So, drag your business into the Twenty First Century and check out the merchant account services available to you. Whether you set up credit card processing through your bank or use one of the many third party merchant accounts available, beginning to accept credit cards will start the money rolling in and your knitted tea cosies rolling out all over the world.
|
