The Key To Increasing Your Customer Base: Accept Credit Cards

by: Jeff Usher
Here is a tactic you should heed for your online business… accept credit cards. Whether you’re selling digital products or tangible goods through online channels, your business should be able to accept credit cards to ensure the widest customer base possible. The importance of the ability to accept credit cards cannot be denied. Being able to accept credit cards makes your online business more accessible to a greater number of potential clients and customers.

World Of Benefits When Your Online Business Accepts Credit Cards

Credit cards have been tagged as plastic money because they have become accepted as a good alternative to actual cash. A lot of people actually prefer real world establishments who accept credit cards. They would rather shop in stores that accept credit cards rather than those that don’t accept credit cards.

The same principle applies in online transactions. People would look for eCommerce sites that accept credit cards, particularly those that accept credit cards which they own. I you would be able to accommodate these people by designing your online business to accept credit cards, you’d be able to increase the number of potential customers you could gain.

Additionally, by building an online enterprise that could accept credit cards, you will be able to secure payment in a more convenient and safe manner. If your online business would accept credit cards from paying customers, you’d be empowering them to spend for your products.

Overcoming An Important Hump When You Accept Credit Cards Online

Sad to say, however, that there are quite a number of people who are afraid of online transactions, even if your business would accept credit cards. There have been tales of so many scams and fraudulent dealings on the Internet, and legitimate businesses which accept credit cards are the ones that have to suffer such stigma.

To help stem the tide of this fear, businesses that accept credit cards should ensure the following things:

* A business that would accept credit cards should make sure that its payment processing page is embedded with Secure Socket Layers (SSL) of at least 128 bit.

* A business that would accept credit cards should also make sure that such SSL encryption appears on the lower right side of the user’s browser window, in the form of a lock icon.

* A business that would accept credit cards should establish a responsive customer support system that would answer the needs of your clients when it comes to transactions involving the acceptance of credit cards.

Allowing your online business to accept credit cards could only expand your customer base and provide good profits for you for many years to come.

About the author:
Jeff Usher researches and writes articles on all aspects of Internet Marketing and eCommerce. For further information on the subject of this article please visit:-
http://www.more-merchant-account.info

MasterCard: Then, Now and Why

Way back around 1947, many banks in the US started doing their premium customers a favor. The banks gave them a piece of paper for the customers to flaunt at stores. The paper said, “ We, the bank, will pay you on behalf of the customer. Just send us the bill.”

One can imagine how privileged and special those customers felt. One can also visualize how those customers would stay bonded for life to their respective banks, as would their succeeding generations.

This practice of banks really caught on because it promoted customer loyalty and brought in new accounts. Which is why in 1951, The Franklin National Bank, New York, offered the first credit card as a formal financial instrument.

Throughout the fifties, this idea was franchised; a single bank in each large city would allow chosen merchants to accept cards instead of cash. The Interbank Card Association (ICA), which later became MasterCard International, evolved from this situation in August 1966.

ICA was a member-run organization, and banks formed the majority of members. They elected governing members and committees from amongst themselves to frame rules for ICA’s functioning and to implement those rules. In short, ICA was and is run like a true corporation.

In due course, like a typical corporation, ICA put plans in motion to expand internationally. The first steps took place in 1968, when ICA signed agreements with partners in Mexico, Europe and Japan.

By around 1978, ICA had practically covered all the continents. It changed its name to MasterCard to reflect its international stature. 1987 was a watershed year: MasterCard arrived in the People's Republic of China, where no other credit card had stepped foot in the history of banking. The very next year, the Soviet Union fell to that smart little piece of plastic.


*Now*

The situation now, to quote MasterCard Incorporated, is simple: “No other payment card is accepted in more locations around the world than MasterCard.”

MasterCard presently has a staggering 25,000 shareholders. A list of MasterCard's largest current shareholders with their holdings reads like this:
1. JPMorgan Chase - 11.7%
2. Citigroup - 6.2%
3. Bank of America - 6%
4. Euro Kartensysteme - 5.2%
5. Europay France - 5.0%


* Why *

So why do millions of people carry MasterCard?

Well, to start with, and as mentioned earlier, it is accepted by more merchants the world over than any other credit card. Add to that the fact that wherever you may be on earth, you have an ATM nearby that will disgorge you cash if you have a MasterCard. How many ATMs are we talking about? Just 780,000!

Also, the intermediate and premium cards, Gold and Platinum, carry attractive value-added features. Such as “Road Assist”, which provides access to emergency service to travelers anywhere in the US. Or “PayPass”, which is a smart MasterCard that you just tap on the PayPass reader at participating locations for your card account to be debited (no swiping or giving your card to checkout counter staff).

If you are in the US, you also have MasterCard’s famous zero liability benefit: you are not liable if your card is stolen and misused.


* Conclusion *

MasterCard offers customers one of the greatest advantages in today’s commercial world: cashless transactions. Coupled with all the benefits mentioned above, it is very difficult to prove why you should not acquire one! Count on MasterCard International to evolve beyond plastic into state-of-the-art personal technology, like credit-loaded mobile phones… stay tuned!


About the author:
Lucky Balaraman is a graduate engineer who writes on a variety of subjects. Learn more about MasterCard from his site, http://master-card-information.info

How To Accept Credit Cards Without A Merchant Account

by: Stephen Pope
To increase sales on your website, you must accept credit cards. To process credit cards, you could apply for a merchant account through your bank or other financial institution.

Sometimes, though, you would be further ahead to use the services of a credit card processor. This is especially true when you are first starting out and have more limited resources. In this way, you may process credit card transactions without the high front-end costs and requirements of a merchant account.

Here, then, are just a few ways of accepting credit cards without a merchant account. I personally use all of these vendors and can recommend them wholeheartedly.

1. Clickbank

If your product is downloadable (such as electronic books or software), you might consider ClickBank.com . For a $49.95 initial fee, you can process credit cards and on-line cheques for $1.00 per transaction plus 7.5% of sales.

You receive additional exposure through free listing on their website and through the search facilities of other websites, such as CBMall.com.

As an added bonus, you have your own built-in affiliate program. You decide what commission (from 1% to 75%) you would like to pay your affiliates.

2. PayPal

PayPal.com has no initial fees. For just 2.9% of sales and $ .30 per transaction (and sometimes less), you can receive money from anyone.

Also, you can pay others by credit card or chequing account without supplying your personal credit information to the payee. PayPal can be used to collect money from your auctions, website sales, or even from friends or clients.

3. PaySystems

In the original edition of this article, I recommended PaySystems.com (also known as MyPaySystems.com). This is what I wrote about them:

"PaySystems.com can handle either intangible (downloadable) or tangible (shippable) products. For an initial fee of $49.00, you can accept all major credit cards as well as online checks. Fees are just 3.95% of sales and $1.00 per transaction. Alternatively, you may pay 5.5% of sales and $ .35 per transaction."

"For this, you receive shopping cart, integration with third-party affiliate programs (such as ClixGalore.com), fraud screening, multi-currency transactions, toll-free support, marketing tools, and more."

Unfortunately, PaySystems.com has discontinued their "Internet Billing Account" for those outside the United States.

4. 2CheckOut

2CheckOut.com can handle both intangible and tangible products. For an initial fee of $49.00, you can accept all major credit cards as well as online checks. Fees are just 5.5% of sales and $0.45 per transaction.

For this, you receive shopping cart, fraud detection, integration with third-party affiliate programs, multi-currency transactions, free on-line support, and more.

Incidentally, 2CheckOut.com has the same policy as ClickBank.com does with regard to sales taxes. Both companies take the position that you are selling your product to them and that they resell it to the final consumer. Thus, they claim that you are not subject to sales taxes on those sales.

About the author:
J. Stephen Pope, President of Pope Consulting Inc., has been helping clients to earn maximum business profits for over twenty-five years. To learn more about accepting credit cards and other profitable Work at Home Small Business Ideas, visit http://www.yenommarketinginc.com/creditcards.html