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![*]()
Online merchant account
![*]() An online merchant account
is similar to an open-end line of credit. You send your credit
card transactions for processing, and the serviced provider
credits your business checking account. Those funds are available
for you to use as you wish. The transaction is posted to your
customer's credit card statement, and they have the right
to dispute any charges posted.
If the customer disputes a transaction, a chargeback may be
generated, which would be debited against your business' account.
In order to assure you have the funds to cover any potential
chargebacks, we require a credit check.
Whether you host your own site or house it on the server of
a web hosting company, it is important to ensure you have
security measures in place to protect sensitive information.
The majority of web sites use SSL (secure sockets layer),
an encryption program that will encrypt credit card information
during the transaction process. You should also ensure you
have redundancy systems in place and clear service level agreements
with your provider, which provide a complete description of
the services it is obligated to deliver.
A number of merchant account providers offer integrated systems
(turnkey solutions) that include each of these components,
as do hosting companies and E-commerce solution providers,
which bundle merchant accounts and other services into their
packages. If the merchant account provider does not offer
integrated services, it is important to ask what kind of software
it requires. Your hardware and software requirements will
depend on your processing method (batch or real-time) and
business needs. If you decide to implement real-time processing,
you will require payment gateway software to authorize and
process the credit card number in real-time.
Your existing technology solutions may include the provision
of an Internet merchant account. As a result, before you go
to a bank or ISO, review the package that you have with your
hosting company or E-commerce provider. If the package includes
an Internet merchant account, evaluate what it comprises and
ensure it is acceptable for your business.
For example, when you decide to sell online, selecting a merchant
account provider is only one consideration. You also need
a storefront solution to enable customers to send orders,
a payment system to process transactions, and a payment gateway
to securely process payments as they travel from a customer's
site to your site.
To sum up, the more aware and knowledgeable you are on merchant
accounting, the secured you will feel in your transactions.
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