Your Small Business and the Web
Small Business Web Design Tips
What is an Online Merchant Account?
by Kristi Dittmann
What is an online merchant account, why do you need one, and how do you get one? All good questions. We attempt to answer them for you.
An online merchant account allows you to take credit cards online from your web site. It may also be referred to as an Internet Merchant Account.
What is an Online Merchant Account? How does it differ from my in-store merchant account?
You will need a different type of merchant account to sell online than the merchant account you may already have for in-store purchases. This is because selling online carries special needs and risks that are not covered by your in-store merchant account. Your existing merchant company can usually put you in touch with someone in their office to get you an online merchant account, or you may sign up for the merchant company accounts we recommend below.
Where do I get an online merchant account?
There are tons of online merchant account companies that advertise on the web. Some are (much) more reputable than others, so you must be careful! W3Now has done business with the following companies for years, and our clients have given us good feedback on them, so we feel good about recommending these online merchant account companies:
What is an online Payment Gateway?
An online payment gateway is simply the method by which a credit card is taken online, and it is usually programmed into your web site by your web developer. Each web developer may support only certain online payment gateways. Commercial online shopping carts, such as our W3 Shopping Cart, will let you know which online payment gateways they support.
How do I know which online payment gateway I need?
Start by asking your web developer which payment gateways they can support for your web site. An online credit card merchant company will typically offer one or more different online payment gateways to meet your needs.
W3Now Web Design Company supports the following online payment gateways for Custom Website Development:
Our W3 Shopping Cart supports these online payment gateways:
Authorize.Net - Get a merchant account with Authorize.net
2CheckOut - Get a 2CheckOut account
Verisign Payflow Link - Get a Wells Fargo merchant account w/ Verisign Payflow Link
Pay Pal - Get a Free Pay Pal Account
Once you know which gateway you need, ask your online merchant account provider if they can give you the payment gateway you need for your web site, or click the link to get the one you need above.
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