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E-Commerce and Merchant Accounts enable Evocity customers to sell directly
over the internet. Here we briefly discuss background information:
| What is it ? |
| E-commerce is the facilitation of business done
over The Internet. A merchant account allows you to process credit
cards |
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| Is it expensive to start a business that is
primarily or solely e-commerce ? |
| The good thing about The Internet is that it is
much cheaper to sell your products. Another advantage is the quick
changing landscape and competition that are driving down the expense
of doing business on the Internet. |
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| What do I need to buy in order to sell products
over The Internet ? |
| Many businesses start out by accepting just personal
checks and money orders. To do this all you need is a checking
account, a web-site that displays your products and an order form
that sends the customers' order information to you. However, for most
businesses this limits the audience to sell their wares
to, and credit-card processing becomes the preferred method of
receiving payment. To accept credit card payment it is necessary
to have a merchant account. |
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| Where do I obtain a merchant account ? |
| There are several resources for obtaining a merchant
account. Financial institutions, such as your local bank can
provide you with a merchant account. Unfortunately, most of the time
your local bank will require that you have been in business for at
least two years, and will want you to guarantee a certain amount of
transactions or else face a higher monthly fee. Another way to obtain
a merchant account is through an independent credit card processing
company. These are companies that specialize in providing ONLY
credit and debit bankcard transaction processing. |
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| How much does it cost to open a merchant account
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| Card Services International charges a one-time
setup fee of $295.00. Monthly fees are a minimum of $70 and will vary
depending on the number of transactions that are processed (credit
cards charged) |
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| How am I approved for a merchant account ? |
| Unless you have previously had a problem using
a merchant account you are virtually guaranteed of being approved.
If for some reason you are declined your set-up fee will be refunded. |
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| How do I use my merchant account to process
credit cards ? |
| There are two ways to process your credit card.
Online and Offline. Online means you are doing it using your browser
(Microsoft Explorer, Netscape navigator). You simply go to a web page,
and fill out a form with information like : The credit card number,
the expiration date, and the name on the card. Off-line processing
involves calling in your transactions using a phone or using a different
device (card swipe, third party software) to process the card. |
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