Real Time Transactions or Manual/Offline Transactions?
Their are several different ways to process credit cards. It is important to know which method is best for you before you apply for merchant accounts with your bank.
1. Manual/Offline credit card processing
2. Real time credit card processing
3. Payment services such as PayPal or Paymate
Manual/Offline credit card processing
Manual/Offline credit card processing is currently the most popular method used by ezimerchant Professional merchants.
One of the reasons this method is so popular is due to many merchants already having an EFTPOS terminal - which they use in their retail outlet.
If you choose this method, the ezimerchant Professional Global Transaction Server (GTS) will supply you with your customers credit card details when they make an order. You will then process them manually via a standard EFTPOS merchant account terminal - like the one pictured.
Advantages:
- You may already have an EFTPOS terminal. If this is the case all you need is ezimerchant Professional and the GTS account to collect orders!
- Cheaper due to you not needing a payment gateway.
- Puts you in control of your order processing. (example: If you are out of stock of an item, you don't have to process the card)
- Less complicated to setup - No payment gateway needed.
- Ideal for internet beginners
- You can upgrade easily to real time should the volume of orders make it viable
Disadvantages:
- It's a manual process so if you get lots of orders you will be running lots of card numbers through your EFTPOS terminal, this can become time consuming.
- Banks prefer you to use the real-time method if transacting on the internet, so you may find it harder to obtain a manual merchant account if you plan to trade only on the internet.
Real time credit card processing
This method is more expensive than the manual method however it suits companies that have high volume or do not wish to use the manual processing method.
If you choose this method, the ezimerchant GTS will pass your customers credit card details to a 3rd party 'Payment Gateway' company who will in turn process those details with your bank. The bank then either approves or declines the credit card transaction and sends back a message to the payment gateway which in turn sends the message back to the GTS server. The GTS server then displays an accepted or declined message to your customer.
Because the above process is done in 'Real Time' (e.g. instantaneous) the money is transferred into your merchant bank account at the time of the order (or shortly after - depending on when the bank actually does the transfer.
Advantages:
- Money is transferred at the time of the transaction.
- No manual card processing work required! You simply need to pack and send the order.
- You only receive orders that have actually passed the processing stage. Eliminates time wasters.
- Becoming cheaper as eCommerce becomes more commonplace.
Disadvantages:
- Requires an account with a supported 3rd party gateway as well as an Internet merchant account with your bank.
- Currently more expensive when compared to the manual/offline processing method.
- Cards are processed regardless of stock level or availability. If you are out of stock then you must organise a refund. (Most payment gateway companies now provide you with the means for doing refunds however.)
- More complicated to setup.
Supported 3rd party real time payment gateways:
ezimerchant Professional currently supports numerous 3rd party real time payment gateways including the big players below.
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Payment services such as PayPal or Paymate
PayPal and PayMate make accepting credit cards easy as they do not require you to have a merchant facility. They are quick and easy to setup and are recognizable world wide by net savvy shoppers. If you want to start trading immediately with your ezimerchant web site, we highly recommend setting up a PayPal account. PayPal Express Checkout Integration is now available with ezimerchant Professional V4.0.
PayPal - www.paypal.com
With over 40 million accounts in 38 countries worldwide, PayPal is the world's largest online payment solution. Accept payments on one of the following currencies...
- AUD
- USD
- Euros
- Pounds Sterling
- Canadian Dollars
- Yen
Paymate - www.paymate.com.au
With Paymate you can accept credit card payments in 3 minutes! You don't need a credit card gateway or even a merchant facility from a bank. Paymate is the fastest, safest payment service on the internet! Accept payments in one of the following currencies...
- AUD
- USD
Important Notes
Regardless of which method you choose, you must have an active account on the ezimerchant Global Transaction Server (GTS). Current cost of this service is $29.95 per month AUD. ezimerchant Professional web sites will not function without an active GTS account.
When contacting the above companies for pricing information please mention that you are an ezimerchant Professional user.
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