Hi There. I need to be able to accept credit card payments on a website, please could someone recommend a suitable processor for this. Although PayPal has it's uses I will not be using it as the main payment Processor. Please could you say why you recommend a certain Processor. I would be very grateful for any info. Thank you. Dalem
If you are in the United States, you have hundreds of processors to choose from and scores of electronic payment gateways. Most of these gateways (Quantum, LinkPoint / YourPay, Authorize.net / Cybersource, Payflow, Yahoo!®, etc) that will connect to a transaction processor (First Data, Nova, etc). Some of the transaction processors that have a relationship with the issuing bank and acquiring bank can complete the transaction instead of sending it to the card associations (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, etc). You might even remember the lawsuit that Visa was suing First Data because Visa was getting cut out of a lot of the transactions because First Data was completing the transaction. Fortunately, that was settled. The transaction can be broken down into about seven steps Authorization Merchant Balancing Capture Capture Interchange (V/MC Only) Interchange (V/MC Only) Merchant ACH The electronic payment gateway will virtually connect your website to a transaction processor. If you are in the United States, you have a number of options. Getting a merchant account is pretty good if you are doing more than $1,000 a month. One of the bigger reasons is getting your money. Some think this is not important but I have to object. Getting your money is usually the best thing, right? And with a merchant account, your money is deposited into your bank account within 48-72 hours usually after the batch is completed. If you do the math and look at what you might earn if the money if in your interest bearing account you might make money with your money. The IPSP (Internet Payment Service Provider) like (some versions of) PayPal are relying on your money to earn interest. Some of them will send your money weekly or twice a month, while some will send it only when you request it. The electronic payment gateways will also offer you an API to process the transaction on your website. This helps with the flow of the checkout process. The user is never directed to another website. You can get a test store from most of the electronic payment gateways but some of the skilled developers think this is unnecessary. And others think it is a great option to have. Now, even some members of Paypal can get this as well. Now, if you are in the United States, there are some very important pieces of information must be on an ISO / MSP / Agent's website. Let's take a look at CDG Commerce's web site and look at their footer: This tells you CDG is a registered ISO/MSP and what bank he is with. An agent will have something like "independent agent office" with a certain ISO. If you are a member of Sam's Club or Costco, you might check their programs to see if they are suitable. Just make sure to read the fine print and all the legalease. The electronic payment gateways might charge you a transaction fee - some based on a fixed fee and some a percentage. Some gateways will give you XXXX number of transactions free per month and then charge you. And some gateways will just charge a flat fee (similar to AOL giving away their software so you will use service). It is the gateway that is really important. When the gateway is down - your ecommerce site is basically shut down. Although some gateways offer a way for you to still send the transaction and once the gateway is back up, the transaction will be processed.
I insist you use Paypal (it does a lot of good to you, especially novices) However, if you are selling counterfieted or pirated or illegal items, then steer clear from it. There are a lot of Payment gateways CCAvenue comes to my mind for its cheap setup (comparatively).
Alertpay is very similar to Paypal with lower transaction fees for a merchant account. Personal accounts with AlertPay have NO transaction fees
You should go with paypal. Almost all people who conduct business online use this payment processor. it will be very difficult to start an online venture without using paypal.
If you are searching for a alternative of Paypal , then simply go with the Moneybookers ! There is no better alternative then Moneybookers.... i recommend it!
Yes, moneybookers is recommended. Alertpay is also good, but if you are not in the US, the verification process is a bit complicated, even with personal account.
Protx are a very good PSP, and has a flat-rate charge of £23.50 per month, you don't pay any fees after that. Great support, too.
If your selling digital content, check out EC Suite, links in sig. If tangibles, maybe consider your own merchant account?
Thank you for helpful information, Cory. Two questions: (1) Are the terms "Payment Processor" and "Transaction Processor" interchangeable? (2) Where can one look for merchant satification/dissatisfaction ratings of payment processors? We currently use FirstData for store customers and TransFirst for Web customers. I can compare rate and fees but not customer service. Thank you in advance. Soulman
You can find information at the BBB and similar companies, but this is normally only good for very general info. The main problem is that the vast majority of information out there is severely biased to the point that it is meaningless. You'll find merchant account review sites, but every one I have ever seen is a paid inclusion and there is no user contributed information. As far as FirstData is concerned, they're so big that if you are in the US you have > 60% chance that your money is going to go through them one way of the other. If you're happy with what you've got, the best bet is to stay put unless you are being charged excessively over everyone else. Otherwise the best support you will find is normally through an ISO that provides personal service and has a solid history and reputation. Typically if you go with too big or too small of a provider the level of service diminishes some. As for your first question, they are for the most part interchangeable. Payment processor and transaction processor are both very generic and also reference a number of similar type services. The correct term for TransFirst or FirstData would be an ISO or MSP. Payment processor is generally in reference to a 3rd party processor like Paypal.
Thank you so much, Jestep. Forgive my ignorance, but what does ISO and MSP stand for? I use both TransFirst (web processing) and FirstData (Store Processing). I have had issues with both. I am considering legal action against TransFirst at the moment. They batched out preauthorized transactions I was holding without my knowledge or permission. These were not Happy Meals; they were transactions in excess of $5K each. I immediately credited these customer accounts but the credits were not processed even though it appeared on their books as if they did. It turns out it was a conversion error on their part. Columbus Bank & Trust bought TransFirst earlier this year. I've got TransFirst help desk staff telling me they have been instructed by supervisors not to return merchant calls even after they have promised to do so. I finally got help after faxing a letter to TransFirst CEO Thomas Rouse threatening legal action. It's taken over 45 days to resolve. I was just interrupted while typing from one of my affected customer asking if it was resolved. I get all this from a company that makes money off of my money. Shopping for another ISO/MSP is like walking a minefield. I figure human error and glitches are always a part of business. I make mistakes everyday. But it's how mistakes are addressed that makes a B2B relationship work. It's very difficult to find a useful measure of merchant satisfaction in this area. Knowledge is power, however. You and this forum help a lot!
ISO stands for Independent Sales Organization, MSP - Member Service Provider or Merchant Service Provider. Basically an ISO is an organization that is registered with Visa and MasterCard to provide merchant services. This can include companies like FirstData and can also be a bank like Chase or Wells Fargo. The non-bank ISO's exist solely to provide processing services.