Payment Processing Services for your newly launched E-commerce Setup
Starting up a business and being the owner of your business is really a dream come true. When it comes to setting up an online marketing service, there are a few things that one should consider. Online marketing services purely rely on SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and these services run on keywords and the more the keywords function on an optimum level, the better the success of your startup. One needs to quickly adapt to the changes in the industry. The fuel to run your startup is of course money, and especially if you have decided to run an online business, a clear understanding of acceptance of payments from the customer end is required for the successful running of the show. In order to receive the payments, you need to have a merchant account that suits your requirement.
What exactly is a merchant account?
A merchant account refers to the affiliation between you, a merchant bank and a third party processor. Payment processing of your product is made through Virtual Terminals which are actually like a POS machine (Point of Sale) through which you swipe in supermarkets or malls. However, the only difference is here it’s done through a website server. To run an E-commerce business you need to have an Internet Merchant Account. It is vital for a business, especially which is done online like SEO and online marketing services, where you do not have chances of getting the payment through other modes.
Payment options that you need to consider:
By running an SEO industry you are required to show volumes in the website access and there may be cases of chargebacks that come to you which you have to consider. Moreover, you have to make sure that your company maintains the confidentiality of customer data. Because of all these hitches in many cases, you will find that merchant account is denied to Online Marketing Services.
Merchant account denied or shut
There are internet marketing companies who are denied a merchant account. Companies that are shut due to financial crises do face a similar situation. During such scenarios, it is a wise choice to go for a merchant account but your company needs to undergo an underwriting process and the transaction rates may vary based on the kind of business you deal with and the profits that are associated with it. Your merchant account can be obtained on various factors and rates may vary by Startup vs History or High Risk vs Low Risk. To explain briefly, the banks look for certain might want to know whether your business is just a Startup or you have prior experience in the same platform with good or bad credit history just like in the case of a borrower from a bank. The merchant account also depends on the kind of profit your profit is likely to bring in and the kind of risk or business input involved.
Opting for Third Party Processor also has its own merits. The Underwriting process is denied by Credit Card Processors like Frist Data, Paypal, Square, and Stripe. It becomes less tedious and the approval is done quickly. How does this process work? In these cases, a button is placed on your website through which the payments are accepted. The percentage per transaction differs for each Third Party Processor. However, the process might seem a little troublesome later, as they are chances that there is a high risk of termination of your accounts with or without notice.
Merchant account for New businesses
The scenario has changed in the recent days and merchant banks are willing to take the risk by giving its services to a startup industry as far as Digital marketing is concerned. However, there is more than a nominal fee which is charged for SEO setups. As a person owning a startup in online services, before selecting a merchant account do research and find out the fee that is applicable for the process. Usually, there are two kinds of fees that are available for credit card transactions. It could either be a flat rate per transaction or it could be a percentage of the complete transaction. Apart from the transaction fee, many other fees could be a part of your Merchant Account Service like:
Setup Fees
Annual Fee
Monthly Fee
Cancellation Fee etc.
Make sure that you are completely aware of the entire cost involved in it.
Domestic or Offshore account
The convenience that E-commerce gives you is that you can sell the product even in international levels from the convenience of your home. This can be achieved by choosing an international merchant account. While obtaining a domestic merchant account will not be much of a trouble, offshore options of expanding the horizon of your product are also possible for you as an entrepreneur and some kind of products do need an offshore market. As they would give better visibility of your organization at a global level. However, the catch here is that the percentage varies for domestic and offshore options. The international merchant accounts charge you around 4-12% of your transaction. Nevertheless, domestic merchants have no Rolling Reserve requirement, which is a deposit required by an international merchant account, where a margin of ten percent will be held as a deposit for a certain period of time to secure its position. Having said about the benefits of a domestic merchant account, only you can decide whether you need an offshore merchant option based on the requirement of your product and the kind of reach that you want.
Smartphones and the success of your product:
Finally, the good news is that smartphones are behind the success of an e-commerce setup. With the increase in Android and iPhone mobile apps, your product visibility is even enhanced. These handheld devices are making it convenient for the buyer as well as the seller. Creating an app dedicated to your product will also be an option for the successful growth of your business.