eCommerce@2Byt.com

For your online store to be a success, you will have to get an internet ecommerce merchant account.

Helping Your Online Business

A merchant account allows you to receive and process payments directly in your online store made by customers through credit cards. These accounts are established through merchant service providers such as banks or independent service organizations.

Banks are more secure and reliable in particular in regards to who they allow to open a merchant account. Independent organizations are more flexible and are willing to accept more risk. This usually reflects in their fees and charges but it is worth it.

The risk of an internet ecommerce merchant account is associated with the fact that you don’t physically swipe the credit card to scan, so you risk the cards being stolen credit card numbers.

Getting in on the Deal

You should first try to get in account with a bank but, they may have a lot of criteria to pass before they would allow you to open an account. If you are turned down at the bank, you will need to apply with an independent organization.

Once you have made and set up the account, at a bank or independent organization, they will deposit the amount you collected in sales after deducting their fees charges on a daily basis. Some of these institutions also offer other services such as billing authorization, reporting and settlement of services; these may very useful services in the long run.

The Cost of an Internet Ecommerce Merchant Account

There are a vast number of organizations out there and many charge fees. You will need to choose carefully which of these will most benefit you over time so you will make some profit out of your sales and not need to file bankruptcy.

Common Fees

- Intercharge fee: Amount payable by yourself to the internet ecommerce merchant account provider once the credit card transaction is settled. This fee can vary from 25 cents to 70 cents per transaction. This should specially draw your attention when offering something on discount in your e-store; the transaction fee may loose your profit. - Equipment and installation: This fee is usually a one time charge including hardware/software, set-up and programming. Sometimes if you get this service from your web hosting company they absorb this fee or offer yet another hosting option. - Monthly fee- This includes a minimum fee in case you don’t do any business, statements and excess usage.

The internet ecommerce merchant account is a must have for a successful online store; however who will provide you this service is a choice you must make.

Ecommerce web hosting provider is a service that allows one to publish web pages or web sites on the internet. First and foremost, you should evaluate your service needs before choosing an ecommerce web hosting provider.

Considerations

Here are a few points to consider when looking for an ecommerce web hosting provider:

* Choose a provider with at least 99.5% or greater uptime and a guarantee to back it. Since it is your business, it is crucial that the website stays active 24/7, 7 days a week. * The level of connectivity is another important factor to consider. Fast servers with server back ups is your first choice. The ecommerce web hosting provider should have a T3 connection to a major internet backbone. Check how often your internet provider back ups the date – i.e. daily or weekly. To ensure data security the internet provider must have a power backup system and should back up data to an external device in order to prevent data loss due to failure. * Your web site provider must meet your disk space and bandwidth requirements. Most ecommerce web hosting providers offer between 1GB to 3GB of disk space, which is usually enough in the beginning, but check if in future more space can be purchased. However with regard to bandwidth you should get as much as possible as you may have heavy traffic in the future and require more data transfer. * Most good web providers offer a control panel to access and manage web site features. Make sure that your web site provider offers this service. Through the control panel you will be able to access, email, database, your ecommerce and all the functions for effective website management. * Good customer support is essential as well; ensure that you can reach someone 24/7, 7 days a week. If anything goes wrong on your site your business could be on hold until you will be able to fix it with the ecommerce web hosting provider. The promptness of the customer service will save you time and money. Your provider’s service will result in your efficiency in your ecommerce in the end. Most providers have FQA but you must ensure that you can reach an actual person when in an emergency.

The internet has brought us many joys over the years offering endless information, services and opportunities.

In order to have a good ecommerce web hosting plan you must consider some specific criteria before finalizing decisions like choosing a shopping cart that supports online catalogues or online payment processing.

Ask the Right Questions and Get the Right Answers

* Customer service support – such as automatically sending an email to the buyer once the purchase with the notification of the successful transaction and shipment details. * What kind of payments facilities it accepts – Paypal, on line credit cards, etc? * The limit of number of categories and products you can set up or if there is any such limit at all. * What is the set up fee? * Is there a monthly fee? * What are their charges for each transaction?

Find the Right Fit

Most often, an ecommerce web hosting plan is available to meet your requirements and budget. Most often they come incorporated with all the above features offering everything an ecommerce business needs and much more.

There are a great number of companies which offer hosting services and the offers have improved significantly over the years. The companies however do not need to fight over the clients as more and more people try their hand at online business everyday.

Ecommerce is indeed the best way to try a business out with a minimum risk involved. An ecommerce web hosting plan offers everything you need to open your shop in only one day. All you need to do is specify your needs and define your merchandise.

Servicing the Customer

Another feature to look for in an ecommerce web hosting plan is customer service and its availability. Your online business is dependent on the website working quickly and efficiently. If you are faced with a problem and don’t have anyone to contact for hours on end you will loose business. You not only loose the available business at the present time but, be assured that those customers are not about to return any time soon if they could not get to your merchandise in their first attempt.

Customer service goes both ways; you must ensure the same customer service you would like from other companies to be the same for your ecommerce business. Remember by offering great service it may cost you initially but it will come back to reward you by the repeat customers and word of mouth recommendations.

Business is all about great service, quality and cost effective. That is the formula to success.