by Veronica Stone on November 8th, 2007
A merchant account is an absolute must for virtually any online business these days. A merchant account allows you to accept credit card payments from customers online. When a customer pays for a product or service, the merchant account provider will move the amount of payment from the buyer’s account to the seller’s account. Ready to get your own merchant account ? Here are the steps to follow:
1. Choose a bank and apply for an account. Choosing a bank can sometimes be difficult due to complex payment structures. To get around this, try speaking to a representative of that... Read more »
by Veronica Stone on October 22nd, 2007
A chargeback is what happens when a customer has their credit card company remove funds from a merchants account after making a purchase and put them back into the their account. This typically occurs when a customer doesn’t feel as though they have received quality products or haven’t gotten what they paid for. Normally, a dispute will happen first, and the merchant is responsible for proving that they have delivered the products that were asked for, and in a satisfactory manner. If the merchant is not able to prove this, then the credit card company will then perform a chargeback.... Read more »
by Veronica Stone on October 16th, 2007
Order fraud is one of the most common types of online business fraud that there is. Whether someone is using a stolen credit card or information from stolen checks, etc, there is a chance that you could end up paying for it. When a company accepts payments with credit cards without the magswipe, there is a risk. Of course, since you do business online, it’s impossible to ask the customer to swipe his or her credit card. There can be fraudulent orders coming through right this second.
If there is no swipe of the card, it’s very easy for someone... Read more »
by Barbara Weltman on June 25th, 2007
Unless you have an all-cash business, you may not receive the payments you expect. Bounced checks, credit card chargebacks, and even scams can keep you from getting paid. Here are ideas to ensure payment.
Other than the corner hot dog truck, most companies today transact business with checks, credit/debit cards, PayPal, gift cards ("smart" cards), or electronic transfers. According to February 2007 statistics from FreshBooks , 16% accepted Visa, 7.8% MasterCard, 4.3% Amex, 6.5% PayPal and 65.5% other payments (checks; account credit). These seemingly "secure" payment methods can be anything but secure. Merchants bear the financial risk for fraudulent credit... Read more »