|
After
obtaining a merchant account, next you must decide on a
method to process your credit cards. It use to be
credit cards were put into a manual mechanical card
impression machine and an imprint was made directly onto a
form. Those days are for the most part gone.
There are generally 3 accepted ways to process credit
cards.
| |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
| Card
Terminal |
- Increased
merchant transaction security because direct
card imprint is available.
Protects the merchant from fraud
- Easiest to use
|
- Hardware
investment
- Not mobile
- Expensive
- Slow
processing
|
| On-line
Internet Processor |
- No Hardware
investment
- Mobile and
accessible anywhere
- Inexpensive
for large number of charges
- Real-time
processing
|
- Can be more
difficult to implement (but not with
SalesCart)
- Can be more
expensive if you are doing only a small
number of charges
|
| PC
software |
- Semi
Real-time processing
- The least
expensive solution
- Relatively
easy
|
- Requires
Software investment
- Requires a PC
- Semi Real-time
processing
|
A card
terminal is a piece of computer hardware about the size of
a phone that the merchant swipes the card through.
The terminal has a card reader that reads the card number.
The merchant types in the amount and the process is
transacted typically over phone lines.
An on-line
Internet processor uses the Internet to process your
credit cards. Either the card is typed in directly
or feed into the system from a shopping cart system.
The process takes the information, verifies it and
processes the credit card using the Internet as opposed to
using a phone line and the modem. The on-line
Internet process is an outgrowth of using PC software.
PC software
are programs that run on your PC where the credit card is
typed in with your PC keyboard. The software calls
up the processor using a phone and verifies the
transaction using the phone.
|
