If you’re new to eCommerce, it might seem like a daunting task to figure out how to get your web site to process credit card and debit card payments electronically. Fortunately, there are a lot of companies that have already figured out the hard parts–all you have to do is pick the right one for you. So, where to start?
Well, in order to accept credit cards and debit cards, you need a payment gateway like Intellivative (others include Authorize.net, LinkPoint, Verisign, Paypal, …). But there are a lot of other factors involved …
Where are you going to host your eCommerce web site?
You might already have part this figured out, but if you haven’t, you’ll need to choose and purchase a domain name for your web site (check its availability first!) and find a place to host it. Large businesses might host the site on their own web server, but smaller businesses probably want to hire an Internet Service Provider to do that part.
How big of an online store do you want?
Are you selling 2 different products, 100, or 1,000? The scale of your online store is going to make a big difference in your web store’s strategy.
If you have just a handful of products to sell, you’re not going to need a whole lot. A “Buy Now” button from PayPal or Google might be enough–or you may be able to sell your products on an auction site like eBay or Amazon.
But when you’re ready to move beyond selling a few products online, you’ll need an online shopping solution with more functionality. That’s where shopping carts come in. If you have more than 5 – 10 products, you’re going to need a shopping cart.
Should you build your eCommerce store yourself, hire someone to build it, or buy a pre-made solution?
Nowadays, it’s not necessary to solve it all yourself (unless you just enjoy doing that kind of thing). A pre-built shopping cart can give you so many features it would be difficult to build yourself. You still might want to hire someone to help you, but most likely you can find a cart that will meet your needs.
You can find shopping carts that will provide all kinds of bells and whistles–the question becomes which bells and whistles are important for your store’s success?
Here are some of the features you might find offered:
| Some typical shopping cart features | ||
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The lists of features alone can be overwhelming, but really, it’s best not to have too many, at least to start with. Think about making your store simple for the user to find what they want, add it to the cart, and purchase it. Some of the “features” can sometimes get in the way of that one primary goal. Keep yourself focused on the goal, and don’t let yourself get too bogged down in features.
What’s really important on an eCommerce site is:
- a straightforward user shopping experience–this is your number one goal. Make sure you shop some of the stores that use the cart you’re considering. Notice how easy or hard it is to select an item and make a purchase.
- pleasant, uncluttered design–does the cart allow you to create a design layout that makes sense, without overwhelming the user, yet still allow them to easily find what they’re looking for?
- sufficient information–people need enough info about your products/services to make a decision. What types of tools do you need to give shoppers enough information about your products? Does the cart allow drill-down to product details? Multiple product images? Product comparisons? Test out each tool you’re thinking about using to see how straightforward and helpful they are.
- secure online transactions–even experienced shoppers have reservations about handing over their credit card numbers. Make sure all the software you employ on your site is PCI compliant.
- search engine optimization–your store has to be found first, and search engines are critical to making that happen. What does the cart do to support that?
- support after the sale–shipping integration, email notification and order tracking are customer touchpoints that can make a big difference in customer retention. Does the cart offer sufficient tools to allow you to do that?
Make sure the cart supports these essentials, but also think to the future. What are your long-term goals for this site? Will the shopping cart you’ve selected be able to grow as your business grows or will you have to switch solutions? Switching solutions later can be expensive and timeconsuming.
What comes after the cart?
Once you’ve figured out the shopping cart problem, you still need a payment gateway to integrate with your cart and a merchant account where proceeds from your sales will be deposited.
A payment gateway connects your online store to the payment processing networks and banks. The payment transactions are handled electronically, via a secured Internet connection. Some carts will partner with a payment provider; others will allow you more flexibility. It’s always better to choose a cart that allows you the flexibility to choose your gateway, so if you want to switch down the line, you don’t have to change your entire store around.
Similarly, it’s beneficial to choose a gateway that allows you to change your merchant account. Gateways that connect to more than one merchant account provider help because it allows you to shop around and get the best deal as your business changes. A merchant account provider that suits your business today may get expensive in terms of merchant account fees when you grow past a certain size.
Speaking of that, Intellivative is currently integrating with three new bank networks, which will greatly increase your choices for merchant accounts, without having to change your eCommerce store setup.
Give us a chance to show you how much you can gain (and save!) with Intellivative. Contact us for a free, no-obligation quote today.
