The e-commerce transaction process itself does not differ greatly from one payment processor to another as the diagram below from one of our partners, NetBanx, shows.
However, payment processors can be very different indeed in many other ways. It’s essential that you consider your needs before you commit to signing any contracts; for example, if you’ll be processing hundreds of orders each week, you’ll want to avoid any Payment Service Provider (PSP) that is known to suffer a lot of downtime. On the other hand, if you’re processing just a few transactions each week, low cost may be more important than availability.
One thing that all merchants should ensure is that their chosen PSP is one that keeps all steps in the process simple. For example, are you happy that you fully understand your PSP’s transaction settlement process? Do you know exactly what you will and will not be charged for? Is integration documentation clearly written and easy to understand? Have anti-fraud options been fully explained to you? A good PSP will always make this information available to you in as simple terms as you require, either during the sales process or afterwards through its customer support team.
One of the first steps you’ll need to consider is obtaining your Internet merchant ID (MID) from your acquiring bank. Sometimes it can be difficult to obtain a MID (for example, if you have no trading history or if your business is otherwise perceived by the banks as ‘risky’) and if this is the case with your business, you’ll need to make sure that your chosen PSP is able to offer an alternative service (this is often called a ‘bureau service’).
When it comes to design, do you want to use a web designer or will you build the site yourself? You may even choose to use a content management system, where the site design is carried out by a specialist company but the merchant has full control of the content through an editing package that works in a similar way to Microsoft Word.
The design issue will no doubt be influenced by the size of your budget. All users of the eCommerce Comparison Tool are entitled to a free 15 minute consultation to discuss their website plans so make sure you take advantage of this expert advice.
You’ll also need to make sure that your PSP and shopping cart are compatible. The eCommerce Tool lists the payment systems that work with each ecommerce solution to assist you here and you can also discuss this during your free advice session.
