Payment Processing
What is payment processing?
Payment processing is the
electronic means of exchanging information in
a credit card transaction between the shopper
at the storefront, the merchant's payment processor
and the merchant's financial institution. A
payment processor, often called a payment gateway,
allows for real-time transactions to be conducted
online during the checkout process.
How does payment processing work?
After a shopper submits a
purchase transaction online using a credit card,
the data is encrypted for security purposes
(SSL or Secure Socket Layers) and then sent
to a payment gateway server. The payment gateway
then forwards the encrypted data to a financial
institution for validation of the requested
transaction. The financial institution linked
directly to the payment gateway sends an authorization
code or a decline message back to the gateway.
This information is then forwarded back to the
merchant and to the shopper at the storefront.
The entire process can take place in a matter
of seconds. This is known as "real-time" payment
processing. Captured credit card funds are then
deposited into your merchant account in accordance
with the terms of your payment processor and
merchant account agreements.
Do I really need a payment processor account?
While not everyone needs
an real-time payment processor (or gateway)
account to accept credit cards, there are many
benefits to having one. A payment processor
will eliminate the need for you to process credit
cards manually, saving you time and effort while
reducing the risk of data entry errors. In many
cases, a payment processor service may offer
you greater protection against credit card fraud
than your offline credit card processing system.
Depending on your service
provider's ProStores configuration, you can
still accept credit cards in your ProStores
store even if you choose not to process credit
card transactions in real-time (while the shopper
is checking out). ProStores can be configured
to accept many other means of payment, including
electronic checks, traditional paper checks
and money orders. ProStores Pro even includes
options for accepting COD, certified checks,
department orders and purchase orders. One can
also leverage the integrated services offered
by PayPal. PayPal will allow you to accept credit
cards from your customers without requiring
a merchant to have Internet merchant account.
None of these other types of payment require
credit card processor/gateway.
Can I add real-time credit card processing
to my store later?
Certainly. Even if you start
without a real-time processor, it's a quick
and easy process to enable the service at a
later date (assuming your existing merchant
account provider supports one of the payment
processors integrated with ProStores).
What payment gateways are integrated into
ProStores?
ProStores is fully integrated
with the following popular payment gateways.
This means that no additional software is required
for you to install. In fact, some of them incorporate
online merchant account applications directly
into their solution.
Electronic Check/ACH Processing
Other Payment solutions
ProStores also includes integration
for the payment solution services provided by:
PayPal
Can I use a payment processor other than the
ones listed above?
Yes. ProStores is designed
to allow third-party payment processors other
than those listed above to be integrated into
the application. However, using a third-party
payment processor may incur additional cost
to you.
How do I know which payment processor is right
for me?
Choosing your payment processor
is the critical first step toward conducting
transactions online in real time. Payment processors
conduct transactions differently and are linked
to different merchant account providers.
If you are just getting started,
it's best to choose the ProStores-integrated
payment processor that meets the needs of your
business, and then choose an associated merchant
account provider. If you already have an Internet
merchant account, check with your provider to
see if any of ProStores's built-in payment processors
are compatible. For more information on merchant
accounts, see Merchant
Accounts.
How much does payment processing cost?
Payment processing fees
can vary widely, depending on the provider.
Charges may include application fee, set-up
fee, monthly fee, discount rate (percentage
of the transaction value) and fee per transaction.
Do your research carefully and be cautious of
hidden fees.
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