Online sites like Etsy offer entrepreneurs the ability to create virtual storefronts with ease, but their services often come with a higher price tag than many expect. They make their money through fees, but those fees come at nearly every level of the process. For example, Etsy charges a fee to list an item, then once purchased, they charge both a transaction fee and a payment processing fee.
Category: check processing
Exploring the Benefits of Accepting Checks Online
There are many different ways to refer to the concept of being able to accept checks online including electronic checking (or e-checks for short), bank-to-bank transfer, or ACH (automated clearing house). There are three main reasons why it is in the best interest of you and your business to make sure your online payment services include electronic checks:
Does Your Business Accept Checks Online?
Many people assume that check payments can only be made by providing a paper check to the person receiving the payment. But, the truth is that you can accept check payments online, making it possible for your customers to make payments in a variety of ways.
The Road Ahead for Payments: Yellow Bricks, or Leaking Digits?
As our readers already know, changes are coming to the world of credit cards. Chief among those, as a new article in Wired states, are EMV cards, which “have an embedded microchip that authenticates the card as a legitimate bank card to prevent hackers from embossing stolen card data onto blank cards to use it for fraudulent transactions. The chip contains the same data that traditionally is stored on a card’s magnetic stripe, but also has a certificate used to digitally sign each transaction.
The Benefits of Accepting Checks & Processing Checks Online
While the use of credit cards has exploded over the last years and many people carry plastic, many people still also use checks. If your business does not accept checks, both online and off, you could be losing money to your competitors who do. When shopping online, people will abandon their shopping cart if they reach the checkout and cannot use their preferred payment method. When shopping offline, people expect to be able to write a check so they can use the money in their bank account. If you cannot accommodate them, they may walk away.
Is There a Way Accept Checks Online?
Every business needs to be able to accept checks as a form of payment, even if the business sells products or services partially or wholly online. This is still a very popular payment method and you do not want to lose sales because you can’t accept your customer’s preferred method of payment.
Taking Checks Still a Good Idea & Other Fallout from Recent Breaches
A thoughtful analysis on Pymnts. com talks about some of the unexpected “fallout” from the recent high-profile credit card breaches. One might expect that such an event would accelerate the calls for adapting more secure “EMV” card standards here, or even spark discussions on whether customers should have ever-shifting “account numbers,” etc., as a way of minimizing security risks. And those discussions have happened.
Should You Still Accept Checks?
Absolutely. While credit card use has increased, many people still use checks and you could be missing out on sales opportunities if you don’t accept checks. One of the things that consumers do when shopping online is check to see if a merchant accepts the form of payment they wish to use. If they don’t, it’s very common for them to simply move on to find another merchant who does. They’ll even leave a full shopping cart online if they get to the checkout and learn that you don’t accept the form of payment that they intend to use. That means you’re putting money into your competitors pocket. Never leave any stone unturned when it comes to increasing your bottom line.
Accept Checks and Credit Cards with a Merchant Account
A merchant account will enable you to accept checks and credit cards, ensuring you have a safe, effective way to process payments. Most businesses know they need to accept credit cards these days but many customers still use checks so it’s still important to be able to accept checks online (as well as offline). Not offering your customer’s preferred payment method could mean a lost sale.
What Should You Look for in Business Merchant Services?
If you’re in business, you need a way to accept payments from your customers, right? From accepting credit cards to accepting checks, business merchant services allow you to process the transactions that are vital to your business.
