Take Payments Online

In order to take payments online from customers using a credit, debit or checking account, you will need to apply for a “merchant account” with a merchant services provider like Charge.com.  Merchant accounts are rather simple to obtain and setting one up can take less than 24 hours.  There are things you should do beforehand to make the process simpler, but if you want to take payments online you will need the following:

 Website, Landing Page or Sales Page – Your customers need somewhere to go to find information about you and your products or services.  A website, landing page or sales page can act as this source of information. 

 Shopping Cart – In order for customers to find your products and then purchase them, you will need a shopping cart.  A shopping cart is software allowing you to offer a way to display product information, pictures, and sizes and so on and then obtain your customers credit card information using a secure system.

 Merchant ID Number – After setting up a merchant account, you will receive an MID or Merchant Identification Number.  This is a unique identifier linking your shopping cart with your merchant account.  You will not be able to take orders without one even if you have a shopping cart.

 Once you have done these three things, you are ready to start accepting credit and debit cards online.  There are typically more steps involved for accepting ACH payments online.  These steps can be addressed directly with your merchant service provider.  A Charge.com account representative can help get your website ready to start accepting credit card orders from customers in less than 24 hours.  Contact us today or fill out the form to the right!