Why Does My Website Need To Accept Credit Cards?

Online sales are now worth trillions of dollars a year; more and more people are using the Internet to make their purchases, taking the stress out of shopping for groceries, Christmas presents, books - anything that is for sale can be bought online. This creates great opportunities for your company or online business, but if you're going to make money from your website, it is absolutely essential that it is set up to accept credit cards.

It is possible to sell online if your website doesn't accept credit cards; people do still send checks or pay over the phone. However, studies show that websites that accept credit cards generate greater sales; it's just that simple. Having an online site that will accept credit cards can boost sales by up to 400%, and having used your site once, you'll find that people will keep coming back.

Having a website that will accept credit cards has obvious advantages to the customer; credit card payment is easy and quick, and eliminates the hassle of sending checks or money orders. But there are big gains for the vendor too, beyond the most obvious one of boosting your sales. If you accept credit cards online, you can take advantage of two large sections of your potential market that might otherwise not be open to you. First, the impulse buyers, those who see your product or service and decide then and there to pull out their wallet and buy, and who might change their mind if they have to dial a phone number or write out a check. Second are the international customers, for whom payment by check would mean risk and delay. By setting your website up to accept credit cards, you open up whole new markets for your business.

It's easy to accept credit cards online. You can set up your own merchant account with a suitable bank; this has the advantage of reducing costs, but as you are processing payments yourself, there are downsides in terms of time and risk. On the other hand, using a third party merchant, such as CCBill or PayPal, is an easy and trouble-free way for you to accept credit cards; such companies will, however, take a percentage of whatever money you earn, so it is worth shopping around for the best deal. Either way, if customers are reassured that your website will accept credit cards safely and securely, you will see the benefits in increased sales very quickly.