There is a lot to consider when you are setting up an e-commerce website. After building the site and implementing a shopping basket where users can store products they want to purchase you will need to devise a method of accepting payment and confirming the order. This is where a payment gateway becomes necessary. This article will explain what a payment gateway is and the steps that it will take to process payments from potential customers.
A payment gateway is a service that that handles the complicated and technical process of encrypting and verifying the customer's payment card and then transferring the funds from the customer to the merchant. A payment gateway works in the background of the website and the user will never directly interact with it. Instead the user will generally be directed to a checkout page where the merchant is able to ask for pertinent data relating to the customers name, address and payment card details. There are a great number of payment services providers online and the vast majority of them will already have payment gateways already built, tested and ready to add onto your website should you require their services.
After the user confirms an order all of their data is encrypted (typically using SSL) and sent to the merchants server. From here the merchant forwards the encrypted information on to the payment gateway which takes a number of steps to process the transaction.
- First the gateway will send the transaction details to the merchant's bank.
- Next the gateway will contact the payment card issuer with the transaction details.
- From here the card issuer will forward details of the transaction to the card holder's bank.
- Upon receiving the transaction details the bank will then decide whether or not it is able to process the transaction.
- When the bank decides to allow or decline the transaction it sends a response back to the payment gateway which will provide the website with the response where it will be passed on to the customer.
- Once the products are dispatched the merchant is then able to submit a settlement request to their acquiring bank (typically they will do this in a batch)
- The acquiring bank is then able to transfer the funds to the merchants chosen account
Employing a payment service provider to supply a payment gateway can take a lot of the hassle out of setting up an online business, making the process for the merchant as simple as possible and the transaction as secure as possible for the customer.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
The New Breed Of Ecommerce Web Designers
Web designing has come a long way. Just a decade ago, web design means publishing a few static HTML pages on the Internet. Everything is so simple that there is not much to consider. The problem is, this approach is not ideal for everyone. For example, some people do not like the idea of having to deal with FTP or edit HTML code.
Today, web designing is vastly different. There are so many other elements that you can consider. Let's take a look at some of these elements.
Content management system.
Having a CMS makes updating much easier. With a user name and password, you can log in to your website anywhere, as long as you have Internet access. Using your CMS, you will then be able to update your website. Everything can be performed using the CMS without having to deal with FTP. You can upload images, post new pages, or edit existing pages. A CMS is usually database driven. All the data is stored on a database that is hosted on the web server. You can request your hosting company to back up the database periodically. To be doubly safe, you can even backup the database yourself.
Animation.
With the growth of broadband, more and more companies are realizing that they can do more on the Internet. Instead of just having static pages on their website, they can appeal to their visitors with animation and graphics. Multimedia is a huge part of the Internet these days. Websites are posting videos, streaming movies, etc. You can make full use of multimedia to make a stronger impact on your web visitors.
Ecommerce.
Of course, don't forget that you can always set up an eCommerce store on the Internet. Being eCommerce enabled means that your website allows web visitors to make purchases online directly. Payment is made through a secure payment gateway. If you are to setup an eCommerce site 10 to 15 years ago, you will find it difficult to run the site. That's because people are still getting used to the new technologies. Today, even a 60 year old grandmother knows how to shop for groceries online. So if you're not setting up an eCommerce enabled website, you may be losing out!
SEO.
Once you setup a website, you need to figure ways to promote the website. Don't expect visitors to come just because your website is online. It doesn't work that way. One effective way of getting traffic to your website is to use SEO methods. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization.
When web visitors go online, they often use search engines to look for stuff. If your website is listed in the search index, visitors will click through and find your website. The process of getting your site to rank well in the search results is called SEO.
Today, web designing is vastly different. There are so many other elements that you can consider. Let's take a look at some of these elements.
Content management system.
Having a CMS makes updating much easier. With a user name and password, you can log in to your website anywhere, as long as you have Internet access. Using your CMS, you will then be able to update your website. Everything can be performed using the CMS without having to deal with FTP. You can upload images, post new pages, or edit existing pages. A CMS is usually database driven. All the data is stored on a database that is hosted on the web server. You can request your hosting company to back up the database periodically. To be doubly safe, you can even backup the database yourself.
Animation.
With the growth of broadband, more and more companies are realizing that they can do more on the Internet. Instead of just having static pages on their website, they can appeal to their visitors with animation and graphics. Multimedia is a huge part of the Internet these days. Websites are posting videos, streaming movies, etc. You can make full use of multimedia to make a stronger impact on your web visitors.
Ecommerce.
Of course, don't forget that you can always set up an eCommerce store on the Internet. Being eCommerce enabled means that your website allows web visitors to make purchases online directly. Payment is made through a secure payment gateway. If you are to setup an eCommerce site 10 to 15 years ago, you will find it difficult to run the site. That's because people are still getting used to the new technologies. Today, even a 60 year old grandmother knows how to shop for groceries online. So if you're not setting up an eCommerce enabled website, you may be losing out!
SEO.
Once you setup a website, you need to figure ways to promote the website. Don't expect visitors to come just because your website is online. It doesn't work that way. One effective way of getting traffic to your website is to use SEO methods. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization.
When web visitors go online, they often use search engines to look for stuff. If your website is listed in the search index, visitors will click through and find your website. The process of getting your site to rank well in the search results is called SEO.
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