Online purchases are slowly outnumbering local storefront sales simply because of pure convenience. Customers can sit comfortably at home while searching the world for the perfect gift or personal item. There is no need to drive to a store, walk around aisle after aisle and stand in a long line. Your website offers this product purchasing convenience, but it can backfire if your credit card processing strategy is slow or unsecured. A safe credit card processing gateway is critical for continued customer satisfaction.
Credit Card Convenience
A secured gateway allows your website to accept all credit cards, under your discretion. Ideally, you want to accept almost all card providers to increase your customer base. Denying a credit card based on the provider forces customers to look for other vendors, effectively reducing sales. A secured gateway makes it easier to accept many providers with a seamless flow during transactions.
The Security Side
Merchant accounts are complex entities that need to appear simple for customer satisfaction. Specialized credit card processing companies offer gateways that are highly secure for safe transactions. Your customer places items in their virtual shopping cart, for example, and clicks the “Checkout” button. Your credit card gateway security is activated, taking the customer to a secure page to fill out critical financial and shipping information. At this point during the transaction, your system is vulnerable to hackers without a strong software security team. The gateway company keeps all of your transactions safe, creating a trusting relationship between you and your customers.
Transparency For Everyone
The moment the transaction is sent for credit card approval, the customer’s information is processed in a streamlined process. The monetary amount is held by the merchant, allowing the processing system to provide a transfer receipt for both the vendor and customer. The credit card approval number and amount is clear for both parties to see, providing a transparent transaction for simple analysis. There is no question that the money is being transferred to the right entity.
Any item returns are easily processed through the merchant account, if necessary, making customers feel comfortable about purchasing products through your website. Because approval codes and returns are so simple, credit cards will flow through your website without any data slowing that typically deters customer visits.
