Online Credit Card Processing

When we started our on line business in 1994, we went through the same process that you are going through right now. Searching different companies for the best credit card deal. Talk about headaches. Well, since then, we have contracted with 3 different companies to set up merchant accounts for on line businesses, and we have set up quite a few over the years.

But there is one tiny little fact that none of the processors will tell you (and up to just a little while ago, I would not mention it either).

Unless you are ABSOLUTELY... POSITIVELY sure you will sell $2000 worth of products or services per month, you should NOT get your own merchant account! WHY?

Because there are several online processors that will handle all your credit card sales for you. And the setup fees are VERY little... or ZERO! These are the two best deals:


If you sell a tangible product that must be shipped to a buyer, PayPal is the way to go. They have no setup fees, and it is simple to setup an account. You do want to opt for the "business" account thought, otherwise you will be limited to only $500 in monthly transactions. Even with the business account, the rate you pay per transaction is only 3%. There are no setup fees with PayPal

They will accept transactions for real time online delivery of software, reports, and e-books, but there is a flaw in their transaction setup where (if you know a little about HTML coding) you can steal the report or software without paying. This flaw is not a problem if you ship your product.

Sign up for PayPal and start accepting credit card payments instantly.

On the other hand Clickbank can handle all your transactions if you want to deliver your product in real time, online. In other words, if you do not ship a tangible product, this is a better option than PayPal.

Even though the transaction rate is a little higher (7.5% plus $1 per transaction) and there is a one time setup fee of $50, you are better off here for two reasons.

  1. There is no flaw in the coding where people can steal your software or report without paying.
  2. Clickbank has a built in Affiliate Program. Here you can set a commission from 5-50%. Anyone who places a link on their site to yours can earn commissions on sales. Clickbank handles all the tracking and payment. You just sit back and cash the checks!

Remember, the rate may be higher here, but because you deliver your product online in real time there is no fulfillment costs the profit potential here is also much higher.