Electronic Commerce (E-Commerce) is an electronic business transaction.  Electronic e-commerce is the buying/selling of products and/or services over the Internet.

To conduct business on the Internet you will need an E-Commerce Website. An e-commerce Website can be as simple as a catalog with an order form, or it can be a complex multimedia enabled Website with real-time credit card processing capabilities. The Internet has enabled merchants to offer their goods and services to potential customers around the world 24 hrs. a day, 365 days a year. E-commerce offers customers the opportunity to browse, select and pay for goods in real time from the comfort of their own home or office.

E-commerce supplements the traditional selling channels and attracts customers that you never knew existed. The Internet revolution is affecting every company, no matter it’s size. Business of all sizes can equally share in the benefits of e-commerce, but they are all equally vulnerable to being left behind if they do not adopt the new business models.

A Website presents prospective customers with information, and purchasing options available off-line. On the other hand an E-Commerce Website not only presents all the required service and product information, but it also provides secure options to complete the sale online.

A Website is like a copy of your printed catalog presenting information, whereas an e-commerce Website is a business unit that complements your existing traditional selling channels and accentuates an entirely new sales/distribution channel.

A Website offers limited security options. On the other hand, e-commerce Websites provide options for high levels of security by encrypting data and transferring it over secure servers.

A Website operates entirely outside your existing business system.  All orders have to be manually entered into the system and processed off-line.  Whereas an e-commerce Website integrates into your existing system for inventory control, order processing, and order fulfillment. A fully integrated e-commerce Website automatically ties into your existing business process and acts like an extension to your existing sales force. 

What do I need for E-Commerce?

Choose Payment Options:

Open a TEST Merchant Account with a financial institution.

 

Open a Merchant Account with a financial institution after the Test Account has proven successful.

 

Sign up with a payment gateway, for example Card Services or CyberCash Merchant Accounts which give you the ability to take credit card information from prospective customers over the Internet. E-commerce software offer seamless integration with our online payment gateways providing you with a completely integrated e-commerce solution.

 

MERCHANT ACCOUNTS are issued through an Authorizing Bank. A Merchant Account is like a Drivers License. Though you have a driver’s license you can’t move around without a vehicle. Similarly for you to use your Merchant Account you need a vehicle to move the information around. For example, you could ask your Website prospects to call you on the phone to place their orders. Now the phone is your vehicle to move their Credit Card information.

ONLINE SHOPPING CART SOFTWARE is another example of a vehicle to move Credit Card and ordering information. Your customers can efficiently order 24 hours a day. Also a Shopping Cart eliminates some potential for error as there is only one human involved in the process rather than two. The Shopping Cart is a vehicle that enables you to: Get the ordering information from the customer, verify via email to the customer that his order has been placed, and deliver the notification and ordering information to the seller.