Shopping Carts:
Whether you need a custom shopping cart experience or an 'off the shelf' package such as Zencart (one of our preferred suites), we can help get you up and running selling on the Internet.
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Setting up a shopping cart online can be done in several ways:
You can accept credit card numbers online but process them offline. This way you don't need a seperate merchant account to handle online transactions and you can handle like any normal 'real-world' credit card transaction. How you handle these credit card numbers becomes important and awareness of what to do and not do with those numbers is tremendously important to limit your exposure to risk and to protect your customers also.
You can use a service like PayPal or Google Checkout to process the credit card transactions. This frees you up from having to deal with credit cards directly - you simply link out to a third party with whom you have an account and they take care of it. Consider the costs here but the lack of worrying about the security necessary for handling credit cards may make this an attraction alternative.
You can set up a merchant account with one of many companies offering this service. You will pay additional fees per transaction, so factor this into your decision.
Non-profits
If you are a 501(c)(3) non-profit you MAY find that certain companies offer you discounted rates and fees. Google Checkout for instance initially offered some very attractive concessions. Check with each provider before deciding the best approach - and be aware that their terms of service may change on you over time.
*inclusion of the logos of these companies is not meant to convey the impression that they endorse or recommend in any way the services of Blue Larch LLC