Accepting Credit Card Payments

Once you have a merchant account, you'll need a way to actually accept the credit card payments. Here, too, you have several options. If your home-based business has its own website, then setting up an Internet gateway with a shopping cart is one option. Incorporating a shopping cart (which includes the product catalog and purchasing interface) into your website provides the most convenience for your customers. It also results in fewer lost sales, since customers won’t be redirected to other sites for payment, during which time they may change their mind about their purchase decision.

If your home-based business doesn’t have a website, you still have several options for accepting credit cards. One is to use a virtual terminal, where you log on to a third-party website and enter your customers’ credit card information for payment authorization. Similarly, you can choose to use a service like Dial Pay where you use a touch-tone phone to enter the credit card information and receive immediate notification of sufficient funds. You can also purchase or lease the equipment needed to swipe credit cards in your own home if you usually interact with your clients in person.