Tell Me Again Why I Can’t Process Credit Cards Directly
If a customer wants to pay for a product or service, all they have to do is swipe their card. It’s seems pretty straightforward, at least for the customer. But what about the vendor? If he or she has five different customers with five different cards, it can get confusing. That doesn’t even count the customers that pay by cash and check.
Charge.com has a system that merges all these systems, making life easier all round. It handles checks, credit cards, and debit cards, both online and in person. Still, are there other reasons why it’s a bad idea to process cards directly?
Customers are worried about security
As more and more customers transact in plastic, fraudsters become increasingly sophisticated. One of the more popular tactics is to clone a website and use it to collect customer information. Another common trick is to install a key-logger that can collect credit card details and passwords.
While individual vendor websites make efforts to prevent this kind of fraud, they often don’t have the capacity to secure them completely. But Charge.com uses military grade encryption and is fully compliant with Payment Card Industry (PCI) specifications, making it far more secure than trying to process a card directly.
It costs more to integrate cards on your website
Websites contain a lot of data, but at their most basic, they carry plain text. Any additional features require further programming. A website needs plug-ins and integration to display video, link to social media, and connect with payment services. These integrations can be quite pricey, and many times, a vendor needs more than one. Vendors would need individual systems to process American Express, MasterCard, Visa, and other cards.
They would need another system for checks. If the vendor has a physical shop in addition to their virtual one, they need one more system for cash payments. It’s far easier for both vendors and customers if a centralized system like Charge.com is used for processing payments. Charge.com is especially good because so many of its features are free, leading to massive savings for vendors.
Card issuers don’t deal directly with merchants
A credit or debit card links a customer to his or her bank account. It’s a direct transaction where cash leaves the bank or credit source and goes to the vendor. However, these companies don’t usually have a similar arrangement with vendors. They could in theory, but it would be very labor intensive and would not fit their business model.
For this reason, credit and debit card providers general deal with verified third-party companies like Charge.com. They handle the customer interface and ensure that the entire card system is secured on all sides. This is especially important because there’s no customer guarantee when entering card details on an individual website. Charge.com uses its resources to create this guarantee, making it a safer option than a standard SSL website.
To avoid the risk of direct card processing, sign up today by calling Charge.com toll-free at 1-888-924-2743 or visit their website at www.charge.com for more information.