Choosing an Offshore Merchant Account Provider

The rapid expansion of the internet and mobile devices has helped fuel the growth of global ecommerce. Global ecommerce sales are expected to rise to over $3.578 trillion by 2019. By taking your online store global, you can expand your reach and increase sales to ultimately grow your business. In order to sell products internationally, you'll need an international merchant account. Here's what to look for in an offshore merchant account provider: 

Multi-Currency Processing 

In order to expand into new markets, you need to be able to accept the local currency. There are 180 currencies recognized as legal tender by the United Nations. Even if you're just expanding your product offerings to a few additional countries or territories, you should choose an offshore merchant account that's capable of accepting most of these currencies. As your business continues to grow, this will enable you to sell your products in emerging markets. 

Competitive Pricing

Are the merchant account provider's fees fair and reasonable? Make sure you understand the provider's rate structure prior to picking a service. While some online merchant account providers require a flat monthly rate, others base their fees on volumes and transaction values. The latter can be more beneficial, as the amount you pay will directly relate to revenue and how much you sell. Therefore, you won't be losing money in slower months.

Customer Service 

In case you have questions or experience issues with your account, you need an international merchant account provider that offers reliable 24-hour support.

3 Online Payment Solutions That Make Your Business (and Your Customers) More Secure

These days there are lots of easy solutions for taking online payments. But what if you want to ensure the highest level of security possible—both for you, and for your customers? Here are three of the most impressively security-focused online payment solutions we’ve seen.

1. To Prevent Fraudulent Transactions 

Any merchant knows that fraudulent transactions are a headache. In fact, they’re more than that—they may be the single biggest downside of the otherwise bullish world of online commerce. When a thief or scammer uses a card number to make a fraudulent purchase from your company, it will result in a chargeback/refund, the loss of shipping/fulfillment expenses, and potentially the loss of the merchandise itself. In other words, the thieves who steal from your customers are stealing from you too. Let’s look at how you can stop them.

One online payment solution we really like is payer authentication using the “3-D Secure” authentication process. This is a simple add-on service that can be used on its own or as part of an online payment processing platform. The system “speaks” to secure data verification protocols from the Card Association, Visa and MasterCard, using additional data about the card account to verify that it is the authorized payer before the transaction is made. This means you can simply decline fraudulent transactions—instantly and automatically—without losing a penny.

2. To Securely Take Phone, Mail, Email and Fax Orders

There are lots of ways to potentially process credit card orders that come in through mail, fax or over the phone. But most of them involve adding extra software to your computer, and many of them have security holes. Not anymore. One of our favorite payment solutions is to use a “virtual terminal.” Instead of clunky software, your terminal is a simple, secure web page where you process credit card orders. You can enter the card number as easily as if you’re making a Paypal payment. Best of all, each of your staff members gets their own secure login and password and all transactions/sales are logged for you to see.

3. To Keep Credit Card Information Secure Online 

What if you want to save your customers’ credit card information for them, but don’t want the risk of holding that data? That’s where a solution called “tokenization” comes in. With tokenization, you never touch your customers’ sensitive data. Instead, you’re given an encrypted “token” that allows you to complete transactions for them, without carrying a database full of credit card numbers. The token cannot be cracked mathematically and is stored with your payment processor, not with you.