E-commerce Shopping Carts Digital Cert. Merchants

E-commerce Shopping Carts Digital Cert. Merchants

What is E-commerce? In its simplest form ecommerce is the buying and selling of products and services by businesses and consumers over the Internet. People use the term "ecommerce" to describe encrypted payments on the Internet. Sometimes these transactions include the real-time transfer of funds from buyer to seller and sometimes this is handled manually through an eft-pos terminal once a secure order is received by the merchant. Internet sales are increasing rapidly as consumers take advantage of lower prices offer by wholesalers retailing their products. This trend is set to strengthen as web sites address consumer security and privacy concerns. What are the benefits of using e-commerce? Reduced costs by reducing labour, reduced paper work, reduced errors in keying in data, reduce post costs Reduced time. Shorter lead times for payment and return on investment in advertising, faster delivery of product Flexibility with efficiency. The ability to handle complex situations, product ranges and customer profiles without the situation becoming unmanageable. Improve relationships with trading partners. Improved communication between trading partners leads to enhanced long-term relationships. Lock in Customers. The closer you are to your customer and the more you work with them to change from normal business practices to best practice e-commerce the harder it is for a competitor to upset your customer relationship. New Markets. The Internet has the potential to expand your business into wider geographical locations.

What is a digital certificate? E-commerce has flourished because of the ability to perform secure transactions online using the proper tools. These tools are public key encryption and digital certificates. Public key encryption uses SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) to encrypt all data between the customer's computer and the e-commerce website. Information is sent in encrypted form to the site using the site's public key. Upon receiving the information, the site uses its private key to decrypt the information. This is called a key pair. Interlopers that might capture data en route will find it unreadable. The problem, however, is that anyone can create a website and key pair using a name that doesn't belong to them? This is where digital certificates come in. Digital certificates are trusted ID cards in electronic form that bind a website's public encryption key to their identity for purposes of public trust. Digital certificates are issued by an independent, recognized and mutually trusted third party that guarantees that the website operating is who it claims to be. This third party is known as a Certification Authority (CA). Without digital certificates, the public has little assurance as to the legitimacy of any particular website.

A digital certificate contains an entity's name, address, serial number, public key, expiration date and digital signature, among other information. When a Web browser like Firefox, Netscape or Internet Explorer makes a secure connection, the digital certificate is automatically turned over for review. The browser checks it for anomalies or problems, and pops up an alert if any are found. When digital certificates are in order, the browser completes secure connections without interruption. Though rare, there have been cases of phishing scams duplicating a website and 'hijacking' the site's digital certificate to fool customers into giving up personal information. These scams involved redirecting the customer to the real site for authentication, then bringing them back to the duped website. Other phishing scams use self-signed digital certificates to dispose of the trusted third party or Certificate Authority altogether. The issuer of the digital certificate and the signer are one in the same. A browser will alert in this case, but most users click through anyway, not understanding the difference. Digital certificates play an integral role in keeping online commerce safe. If your browser alerts you to a problem with a digital certificate, you are well-advised not to click through. Instead, call the business using a telephone number from your statements or phone book, and inquire as to the problem. Not all Certificate Authorities are equal. Some CAs is newer and less well known. Two examples of highly trusted CAs are VeriSign and Thawte. If your browser does not recognize a Certificate Authority, it will alert you.

What is a secure server or SSL? A server which is capable of identifying itself authoritatively to a browser. The server allows for encrypted communications between the WWW server and browser over the Internet. A secure WWW server is a type of WWW server that is capable of communicating over the Internet with a WWW browser in a secure manner. This type of server is also called an 'SSL server' (for those inquiring minds who want to know, SSL stands for "Secure Sockets Layer"). Normally, the contents of any HTML document, image file, sound file, HTML form, or password entry dialog window are communicated between the WWW server and browser 'in the clear'. This type of transmission is not secure because no attempt is made by the browser to verify (authenticate) the identity of the server specified in the URL. In addition, no attempt is made by the browser or the server to encrypt or encode the information to make it useless to anyone 'eavesdropping' on the transmission. A secure WWW server allows a more secure connection to the browser because the browser can trust that it is communicating with the server that was specified in the URL and because all communications between the browser and the server will be encrypted.

I want to receive payments online, how? Once you decide which products you are planning to sell on the Internet, and what type of web store you are going to use in order to display your products, next vital decision that you have to take is to figure out how your customers are going to pay you. Whatever you plan to sell online, accepting credit card transaction is a must! A full 90 percent of all online sales occur through credit card payments. There are two ways you can add e-commerce capabilities to your website: 1. Having your own merchant account 2. Using third party processors What is a merchant account? A merchant account is a special kind of bank account where funds received from credit card transactions are first routed to the special account and held there before being remitted to your business account. You as an online merchant will need an account called "Card Not Present Merchant Account". Having the merchant account is, actually, the first step in processing credit cards online. You will also need a payment gateway. A payment gateway is a service provided by billing processor which allows real time authorization of online transactions. The payment gateway you choose to work with has to be compatible with your shopping cart. All payment gateway providers have their own merchant solutions. Most banks, today, work with partner payment gateway providers and are fully capable of furnishing with a merchant solution. If you are just starting an online business and you don't think that your sales will generate more than a thousand dollars a month, you will be better of with a third party processor. However, once your sales become a few thousand you will save a bundle by switching to a merchant account.

What is PayPal and what will it do for my business? PayPal is a secure payment system that gives you access to more than 3 million online shoppers in Australia. You'll receive payments instantly and be protected against online fraud. Whether your business is small or an ecommerce giant, you sell locally or internationally, there are so many great reasons to make PayPal your answer to selling, buying and paying online. Speed and security We help you make it easier for customers to shop online, knowing their details and money are always safe and secure. Help grow your business Expand your business worldwide without the overheads. Attract more customers with safer, easier, global online shopping. Fraud protection Our six 'great walls' of fraud protection are just part of the reason millions of people and businesses feel safer with PayPal. PCI compliance To accept credit cards online you need to become PCI compliant. PayPal already is so, as our customer, you will be too. No set-up fees You only pay a small fee for each commercial payment that you receive. The fee (merchant rate) is tiered according to your monthly sales volume. * Excluding Website Payments Pro - Hosted Solution where a monthly fee applies.

Transparent fees As a business customer you have access to special merchant rates. You could pay as little as 1.1% + $0.30 AUD for each transaction. (Conditions apply, see chart below.) Monthly sales with PayPal Fees for receiving domestic payments $150,000 AUD and over 1.1% + $0.30 AUD $15,000.01 - $150,000 AUD 1.5% + $0.30 AUD $5,000.01 - $15,000 AUD 2.0% + $0.30 AUD $0.01 - $5,000 AUD 2.4% + $0.30 AUD

I want to see some examples of shops online?

What features can I have in my online store? Catalog Orders Shipping Unlimited categories, subcategories and products Product customers evaluations and comments Products and accessories packs Quantity discounts Wishlist Customizable products (picture, text ) Customizable orders statuses Returns management Real time consultation of created carts PDF invoices, slips and delivery slips Special offers (promotions, coupons) Configurable minimum order amount Unlimited carriers and destinations Email notifications for delivery statuses (configurable) Package monitoring via package number Ability to offer delivery fees Delivery fees billing by price or weight Translations English, French, Spanish Languages packs import-export from the Back- Office 41 languages Customers Payment Ability to create customers groups Customers follow up (forsaken carts) Loyalty system (points) Customer referral program Newsletter opt-in Created carts back up Unlimited payment means (extensions available on addons.prestashop.com) Payment means filtering per currency, country or customers groups (pre-configured)paypal Google Checkout module Statistics Online visitors Visits and visitors Orders and sales Catalog statistics, conversion rate per categories Products statistics Complete integration with Google Analytics Localization Unlimited currencies Exchange rates synchronization Unlimited taxes Timezone SEO SEO optimized Meta tags (meta title, keywords ) management Google Sitemap Security Secure Back-Office access (login and password) SSL compatibility PCI DSS compliant Administration Customizable Back-Office Multiple users management, and permissions (ACL) Maintenance mode WYSIWYG text editor Affiliation program Ability to add complementary modules SMS alerts (inventory, new order ) Modular Front-Office Easy template customization Tips on products pages: last purchase date or addition in cart Featured products on the homepage Ability to insert ads Ability to integrate Google AdSense Multi recipient contact form

How do I get started with my business? Visit our website at www.123internet.com.au, click and fill out our online quote which is located on most pages through-out our site and we will get back to you asap with a tailored made quote that will not only suit your business situation but your budget as well. I feel safe that I am shopping on a safe and secure e-commerce website, that s why I am smiling