E Commerce FAQ.
- What is eCommerce?
- Why would I want to sell products or services through
my website?
- What do I need to do to begin using my website for
eCommerce?
- What is SSL?
Electronic commerce or ecommerce is a buzz word used to describe the act of selling products or services
on the web.
With the total amount of money expected to be spent online in the year 2004
exceeding 1.5 trillion*, it's easy to see why eCommerce is attractive to
many businesses. Another attractive aspect of selling through a web-based
store is that, in most cases, this "virtual" store will have a lower overhead
than a conventional business.
*eCommerce statistics from epaynews.com
To securely and successfully sell products or services online you'll need:
- a website
- a merchant account (to process credit cards)
- a secure method for collecting data (such as credit card numbers)
- a means for customers for collect products (i.e. a "shopping cart")
Of course, some of the items in the list are not "needed". For instance,
you could have a web-based store and not take credit card numbers. However,
that wouldn't be wise as most customers will want to pay with a credit card.
And of course this list does not include things like patience, time etc.
Also note that this list does not include a reference to a third-party
credit card processing/verification service. The truth is, unless you're
doing an incredible amount of business, the cost associated with these kinds
of services is not justifiable. Most of our customers process their credit
cards manually.
Conveniently, Internet Connection's website hosting solution includes
much of what you'll need for your eCommerce endeavor:
netShop - for
those utilizing Unix-based webservers. Check
out more netShop info and the demo.
Our SSL service enables you to safely accept credit
card numbers and other critical data through your site.
SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer. SSL allows important information, such
as credit card numbers, to be encrypted and therefore transferred securely
via the web.
View
more information on our SSL system.
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