Ashop is directly integrated with most major banks and ecommerce gateways along with many others. Please click the link above to see a full list of supported banks and gateways.
There is a distinct advantage when using Ashop for your online store. Our direct integration to banks will avoid the additional charges incurred when using an ecommerce gateway as a bridge between most shopping carts and the bank for communication, saving you hundreds of dollars!
There are two ways in which to achieve credit card transactions for your shopping cart;
1. Merchant Accounts and Ecommerce Gateways
There are two potential actions in setting up credit card facilities for your shopping cart through a bank. You will need to apply for a Merchant Account and possibly a Payment Gateway depending on the services you need.
a) What is a Merchant Account?
In order to accept credit card payments for your online store, you are required to apply for a merchant account. This is done through a bank of your choice and generally takes up to ten working days. A merchant account will give you the ability to receive credit card payments and deliver the money into your bank account.
b) What is an Ecommerce Payment Gateway?
A final option in setting up a merchant account to accept online payment is the ecommerce gateway.
A gateway will run additional checks on credit cards and pass the details in the required format to the bank to authorize and validate credit card payments. These gateways provide a walkway from your shopping carts checkout to a different modem channel to check the credit card status in real-time, a very complicated process if you were to do it on your own from step one. Please ask a representative before creating an account with a gateway since it may not be required.
2. Third Party Payment Processors
A third party payment processor is an independent company which can process your credit card payments without a merchant account and gateway. They cut out the need to deal with a bank. Some examples of third party companies are PayPal and WorldPay. These are all supported by Ashop shopping carts.
PayPal has a complete and fully certified integration with Ashop with access to affiliate mass pay directly from your admin panel without logging into PayPal. You also have the option of using PayPal’s standard checkout, express checkout or website payments direct (seamless integration for US and UK customers only at this time)
You will save money on set up and monthly fees with PayPal, but your transaction fees can sometimes be a fraction higher than with a merchant account, generally only by less than 0.5%, however Worldpay may be up to 2% higher. The third party will accept most major card types and you will receive the funds in their trust account or a nominated account within one to two day's on average.
Fees: An example: Set up Fees from $0 plus transaction fees from 2.2%
Integration with Ashop shopping cart software
Ashop shopping cart software is compatible with both your Merchant account and third party payment processors. If you choose to use PayPal or WorldPay, the end result will generally lower costs if your sale volume is low (1-10 sales/day). We suggest if you are looking to grow your company quickly, to have both a merchant account and third party processor set up, this will give your customers a good selection when purchasing.
