E-commerce Payment Provider

I chose to look into godaddy.com because of the numerous commercials I see during the year and the Superbowl. They offer 3 different types of merchant accounts that come with payment provider options, they are partnered with Frontstream Payments and Chase Paymentech.

What type of product you're selling will determine what type of Merchant Account you require. A standard merchant account covers most items being sold but if you will need a Specialty Merchant Account of you are selling the following items:

• Adult Products *
• Credit Repair *
• Dating / Relationship Services *
• Debt Consolidation *
• Discount Health Cards
• Firearms *
• Loan Modification *
• Pharmaceuticals (standard pharmacy, not Viagra oriented)
• Voice Over IP Services *

The price difference is dramatic. For a standard account it is a $59.99 application fee, a $15.00 monthly fee along with a $0.20 per-transaction fee. For a specialty account it is a $199.99 application fee, a $20.00 monthly fee with a $0.30 per-transaction fee. If you are really planning on your website becoming popular and you require a presence overseas they can add an International Merchant Account. The application fee for that is $699.99, a $20.00 monthly fee along with a $0.40 per-transaction fee. They do offer a per-transaction fee discount for Canada, it is reduced to $0.24.

After reading GoDaddy's options I would make sure my product qualified for the Standard Account. I am going to assume my product is not something that would go global so I won't even consider the international account. $700 up front is a lot to pay for a start-up e-commerce website.

Chase and Frontstream both offer flexible payment options. You can use the standard credit/debit card but they also work with PayPal and Bill Me Later. The more flexible your payment options the better your sales will become. Limiting payment options to only debit and credit cards could hamper your start-up website.

I found GoDaddy's website pretty easy to navigate and they have a ton of options to choose from for a start-up e-commerce website. You will need to take your time to read through and really understand what they offer so you can make the best decision possible for your new e-commerce business.

Bob