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For your business' sake, accept credit cards online!Ever gone to the mall and make an unplanned purchase? Maybe it was the "30% off" label in bold letters, a special offer ending that day, or the kids just won't leave you alone. Whatever the reason, we've all bought many things on impulse. This sort of behavior is not uncommon in ecommerce, and as a business person, you must take advantage of this oppurtunity to make a sale.Don't make your potential customers work With a $200.00 budget, I was looking for a unique gadget to give my cousin for his birthday last year. So I did my search and came across an ecommerce site offering just what I needed. The site had a nice layout, good product description, and complete contact information. On further inspection however, I noticed there was no "buy" or "add to cart" button. According to their "Frequently Asked Questions" page, I had to print a form, fill it up, and then fax it within their business hours. Because it was Saturday morning, I would have to wait until Monday morning to fax the form. Needless to say, I moved on. I also visited another ecommerce site that only accepted checks or money orders. Their "How to Order" page instructed me to print the order form, fill it up, and mail the form along with the payment which means more work, money for gas and postage, and even more waiting! For those two particular sites I visited, there is absolutely nothing wrong with accepting orders by fax or mail provided they were only options to complement what should be their primary method of accepting payments; i.e. processing credit cards online. Restricting visitors' options to turtle-slow order processing is really detrimental to their online business. It distracts potential customers from their "buying mode," thus allowing them to change their mind and ultimately move on to another ecommerce site--I know I did. Imagine how many more people left their sites that day, that week, and that year! All that possible repeat business and word-of-mouth advertising down the drain. Case in point: unless you are certain that you have no competition on the Web (very unlikely), it is in your business's best interest to accept credit cards online. It's just easier and more convenient for your customers, especially for impulse buyers. For the life of me, I don't understand why those two sites were making it difficult for people to hand them money. Don't they know their competitors are only clicks away? All times are GMT -4. The time now is 11:51 AM.
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