E-Commerce Gateways

[Chatmaster]

I see they still have the card and if you compare costs it is not that bad,you can check it out here you will note that SA are one of the few countries on their list that allows for the use of the card.

[eitai2001]

Thanks for the info.
I actually have been using EFT since May ... my problem arises that by not accepting credit cards, I'm losing about 40-50% of customers, or maybe even more ... due to them not wanting to pay EFT or mostly because purchases online are usually impulsive ... if you don't get the money there and then ... there is a good chance you won't make the sale.
May I ask which bank you approached to lower your merchant fees and get the credit card facilities?

[Karenwhe]

We work with ABSA (the red bank ). But I do know that others are negotiable too, it just depends who you land on.

Edited to add: It is suggested that you approach the bank you work with the most. They take into account how much business you do with them (also don't forget to remind them that). If I was you I would try there, and if it doesn't work I would move on to another bank.

[Chatmaster]

I use FNB and they are pretty much the best option imo. I do not have a particularly good relationship with ABSA and Nedbank due to my ill experiences with them on service delivery in the past. I also have one business account with Std Bank but I prefer FNB atm.

I have another question...
Why not make use of Setcom but offer the customer 2 payment methods? One is Creditcard through Setcom and the other is EFT at a discounted rate. In other words increase your pricing or charge a delivery/shipping fee but if you pay via EFT you get a discount and do not have to pay a delivery or shipping fee. So if the customer decides to pay via Credit card you cover your costs?

[Karenwhe]

Last I checked you were not allowed to discount for EFT or vice versa, increase price for Credit Card. Maybe I am wrong, but there used to be some rules in regards to this. I am not sure what is going on now, maybe that has changed, or I was given the wrong the advise at that time.

Yes ABSA and Nedbank were not good with service. Imho still are not, the only reason we use them is because we managed with a huge amount of effort to create some relationships that make life easy.

[Chatmaster]

Last I checked you were not allowed to discount for EFT or vice versa, increase price for Credit Card. Maybe I am wrong, but there used to be some rules in regards to this. I am not sure what is going on now, maybe that has changed, or I was given the wrong the advise at that time.

Karen to be honest, I have no idea if there is such legislation. It is good you are highlighting it though because in mind, it doesn't make sense. If one payment method is more expensive than the other, surely you can charge a admin, delivery or shipping fee for both, but discount the cheaper one as incentive to the consumer for using it?

I would like to know for a fact though, maybe someone more qualified than me can shed some light on it.

[eitai2001]

I know it is against VISA and Mastercards T&C to charge extra for credit cards, but there is a loophole that you can have a cash discount. The problem is that if I charge extra with a cash discount, my prices advertised on the comparison search engines will be the higher prices and will make me look expensive. I think I will avoid credit cards for a while longer. Also ... I don't want to use someone like Setcom unless I know I can get the full amount within 2 days are so ... because I need the cash to buy stock.

[Chatmaster]

I fully understand your dilema eitai2001. I really hope that a solutions to your issue are found soon. Just a question how badly is the fluctuation in purchase prices for your products? I understood that the prices changes very frequently.

[eitai2001]

Fluctuation is a big problem ... I have to update prices weekly ... which is a pain ... I've created a makro that shows me what has changed since the last pricelist (New, Discontinued, Price Changes) ... but its not flawless as it works according to model numbers ... and if those change, it becomes a pain. But now with the rand dollar ... its gonna be a mission, cause PC pricing is based upon Rand Dollar.

[daveob]

Alternate Card Processing

I have been using the services of NetCash ( www.netcash.co.za ) based in Cape Town for about the last 5 years to process our monthly debit order subscriptions. Never a payment problem and their online client admin area works great.

They recently introduced a Credit Card gateway for Visa and Mastercard, with no monthly fees and only 5% ( + R1 ) per transaction.

If you meet their account criteria, it can be a great option.

We have already have set up an online payment option on our site ( uses PHP ) and would be willing to share the php code if you require it.

[Chatmaster]

Sounds very interesting thanks daveob!

[SilverNodashi]

I can also vouch for Netcash, their products & support is good, and prices are low (lower than Iveri & Setcom). You also don't need a Merchant account, and with CC payments you can get the money within a day or 2, depending on who you bank with.

I'd suggest, to make provision with the CC costs, setup your price like you want them, and give cash discount on EFT / bank deposits. If you use something like ZenCart as a shopping cart, this can quickly be setup as an automated thing

[Karenwhe]

Hi Chatmaster,

I am investigating the Netteller option now, just have a few more questions:

How do you repatriate the money? (I mean charges from foreign currencies) That would add to Nettellers costs . (When we do business with the US, we get charged large amounts of money to convert foreign currency to rands and fees.)

How do you transfer your money to your business account without the card thingy. That will also incur charges I assume

Any more information about Netteller would be helpful.

Thanks,
Karen

[Chatmaster]

I used Neteller for an affiliate account and these questions is way above my head. None of the money went through a business account so I simply used the bank card to draw the funds. Perhaps a good idea to ask these questions to their merchant department.

I did however do a search for Currency exchange but there is no exact answers in terms of costs. They always seemed to be very responsive when we contacted them so give that a go.

[Karenwhe]

Cool stuff. Thanks. I will ask and post here if I get an definitive answers. In case anyone else needs the answers.