E-commerce

Thinking of selling goods and services on-line?

E-commerce is the process of selling goods and services on-line. If you have an established business and demand for your goods and services then e-commerce is the most effective way to automate your business - if set-up correctly.

Selling on-line allows your customers to login and purchase your goods and services quickly and easily.
Payment methods are generally in the form of credit card transactions. The order details are then emailed for processing. There is no human intervention therefore costs are reduced.

If you wish to embark on an e-commerce driven website then do some research. Find out what your competitors are doing and how long it's going to take to set-up.

Whether buying groceries on-line or ordering a taxi, your customers will be using the Internet to buy day- to- day goods.

Considerations include:

	Automate as much of your system as you can
	Set-up fees include Secure Server, merchant facilities, development and testing
	Hackers

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Hackers

A hacker entering into an e-commerce enabled site can be fatal, costing you money! It is imperative that you understand your obligations when you take on a package.

One way to avoid losing money through hackers is to send out an order summary or invoice by email to the purchaser telling them all about their purchase. If a hacker is trying to defraud you then the email may deter them. If a credit card is stolen then the email will ensure that you can help the police trace the fraudster.

ANZ eGate

We have forged close links with ANZ eGate. eGate has an excellent user interface that allows merchants to check on-line purchases and refunds it also has an excellent test facility. ANZ only allows certain companies to use their system.

In our experience eGate has proven to be quick but costly for small to medium businesses.

We rate eGate 7/10

National Bank / St. George Bank / Net Registry

These two big banking corporations have joined forces and developed a system with Net Registry. Together they offer a system that can be used by everyone, you don't even have to be a customer of the banks. You simply need to apply to St. George for a merchant account and when accepted you can easily progress and set-up your system.

One drawback is that if you host your website outside of Net Registry then there are noticeable delays in processing. This is unavoidable and can be annoying to the user so for the best results you should host your website with Net Registry.

We use this system ourselves and rate it 7/10 - This would be a lot higher if the system had a test facility.

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