If you're selling online, how can you get paid in the easiest way? Authorize.Net, a service founded in 1996 and currently used by more than 240,000 merchants, offers easy online payment processing as well as many valued-added services for small businesses (typically $3 million or less in annual sales).

Digital equivalent of a credit card swipe machine
In order to sell your goods and services online today, it's practically a must that you accept payment electronically. Authorize.Net allows you to do this through your website.

It can also act as a virtual terminal for businesses without a website, allowing you to log into a secure merchant center, input your customers' information, and process their payments. For example, a dentist's office can accept patients' payments by credit card without the cost of an in-office terminal.

And with its eCheck.Net, you can get paid by a direct transfer from a customer's consumer or corporate bank account - through your website or a virtual terminal.

How online processing works
When your customer wants to buy from you on your website and clicks on your "pay now" or equivalent button, Authorize.Net handles the transaction of data in just two to three seconds. It integrates with your site, so the customer never leaves your site to make a payment, and payment approval is made seamlessly.

You can receive your money in a day or two through an automatic transfer to your bank account (compared with three or five days using PayPal or up to five days with Google Checkout, both of which require a request for the transfer of funds). Your funds are held in an FDIC-insured account until transfer, so there's never any risk of loss.

In addition to your Authorize.Net Payment Gateway account, you'll need to set up a merchant account through a merchant service provider. Authorize.Net provides a directory of resellers who can provide a merchant account if you need one.

You can customize your shopping cart and payment form to reflect your brand. In essence, the customer is not aware that Authorize.Net is processing his or her payment. The customer does not have to create a separate account as with PayPal and Google Checkout; the customer simply uses his or her own credit card for payment.

Inevitably questions may arise regarding your Authorize.Net account or integration. Authorize.Net customer support can be contacted through a variety of channels, including a toll-free number, on online chat, or a web form email. In contrast, PayPal limits most customer support inquiries to email.

Value added services
To optimize your online activities and create consumer confidence, you can take advantage of various features, including:

• Fraud detection - Authorize.Net's Advanced Fraud Detection Suite is a collection of filters and tools to help verify customer information and avoid fraud (this cuts back on chargeback fees).
• Recurring billing - a special service, called Automated Recurring Billing, together with its Customer Information Manager, enables you to bill automatically every month, quarter, year or any other fixed period. The service stores your customer payment information securely, saving you the time and effort to input this information every pay period. For example, if you offer monthly subscription services, this feature enables you to bill automatically every month without further action on your part.
• Verified merchant seal - the Authorize.Net seal shows customers that their online payment is secure and trustworthy. The seal is free.

Help
Authorize.Net provides a wealth of information to help you with merchant processing. There are a number of videos on topics, explaining such problems as "why a transaction was declined" and "how to add additional users to your account."

Cost
There's a $99 one-time setup fee, a monthly fee of $20, and a 10¢ per transaction charge. You can get started in a matter of minutes. Create an account at www.authorize.net/signupnow or call 1-888-323-4289, complete an application, and you're good to go.