laughingbird
1st June 2007, 03:43 PM
Back in 1999, when I began creating The Logo Creator, there were very few ways of collecting payment from online customers.
I went directly to Visa, Mastercard and American Express and set up accounts with each one.
All three gave me different methods of entering credit card information. I had to place each purchase ... manually ... into a software application ( that I think I remember purchasing for $400). Each night, we had to submit the credit card information ... over a dial up connection! 56k I think it was... then each morning, I'd get an eMail with the cards that went through.
Then I'd send the software to the customer.
This online commerce stuff was new back then, so collecting credit cards without an official signature was very tricky.
It was very easy for the end customer to reverse the charges, or provide stolen Credit Cards.
They (the credit card companies) collected 3 to 4% of each transaction. So not only did I loose the sale if the customer reversed the charges, I'd loose the transaction fees, the bank fees and, of course, the actual sale.
:image12:
It was nutts I tells ya!
DigitalRiver saves the day
So I went out online to look for a better way. I used Yahoo I remember. Google wasn't invented yet!
I found a company called DigitalRiver (http://www.digitalriver.com). I looked up their number and gave them a call.
...I've been 110% happy with them ever since.
They made it easy to collect any form of currency, in any language.
Sure, they take 20% of sales, but this is WELL worth not having the hassles I mention above!
My initial set up fee with them was $2,000.
(this was 7 years ago. This fee might have changed I have no idea. So don't hold this against them if you decide to take up their services). $2,000 back then was a lump of money. But I took a chance and paid them. And it paid off.
They've not only provided me with eCommerce, but I've got many connections to the software world through them. They handle over 30,000 other vendors including Adobe and Microsoft. I've been honored to meet people at of some companies I really admire. Symantec, Macromedia, Adobe, and online shops like PhotoOjbects.net and Clipart.com.
Each year (twice a year), DigitalRiver holds a Summit where we all get together and talk about software, sales and how to market everything. I find this invaluable. The connections at these summits are more than worth the trips.
I'll stop sounding like a commercial for them now.
... But if you're selling anything online, anything that can be purchased and downloaded through the web, give them a shout.
I went directly to Visa, Mastercard and American Express and set up accounts with each one.
All three gave me different methods of entering credit card information. I had to place each purchase ... manually ... into a software application ( that I think I remember purchasing for $400). Each night, we had to submit the credit card information ... over a dial up connection! 56k I think it was... then each morning, I'd get an eMail with the cards that went through.
Then I'd send the software to the customer.
This online commerce stuff was new back then, so collecting credit cards without an official signature was very tricky.
It was very easy for the end customer to reverse the charges, or provide stolen Credit Cards.
They (the credit card companies) collected 3 to 4% of each transaction. So not only did I loose the sale if the customer reversed the charges, I'd loose the transaction fees, the bank fees and, of course, the actual sale.
:image12:
It was nutts I tells ya!
DigitalRiver saves the day
So I went out online to look for a better way. I used Yahoo I remember. Google wasn't invented yet!
I found a company called DigitalRiver (http://www.digitalriver.com). I looked up their number and gave them a call.
...I've been 110% happy with them ever since.
They made it easy to collect any form of currency, in any language.
Sure, they take 20% of sales, but this is WELL worth not having the hassles I mention above!
My initial set up fee with them was $2,000.
(this was 7 years ago. This fee might have changed I have no idea. So don't hold this against them if you decide to take up their services). $2,000 back then was a lump of money. But I took a chance and paid them. And it paid off.
They've not only provided me with eCommerce, but I've got many connections to the software world through them. They handle over 30,000 other vendors including Adobe and Microsoft. I've been honored to meet people at of some companies I really admire. Symantec, Macromedia, Adobe, and online shops like PhotoOjbects.net and Clipart.com.
Each year (twice a year), DigitalRiver holds a Summit where we all get together and talk about software, sales and how to market everything. I find this invaluable. The connections at these summits are more than worth the trips.
I'll stop sounding like a commercial for them now.
... But if you're selling anything online, anything that can be purchased and downloaded through the web, give them a shout.