1. Cash - payment is given in person, either before or upon delivery of product or service.

2. Bank deposit / Debit - payment is deposited to the merchant's bank account, deducted from the buyer's account. Afterwards, the product or service gets delivered. Examples are:
a. Kaban Internet Payment Solution (http://www.payplus.com.ph)
b. 1 Time Payment (http://www.my1time.com)
c. UnionBank The Port (http://www.theportph.com)

3. Remittance service - for overseas buyers who don't have a credit card or sufficient credit limit, another option is to allow them to pay through a remittance service. Examples are:
a. Western Union (http://www.westernunion.com)
b. MoneyGram (http://www.moneygram.com)
c. YesPinoy (http://www.yespinoy.com)
d. Xoom (http://www.xoom.com)

4. Credit card - using traditional credit card to pay for products and services online.
a. CCNow (http://www.ccnow.com)
b. WebsiteWizard (http://www.websitewizard.com)
c. YesPayments (http://www.yespayments.com.ph)
d. Asia Pacific E-Serv Corporation (http://www.aspaconline.com)
e. PayEasy (http://www.payeasy.ph)
f. Your One Stop Shopping Network (http://www.yossn.com/vendors)
g.Payment Processing Corporation (http://www.paymentprocessing.com.ph)
h.Paypal

5. Mobile phone payment - if available in your country and the product is available in small amount denomination, funds can be transferred through this medium.
a. PayFree (http://www.payfree.com.ph)
b. WorldCash (http://www.worldcashdirect.com)
c. Globe G-Cash (http://www.globe.com.ph)
d. Smart Padala (http://www.smart.com.ph)

Accepting credit card payment
There are so many ways on how entrepreneurs can accept credit card payments online. The mechanics are becoming friendly and there's certainly one that can suit your needs.

The basics
Usually, the credit card acquirer in your country or an Internet Payment Service Provider (IPSP) accredits merchant to accept online payment.

To be able to accept payment, a website visitor visits a website such as http://www.digitalfilipino.com and access a product page. If interested, the visitor clicks on the order or buy button. Afterwards, the order gets redirected to the payment gateway and/or acquirer website to process it for approval. Also check with the credit card issuer for sufficient funds and, if approved, debit the respective credit card account.

Becoming an e-commerce merchant
There are a few steps that one has to take in becoming an e-commerce merchant. This can vary from very lenient to very strict. Such as:

• Business potential. Your business model, past and projected sales are taken into consideration.
• Trading and credit history. Some check the credit and trading history of the people behind the entity applying for a merchant account.
• Surety bond or deposit required. Some require merchants to post a fixed amount that is on hold for the duration of the relationship. This can also be used to cover for charge back, refunds, if necessary.

Depending on the number of products you're selling, think twice whether you wanted to sell your products directly or go through other channels. If you're still starting, you can join existing online sites and offer them commissions to sell your products. This way, you don't have to worry about the infrastructure immediately. This can be a good alternative until you're able to set up your own and you're satisfied with the response of the market.

Sites such as eBay.com and local shopping portals in your country (like MyAyala.com) may be a practical alternative for you while you're starting.

This payment acceptance aspect has to be taken seriously. If your business will be dependent on purchases made online, having this unresolved can break your business. At present, e-commerce has not fully taken off in many countries as small start-ups are having a hard time in integrating credit card payment in their website, because of the various restriction and minimum deposit requirements imposed by payment providers.

The potential is there. Conduct due diligence and continuous research to find the right payment gateway that suit your needs.

In the Philippines, here are some of the local payment gateways worth looking at: (check with the company for updated terms.)

YesPayments.com
YESpayments is an Internet credit card payment gateway that started in 2000. It accepts credit card transactions from sponsored merchants over the Internet and processes them through Acquiring Banks in Hong Kong and the Philippines.

Apart from the installation fee, the company charges a fixed weekly fee of 600 pesos, fixed transaction charge of 12 pesos, and a settlement charge from 4.5% to 8%.

YesPayments.com is Audited PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) compliant. It is a standard security requirement set by Credit Card Associations for all entities that are involved in accepting credit card data.

Equitable Card Network
For Equitable Card Network, the following are the application requirements for those who would like to become online merchants:

• Letter formalizing intention to apply for e-commerce affiliation
• Write up of proposed business model that includes:
• Business and contact information
• Objectives (short and long range plans)
• Information on existing merchant site (website url)
• Existing merchant accounts
• Strengths and opportunities
• Products and services offered on the site
• Technology and website structure
• Target market (b2b, b2c)
• Delivery information (order fulfillment)
• Marketing and promotion plans
• Proposed return, refund, and cancellation policies (terms and conditions of use of site)
• Projected transactions volume
• Certificate of registration (SEC/DTI)
• Articles of Incorporation/By-laws
• Company's latest audited financial statement

Equitable Card Network charges a one-time connection fee of US$400 and a hold out amount of 500 thousand pesos to be deposited at any preferred Equitable-PCI Bank Branch. There's a 5% fee on all transactions. The cost of digital certificate and encryption software will be to the merchant's account.

UnionBank The Port
UnionBank charges a one-time set up fee of 25,000 pesos with a monthly consumable fee of 5,000. It charges a 5% transaction fee on credit card payments. For debit cards like UnionBank, EON, and Megalink ATM payments, it charges 15 to 25 pesos per transaction.

1 Time Payment
1Time Payment looks into the business model of the merchant, especially on how it handles the fulfillment part of their business. It is very important that the merchants they accredit are able to handle fulfillment in a satisfactory manner.

Yehey PayPlus+
Yehey.com recently launched its PayPlus+ service that allows merchants to accept payments from BancNet ATM cardholders. Subscription fee for this service is 8,800 per month that includes exposure and mall space in Yehey.com's e-commerce channels (shopping, travel, money), the use of PayPlus+ in both Yehey.com and merchant site. First fifty transactions is free from charges. Afterwards, 20 pesos is charged.

PayPrompt.com (formerly Authoriz.Net)
PayPrompt.com is the first company to offer a payment gateway service to Filipino merchants back in 1999. It completed more than 75,000 online transactions to date. It accepts Visa and MasterCard payment. Diner's Club and American Express will be accepted soon.

It charges a one-time link up fee of $350.00 (US$) for peso transactions. A one-time link up fee of $500.00 (US$) for peso and/or dollar transactions. This covers the cost of setting up the merchant in PayPrompt.com's link to the bank's payments gateway.

The standard merchant discount of 6% applies in all transactions passing through PayPrompt.com. This discount rate covers bank charges and government tax.

PayPrompt.com requires the merchant to obtain a callable on demand payment guarantee bond. The bond can be obtained from the following insurance companies: FGU, Philam, Pioneer Insurance, Phoenix, and Philippine Charter Insurance. The merchant also has the option to make a security deposit for a minimum amount of Php 500,000 in any Citibank or Union Bank branch within the country.

There are a lot of considerations that you have to take once you start going to a full online business. From web site hosting, affiliate/consumer marketing, advertising, payment, fulfillment, legal responsibilities/liabilities. But the choices are very much available and friendly unlike before.

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