 Shopping Cart Classification:
Traditional CGI Shopping Cart.
CGI/Cookie Shopping Cart.
Java Applet-Based Shopping Cart.
JavaScript/Cookie Shopping Cart.
Shopping Carts and Gateways:
Gateways give shopping carts the ability to connect and securely process credit card orders in real-time. Not all shopping carts are created equal. Make sure that your merchant account is supported by the cart you select; almost all carts support the larger online payment processing companies.
Shopping carts and Security:
Please, only buy a shopping cart if it supports SSL (secure socket layer), with 128-bit encryption. As an online storefront, remember that you are responsible for the safe transfer of sensitive information (credit card and bank account information) that is processed through your store.
If any of the sensitive information is accessible (stolen) from your website, you could be liable. Be sure that you're purchasing a secure shopping cart solution. Ask the creator's of the shopping cart what they do specifically to protect the secure transfer of
sensitive information.
Shopping carts and Style Compatibility:
Can you customize your shopping cart to look like your website? There needs to be a seamless transition between your website and your shopping storefront or your customers might get hesitant in purchasing your products. There should be similar colors and style layout to look professional and believable.
Alternatives to shopping carts:
Why wouldn't you want a shopping cart on a site? When you sell only one product or you sell services indirectly from your site - auctions, e-mail orders and printable forms. Let's take a look at each one of them here.
Auctions:
Auctions provide an easy way to sell your products without using a shopping cart in your site. Auction sites can be used to sell more than one product at a time. These sites would also help boost traffic towards your products.
Major Auctions:
eBay, ubid and StormPay
Purchase forms:
Your website will have a form that your customers can fill out and submit to you. This form will capture all the details of the order. Users will send payments through postal service or phone or fax. This may not be a feasible and convenient option because users will have to print out the form and mail it to you. But, if you are planning to use such a form, it would help if the form were short, readable and easy to fill.
See our order form
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