IT DevWorks specializing in ecommerce sites and Authorize.net integration.

Page 2—How to Build Your Own Shopping Cart

On the previous page, we discussed the ecommerce payment process and digital certificates. Here, we talk about another key part of the ecommerce infrastructure: payment gateways.

Payment Gateways

Early on, you’ll need to pick a payment gateway. The payment gateway facilitates passing information securely between your website and your merchant account. Picking a gateway means balancing features and costs. When developing your own shopping cart, it’s especially important to assess the gateway's technical merits.

Does it have the features you need?
Does it offer good anti-fraud protection such as AVS?
Is it compatible with the platform you’ve chosen?
Is the gateway’s API robust and usable?

All the major gateways offer the basic functionality needed to process online payments. Each gateway offer different additional features: recurring billing, shipping calculation, tax calculation, etc. Obviously, you'll need to find a gateway that provides the features you need.

As a developer, you'll also want to examine the gateway's technical information to determine whether the gateway (or its solution providers) has an access method or library that works with your platform and provides an environment you are comfortable programming in.

Where to go

The major and most trusted gateways are: Authorize.net, Chase Paymentech (Orbital Gateway), Cybersource, LinkPoint, VeriSign (Owned by PayPal), Plug 'n Pay. The attached article contains a good review of some of the major gateways Six Payment Gateways Reviewed.

Information you’ll need

To sign up with a payment gateway, you’ll need information similar to that for security certificates:

Your business name and address
Your contact information, including e-mail

Cost

All of the major payment gateways charge a setup fee, ranging anywhere from $50-$400. Some charge a monthly fee ($20 - $60), some charge a fee per transaction (5 to 15 cents) and some do a combination. Most of the gateways also offer additional services or features, such as fraud protection, recurring billing, coupons, etc. and each of these features/services has their own price.

Next: Merchant Accounts