Can you believe that it is now time to make the final preparations for the 2007 holiday shopping season? It is expected that $131 billion (1) will be spent on eCommerce purchases in 2007, so it is conceivable that $60-$65 billion will be spent in the last three months of the year.
We're sure that you've prepared for year-end holiday sales expectations by identifying, and being able to supply, what your customers will buy, but are you ready for which payment method that they want to use for their purchases?

There are several new payment brands that consumers want to use. Worldwide, there are approximately 200 million customers that use PayPal, GreenDot MoneyPak, Bill Me Later, Google Checkout, and other payment brands to buy online. Granted, some consumers may use more than one of these brands, and the 200 million may include some overlap, however, that still is a huge number of consumers to satisfy.

Alternative payment brands are gaining in popularity and acceptance, and we, at CardinalCommerce, can help you satisfy the demand. Even with the growing payment trends, we recognize that the majority of your business, over 70%, is comprised of Visa and MasterCard transactions. This year's retail projection is strong, and as transaction volume increases, so will fraud, and fraud screening costs.

The Visa and MasterCard authentication initiatives Verified by Visa (VbV) and MasterCard SecureCode offer protection against fraud and can also offset the rising costs of fraud screening. Recently, reports from two large merchants (with over one million monthly transactions), we enabled, showed an increase in the consumer's preference for using authentication as a way to protect their credit cards when shopping online.  In this case more consumers chose security, with 26-30% of online purchases being made with password-protected cards.(2).  This is significant because most cardholders don't yet have access to the initiatives because not all of the banks have installed the appropriate systems.

For a VbV and SecureCode enabled web store, the online shopping experience is not changed at all for cardholders who have credit cards from non-participating Issuing banks, while consumers that chose to use authentication, can do so.

A true win-win for retailers!  Consumers get what they want, security and you get the benefits of participating.  The VbV and SecureCode program benefits, fraud protection and lower credit/debit card costs, are yours regardless of if the banks are or are not yet participating.  The important factor is that YOU participate.  The lower costs are on average, $0.20 per $100 of sales.

Lastly, MasterCard has mandated SecureCode for a certain type of transaction that originates from Europe. This means without SecureCode enabled on your website, some of your overseas customers will not be able to purchase at your web store.

How can you be ready for the way consumers want to buy? Through Cardinal Centinel, the Universal Merchant Platform, we can ensure that you are always ready, with the latest payment brands, and the most current version of existing brands.

We know you are an expert in your business satisfying your customers.
With one fast, simple and easy integration, we connect you to all to the payment brands your customers want.

Call us today and find out!

(1) eMarketer, May 2007
(2) * Many Issuing banks have chosen to pay fines instead of offering Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode to their cardholders, thus making those cardholders incapable of using secure passwords when shopping online.

Interested in learning how Cardinal Centinel and Google Checkout can grow your business?

Contact CardinalCommerce Merchant Services
at 877-352-8444 or email Salesupport@CardinalCommerce.com today to find out!

The right technology can often widen the gap between a merchant and its competition, especially in the eCommerce arena. Now imagine the advantage an e-tailer has when two of the right technologies combine to produce the fastest, easiest way to deliver a highly-coveted customer payment option.

CardinalCommerce proudly announces the addition of Bill Me Later® QuickPath^TM to its Universal Merchant Platform, Cardinal Centinel.  Now merchants can have accelerated access to I4Commerce's flagship product, Bill Me Later, the secure, convenient, and popular payment option, through Cardinal's thin client technology.

Bill Me Later, dubbed "the credit card killer," (1) has proven to be a successful payment alternative for merchants and security-conscious online shoppers alike.

Simply put, online shoppers want to pay with Bill Me Later, and merchants want the fastest, simplest way to integrate the payment option. CardinalCommerce and i4Commerce have now made this available through Bill Me Later® QuickPath^TM.

With a user base of over three million, Bill Me Later offers merchant marketing, meaningful customer incentives and promotional financing, resulting in increased average order values and repeat customers for merchants.

Live on over 450 million sites, top e-tailers such as Toshiba, Organic Bouquet and NetShops, have already launched the solution through CardinalCommerce to much success.

Merchants that have enabled Bill Me Later® QuickPath^TM through Cardinal Centinel have experienced tremendous results, such as:

• Up to 109% Month Over Month increase in Bill Me Later transactions
• Reduction in Integration time, 3-5 Weeks

"We are committed to offering our customers a safe and secure shopping environment with payment options that meet their personal needs and lifestyle choices,"
- explained Claudio Miranda, VP of eCommerce at Organic Bouquet.

"Our partnership with CardinalCommerce and I4Commerce has enabled us to elevate this commitment and provide a greater level of service to our customers."

With sluggish conversion and shopping cart abandonment being the all-too-familiar norm, merchants have been searching beyond the traditional; looking for ways to easily turn mere shoppers into buyers. Here's how simply Bill Me Later® QuickPath^TM works:



With Bill Me Later® QuickPath^TM as the latest in the suite of ever-increasing payment options on CardinalCommerce's eCommerce platform, sales growth can be quicker than ever.

Are you a merchant that wants Bill Me Later and wants it now?
Or do you just need some more information?
Call CardinalCommerce Merchant Services today, and we can qualify your business for this incredible payment option. 1-877-352-8444

(1)    Erika Brown, Forbes.com 11/27/06
(2)    Vince Talbert, VP Marketing, i4 Commerce (as quoted in Internet Retailer, November 2006)