There are dozens, perhaps hundreds of businesses and organizations eager to assist and sell product online. Basically, they fall into four categories: credit card transactions, digital cash transactions, electronic fund transfers and telephone billing systems

The right choice for you depends upon your specific business requirements.

1. Merchant Internet Accounts. Pros: Consumers are familiar with credit cards with credit card transactions, consumers don’t have to download and install special plug-in. Credit card sales lends itself to impulse buying.

Cons: Consumers still have concerns regarding providing financial information online. This method does not lend itself well to the purchase of down loadable soft goods, such as software, art, graphics, etc

2. Electronic Cash Transactions Electronic money is an arrangement whereby the customer pays for the merchandise using, well, electronic money. Examples of this are the well known DigiCash, Cyberbucks, CyberCash, etc. Pros No credit card transactions are required. No concerns re charge backs. Lends itself well to micro payments.

Cons Many people are unfamiliar with the concept and shy away from unknown entities. Eliminates the possibility of impulse buying, unless both customer and merchant are already in same scheme. May not be available globally.

3. Electronic Fund Transfers Funds are transferred electronically from the customer’s bank account to yours. The best known method is the issuing of electronic checks Pros No credit card worries. Available to persons who don’t have credit cards

Cons A very new technology that some perceive as being less secure than other forms of ecommerce. Many customers aren’t set up to issue electronic cheques; time required to make the arrangements eliminates impulse buying. May not be available to international consumers.

4. Telephone Billing Systems A very new approach, telephone transactions allow the customer to purchase an item or service, and the amount is billed to his or her telephone bill. Pros Eliminates worries about credit cards (for both consumer and merchant) Safeguards soft merchandise â€" no possibility of theft or pirating. Cons Customer is required to download and install a plug-in. currently only available for soft merchandise but can do some limited transactions for hard goods. Currently available for sales using telephone modems and will not work for transactions over cable modems and ISDN lines.