The merchant account can be thought of as the banker. They are the one who interfaces with the credit card being presented and the billing that needs to happen. They make sure that the buy gets billed and you get paid. I like the banker. Now, because the merchant North American Bancard Sales Partner account makes this transaction happen, they will want to be compensated for their service. The payment gateway is no different.

This is where the waters start to muddy even more. The fees that these services charge can be different from place to place. This can make comparison shopping very difficult. The various fees include: installation fees, discount rates, fixed transaction fees, miscellaneous fees, etc. It's enough to make your head spin. And getting all the pieces to work together can be a real pain. Sometimes getting an all-in-one service is the best way to go. But that all depends on what your requirement are. Now that you know the big picture, I think the pieces will be easier to understand.

Paul McGillivary has been a technologist for 15 years. In that time, Paul has experienced thousands of technology problems, challenges, and products. He brings this experience to bear in the articles that he presents.