Most developed countries take advantage of the internet via its commerce uses. From dating websites to bill paying to shopping, internet payment technology is soaring in many countries. However, as trendy and young as Canada may seem to be, their e-business skills lack compared to the USA, the UK, and Europe. They reason for this is odd, because Canadians are more internet-active than others in the world are.
Canadians have more access to the internet than citizens of other developed countries do. Canadians are also more social media savvy. This should translate into shopping, bill paying, and other web-based money spending habits, but it does not. It has been surveyed that 93% of people research their future purchases online, so why not buy online? Well, for many reasons. The majority of Canadians who do purchase online do so from retailer that are based outside of Canada. This can lead to time waits and higher postage rates, as compared to the instant gratification of buying a product in-store.
Another issue comes with a shortage of online merchants that are located in Canada. Less than 50% of Canadian businesses have websites, which is something that can hinder a business’s ability to attract customers. Creating a website – or even a social media page for a business – can easily be done by any merchant. In addition to selling via a website, many are selling via social media. This can help build a business, and the sharing abilities of social media markets allows for easy marketing.
A much bigger issue comes with the lack of good Canadian merchant account providers. A big issue with merchant accounts is the percentage of chargebacks that a company can acquire. A chargeback can not only cost a company funds, but also cost them their merchant account if they end up with too many chargebacks. Companies that sell outside of their country – as many Canadian merchants wish – can lead to a higher chargeback rate. You need to make sure that your Canadian merchant account is housed by a company that is experienced dealing with chargebacks, like EMB.