Save money. Make money. In the simplest terms, those are the two things every digital commerce professional needs to do on a daily basis. One way to trim expenses and boost revenue at the same time is to invest in a comprehensive alternative payment processing platform. Here are 3 ways an alternative third-party payment processor will save money and increase revenue:

• Reduce exposure to unbillables – Bad credit card numbers, expired cards, and closed bank accounts eat into an ecommerce merchant’s bottom line. A good alternative payment platform offers verification tools that reduce unbillables by validating a customer’s identity real time.
• Provide real-time access to information – The ability to access accurate information 24/7 speeds up decision making. A full-service alternative payment processor provides the tools you need to be nimble in the digital space. Billing analytics, combined with an easy-to-use merchant dashboard, help identify trends to maximize profit potential and pinpoint chargeback and unbillable risks. 
• Offer a turnkey solution – You’re busy running a business and don’t have the significant time it takes to build an ecommerce payment solution from the ground up. Look for a payment processor with the tools to streamline deployment so you can start accessing new markets quickly and seamlessly.

Is there an APM that does all this? Yes: Bill to phone by ILD Teleservices. Our digital commerce payment processing allows customers to charge goods and services directly to their phone bill. For consumers, it offers a “credit card free” way to buy the things they want. For digital merchants, bill to phone provides a complete APM system designed to lift the bottom line.

 From a turnkey payment platform to real-time analytical data, ILD Teleservices has the tools you need to thrive in the digital marketplace. And we offer more than tools—we’ve also processed more than 1 billion transactions and partnered with more than 150 merchants, which makes our experienced team an ideal extension of your ecommerce team. Contact ILD Teleservices today.

Shopping for alternative payment processors?  This guide shares three things you need to look for in a third-party processor for your digital business.

Reach

The slickest payment gateway may not be worth much if customers can’t or won’t use it. Some consumers don’t have credit cards. Others don’t use credit cards on ecommerce sites because they don’t want to risk online identity theft. Still others don’t want to open online accounts with payment processors like Google or PayPal.

Bill to phone, or LEC billing, offers easy access to previously unreachable consumers by allowing them to charge their purchases to their regular phone bill. The only requirements? The consumer simply needs a phone number and the ability to provide verification information, such as address and the last four digits of their Social Security number. ILD Teleservices, an LEC billing processor, has agreements with nearly every local phone company in North America, providing access to more than 150 million businesses and consumers.

Ease of Integration and Management

Adding alternative payments to a checkout process shouldn’t require you to re-envision your ecommerce store or cause you to start hitting the headache relief medication. Managing your payment solution so you can make informed decisions shouldn’t add to your stress levels either.

ILD’s bill to phone solutions allow you to easily integrate the service into existing infrastructure. And, once you’ve become a merchant partner, you’ll use our secure online portal to authorize, settle, and manage your accounts anytime, anyplace.

Trustworthiness

When it comes to third-party payment processors, you have a lot of choices. Protect your business and your customers by choosing an alternative payment company with a track record of providing reliable technology and processing know-how.

ILD Teleservices is a trusted name in third-party processing. We research potential merchant partners, require verification of the consumer’s authorization for charges, and offer a complaint resolution center to ensure consumer satisfaction. With ILD as a member of your team, your customers will be able to shop with confidence.

ILD Teleservices is your alternative payment solution.

To learn more about how to integrate and manage alternative payments into your digital business, contact ILD.

If you’re just getting started in the ecommerce world, it’s probably an understatement to say you’ve got a full plate. From products to promotions, there are so many decisions to make. One of those key decisions—one that’s often overlooked—is choosing the right payment options for ecommerce checkout.

Why are payment options so important?

We’ve all been there. Ready to pay for purchase, you pull out a credit card only to hear: “I’m sorry but we don’t accept that card.” It’s frustrating and embarrassing, but you (or a companion) were likely able to produce an accepted form of payment.

Online commerce is different. When a customer gets to checkout and doesn’t see a payment option that works for them they simply abandon the cart, either foregoing the purchase or clicking over to a competitor’s site.

Why don’t customers use the payment options I offer? Doesn’t everyone have a credit card?

One poll found that nearly 30% of Americans don’t have a credit card, a 10% jump from 2009. Some consumers simply don’t have a good or established credit history, so banks are less likely to issue a card to them. Others are shoppers who avoid using credit cards online because they fear identity theft. There are also consumers who have credit cards but do not use them because of rising interest rates and fees.

What other payment options can I add to my ecommerce store?

Bill to phone is an increasingly popular payment option that allows ecommerce shoppers to bill products or services to their home or business telephone bill. No credit card is required and, since the charges are added to the phone bill, it consolidates purchases and simplifies bill paying. What’s more, because the consumer doesn’t share sensitive financial information with the merchant, it provides peace of mind.

Launching an ecommerce business can be challenging. Let ILD Teleservices, a national leader in alternative payment options, make it easier for customers to buy your products or services. For more information about boosting sales by integrating our bill to phone payment solution into your ecommerce checkout process, contact the ILD team.

In this economy, every penny counts—and that makes it especially frustrating to discover a charge you didn’t authorize on your phone bill. The good news is you can reduce the risk of becoming a cramming victim. Here’s a guide to help you prevent those unauthorized telephone charges.

Cramming hurts consumers.

Cramming occurs when your telephone bill is charged with services that weren’t ordered by you or anyone else in your household. Unauthorized charges range in monetary amounts, but can be as little as a few dollars. If they go undetected, they add up over time, putting a ding in your wallet. The charges can be for a variety of services, such as web hosting, club fees, or phone calls.

Protect yourself from cramming.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recommends these steps for reducing your risk of cramming:

• Review each line of your phone bill every month.
• Read the fine print before providing your phone number and other information to enter contests and other promotions. Fraudsters may use your entry form as an authorization to enroll you into a service so they can bill the charges to your phone account.
• Be wary of signing up for a “free” club or service or of claiming a “free” prize; you may be inadvertently signing up for a fee service that’s charged to your telephone bill.
• Contact your phone company to ask about the blocking options they offer. A block will prevent a certain type of service on your phone line. For example, a third-party service block stops any third-party payment processors from billing your account.

ILD protects consumers from cramming.

ILD Teleservices is a third party payment processor. Merchants use our Bill to Phone service to allow consumers to charge purchases directly to their phone bill. As a result, consumers do not need to share sensitive financial information, like credit card numbers or bank account numbers, reducing your risk of identity and credit card fraud.

We are committed to protecting consumers from unauthorized charges. For example, ILD only works with merchants after the vendor successfully passes a screening process that includes extensive background checks and a business plan review. After we take on a merchant, we continue to monitor their activities and customer satisfaction levels.  If ILD receives excessive complaints about a merchant, we take immediate action to rectify the problem or, if necessary, terminate our business relationship with the company.

Call us if you have questions.

ILD’s U.S. based customer service team is available Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (CST) and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. One of our associates will answer your questions or help find a resolution.

You’ve got the lists and you’ve checked them twice. Now it’s time to hit the web for great deals. But this year you might notice more sites that offer an alternative payment option: bill to phone. What is bill to phone? This guide will give you the facts about bill to phone and how clicking that option will save you green this holiday shopping season.

What is bill to phone?

Bill to phone is a payment method that allows you to charge online goods and digital services to your home telephone bill. A third-party payment processor acts as a go-between, managing the transaction between the online store and the phone company.

When you receive your bill from the phone company, you’ll see the price of the order added to the final total of your bill. The invoice should list the name of the company you’ve ordered from as well as the name of the third-party company processing the charge. You simply submit payment for the product when you pay the phone bill.

How does bill to phone save me money?

This is a “credit card free” payment solution, so you aren’t paying the interest costs that are taking a bite out of your bank account. In addition, adding a purchase to your phone bill means you reduce the risk of costly credit card fraud.

Do I pay extra fees when I use the bill to phone method?

No, consumers pay no extra fees for paying this way.

What if I find a charge on my phone bill for a product I did not order?

Contact the payment processor listed on the telephone bill.

If an online store doesn’t offer a bill to phone option at checkout, can I still charge the purchase to my phone bill?

No. Online stores must choose a bill to phone processor and integrate the option into their checkout system. If your favorite e-tailer doesn’t offer bill to phone, let them know you’d be interested in paying for future purchases that way.

Save money. Make merry.

We’d all like a little extra jingle in our pockets this time of year. Choosing the bill to phone option saves money on interest fees and potential credit card fraud—that means you have money for anything from your favorite latte indulgence to an extra gift for that someone special.

ILD Teleservices is a leader in the bill to phone payment processing industry. If you have questions about an ILD charge on your phone bill, please contact our customer care team.