In order to accept direct credit card payments through your website checkout or POS, you will need to set up a payment source. One of the payment sources integrated in the Crystal Commerce system is Authorize.net.
To connect Authorize.net, follow these detailed steps:
1. Obtain a Merchant Services bank account:
A Merchant Services account is a type of bank account that allows businesses to accept payments by credit/debit cards. Most normal banks offer merchant services accounts, but it can be more cost efficient to choose a bank that specializes in these kinds of accounts. We recommend Priority Payment Systems, as we work with them frequently, and know that they offer competitive rates.
2. Obtain an Authorize.net payment gateway:
Once you have settled a Merchant Services bank, we suggest you have them set up your Authorize.net account for you. There are two types of Authorize.net accounts that can be integrated with our system:
Card Present: If you want to run credit transactions through the POS, you will need a Card Present Authorize.net account. You will also need a magnetic stripe reader to enter the credit card information into the POS.
Card Not Present: If you would like to accept credit card payments on your website, you will need a Card Not Present Authorize.net account.
Note: Authorize.net is capable of creating Accounts that can be used for both the Card Present, and Card Not Present transactions. The CrystalCommerce system is not currently setup to use the same account for both Card Present and Card Not Present transactions. It is necessary to obtain 2 different accounts, one for Card Present and one for Card Not Present.
3. Enter your Authorize.net API Login ID and Transaction Key into your admin:
Once you set up a merchant services bank account and the appropriate Authorize.net accounts you will use, copy the API Login ID and Transaction Key into the Crystal Commerce admin. Instructions on how to access those can be found here:
How to find your Authorize.net API Login ID and Transaction Key.
To Enter your API Login ID and Transaction Key, follow these steps:
Go to your Account > Payments tab in your admin
Select one of the following:For a Card Not Present Account, select New Authorize.net Payment SourceFor a Card Present Account, select New Authorize.net Card Present Payment Source
Enter in your API Login ID and Transaction Key and select Create Payment Source in order to start accepting credit cards on your site and/or POS.
Notes:
All new Authorize.net accounts are created in test mode, so that no real transactions are processed until the appropriate time comes. Find out how to turn test mode off when you are ready to accept credit card payments.
When you check your Transaction Key on Authorize.net, one will be generated. If you check it again, a new key will be generated and the previous key will not work.