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CCNOW SERVICE DETAILS |
This section answers your basic questions about CCNow.
If you have questions that are not addressed here, you can also consult our Frequently Asked Questions page.
- What is the relationship between my business and CCNow?
- How do shopping cart sales work?
- How do auction payments work?
- What types of products can be sold?
- What are the benefits of using CCNow?
- What are the costs associated with CCNow?
- Who can use CCNow, and what are the requirements?
- Can CCNow be used for any type of orders other than credit cards?
- Can CCNow be used for telephone / fax / mail
orders?li>
- Can I enter Online Shoppers' orders myself?
- How are payments made to CCNow clients?
- Can CCNow pay in my local currency?
- When do Reserve Funds apply?
- Can I see samples of CCNow screens?
- What are CCNow's refund and dispute policies?
- What is a chargeback dispute?
- Does CCNow use SSL encryption?
- Can CCNow create my Web site shop for me?
- How is technical support provided?
- Does CCNow offer a reseller or referral program?
- How do I make Online Shoppers feel good about buying online?
- Okay! How do I join?
What is the relationship between my business and CCNow?
CCNow is an online retailer of our clients' products. Our focus is on selling tangible merchandise that will be shipped to Online Shoppers.
Clients who use our service agree that when an Online Shopper places an order, CCNow buys the ordered product(s) from our client for immediate resale to the Online Shopper. CCNow then E-mails a purchase order to the client, who will ship the merchandise directly to the Online Shopper. The Online Shopper is billed by our company as "CCNow".
Client payments are issued twice per month, on the 1st and 16th day of each month. Complete payment options and information are listed below.
CCNow was founded in 1996 by CCI Marketing Group. The online retail service was renamed "CCNow" in 1998. As of 2002, CCNow's current parent company is Digital River, Inc.
How do shopping cart sales work?
CCNow provides you with customized snippets of HTML code to insert into your Web pages. This lets you easily refer Online Shoppers to our secure shopping facility.
Online Shoppers can select products for purchase and add them to a virtual "Shopping Cart" provided by CCNow. When finished shopping, the Online Shopper presses the Checkout button and enters his/her credit-card and shipping information to complete the sale.
At this stage, CCNow is acting as your online retailer, selling products to the Online Shopper and simultaneously buying the products from you. In return for the sales commission you give us, CCNow administers the shopping-cart software, the credit card transaction processing, and our customer service functions.
All orders are then billed to Online Shoppers by our company as "CCNow".
After each batch of orders is submitted and processed, we will send you notification of the orders via E-mail. You then ship the products directly to the Online Shoppers, and use our Client Administration screens to notify us of the shipment.
Here is a sample of the CCNow Client Administration menu.
How do auction payments work?
For information on how to use CCNow for auction payments, please click here.
What types of products can be sold?
You can use CCNow to sell a wide variety of merchandise. Please keep in mind the following guidelines and restrictions, however:
- CCNow is intended to be used for tangible merchandise. This is defined as "physical products that are shipped to the Online Shopper's physical address". This policy helps CCNow to maintain our low retail margin. Tangible merchandise incurs a much lower rate of inquiries, disputes, and fraud than service-based sales or electronically delivered products. CCNow has elected to sell only tangible merchandise, so that our clients can enjoy lower retail margins.
- Your products must be legal for sale in all states, provinces, and countries where you accept Online Shoppers.
- The following products and services cannot be sold via CCNow:
- Firearms
- Alcoholic beverages
- Explosives
- Live animals
- Prescription drugs or other controlled substances
- Fireworks or pyrotechnic devices or supplies
- Hazardous materials, combustibles, corrosives
- Web site access
- Web site memberships
- Internet access or E-mail services
- Web site design
- Web site promotion
- Web hosting services
- Search engine registration
- Programming services
- Consulting services
- Graphic design services
- Other service-based sales
- Advertising sales
- Money-making information
- Matrix, Single Level, Multi Level, MLMs or Similar Products
- Work-at-home information
- Bulk E-mail software or mailing lists
- Club memberships
- Gambling transactions
- Hotel, Airfare, Travel services
- Software delivered by E-mail
- Software enable keys delivered by E-mail
- Any information or software delivered electronically (via E-mail, Web site, or Fax)
- Phone card pin numbers
- Products or links to products that are pornographic in nature or content
- Drop-shipped merchandise
- Ticket sales
- Pre-Orders
- Tobacco products
- Donations
- Satellite or cable TV equipment and hardware
- Unauthorized replicas of licensed merchandise
- Unauthorized distribution of licensed merchandise
- HGH, anabolic alternatives, and/or bodybuilding supplements
What are the benefits of using CCNow?
Here are a few of the benefits to consider:
- You save money. Most online retail operations incur significant start-up costs which can impede the profitability of an Internet business, such as hiring customer service staff, obtaining credit card merchant accounts, and setting up E-commerce software. CCNow is the perfect affordable solution to selling your products online.
- CCNow provides a toll-free customer service number (1-877-CCNOW-77). Your Online Shoppers can call us directly if they have billing inquiries or other questions.
- CCNow provides integrated shopping cart software to help boost the total value of each order. Most of our competitors do not offer a shopping cart, which means that Online Shoppers can only purchase one item at a time.
- You can use CCNow with any web hosting service because there are no special set-ups required. This can save you money by allowing you to choose a standard, no-frills hosting company for your Web site.
- You can turn on our "international orders" option if desired, and we'll take orders from Online Shoppers anywhere in the world, at no additional charge. Most of our competitors do not accept international credit card orders.
- We provide you with an easy interface to the shopping-cart screens on our secure server. You don't have to do any programming, and we'll even provide you with customized snippets of HTML code to drop into your Web pages.
What are the costs associated with CCNow?
To view our affordable rates, please visit our Pricing Details page.
Who can use CCNow, and what are the requirements?
You can use CCNow if you meet these 9 requirements:
- You are selling merchandise which meets the CCNow product requirements, via one or more named Web sites or Auction sites.
- All marketing, advertising, and product information must be contained on the Web site(s), so that Online Shoppers do not need to contact you for additional information prior to the sale.
- CCNow clients agree not to use unsolicited bulk E-mail or newsgroup postings to promote their Web sites or products.
- The CCNow service cannot be used to sell products to personal acquaintances, such as friends / relatives / co-workers, or for in-person sales.
- Online Shoppers will place the orders themselves. Clients agree not to place orders on behalf of Online Shoppers.
- You agree to inform CCNow of your Web site addresses, including any new sites that you add after you sign up.
- Your product prices are displayed in U.S. dollars.
- Clients outside the U.S. must be able to accept payments from CCNow in U.S. dollars.
- You agree to the terms of CCNow's Client Agreement.
Can CCNow be used for any type of orders other than credit cards?
PayPal payments are accepted online in the CCNow shopping cart. You do NOT need a PayPal account to accept payments from your customers. Customers will have the option to pay via credit card or PayPal when finalizing checkout. Visit our test store, Amy Love's SportShop to see the shopping cart.
All terms for a PayPal order are the same as a credit card order. The rates, payment schedule, dispute, and other rules all still apply.
Can CCNow be used for telephone / fax / mail orders?
In order to keep our administrative costs low and offer our competitive rates, CCNow focuses exclusively on Online Shoppers, because it is less expensive to process orders for these types of customers. Telephone and mail orders require a large clerical staff, which is much more costly.
If you need to accept orders directly from customers via telephone, fax, or mail, then you must implement your own retail business to accept those orders.
Can I enter Online Shoppers' orders myself?
This practice is prohibited by U.S. banking law, and by our own client requirements as listed above.
CCNow's own merchant banking agreements require that Online Shoppers will directly enter the sales transactions with CCNow. If you enter an order on behalf of an Online Shopper (for example, an Online Shopper who cannot or will not place an Internet order), then you would be engaging in an illegal practice known as "credit card factoring".
Please see our client requirements section for other guidelines.
How are payments made to CCNow clients?
CCNow makes payments to our clients twice a month, on the 1st and 16th day of each month. The payment dates are based on the date when you ship each order, as shown in this schedule:
| Orders Shipped On: | Pay Date |
| Jan 01 thru 15 | February 1 |
| Jan 16 thru 31 | February 16 |
| Feb 01 thru 15 | March 1 |
| Feb 16 thru 29 | March 16 |
| Mar 01 thru 15 | April 1 |
| Mar 16 thru 31 | April 16 |
| Apr 01 thru 15 | May 1 |
| Apr 16 thru 30 | May 16 |
| May 01 thru 15 | June 1 |
| May 16 thru 31 | June 16 |
| Jun 01 thru 15 | July 1 |
| Jun 16 thru 30 | July 16 |
| Jul 01 thru 15 | August 1 |
| Jul 16 thru 31 | August 16 |
| Aug 01 thru 15 | September 1 |
| Aug 16 thru 31 | September 16 |
| Sep 01 thru 15 | October 1 |
| Sep 16 thru 30 | October 16 |
| Oct 01 thru 15 | November 1 |
| Oct 16 thru 31 | November 16 |
| Nov 01 thru 15 | December 1 |
| Nov 16 thru 30 | December 16 |
| Dec 01 thru 15 | January 1 |
| Dec 16 thru 31 | January 16 |
For information about Reserves for CCNow payments, please refer to the next section on Funds Availability.
Payments are issued to the name and address that we have on file for your account. If you need to change the payment name, address, or method, you can use the "Settings & Options" function to make changes.
All CCNow payments are adjusted for any refunds, disputes, or other fees as set forth in the Client Agreement.
You can choose from three different methods of payment:
- Option 1: We can send your payments by Direct Deposit into your U.S. checking account. This is the fastest payment method, because Direct Deposits arrive in your bank account just two business days after they are transmitted by CCNow. No Fee.
- Option 2: We can mail you a regular check. This is the default payment method. We send these checks via First Class Mail within the U.S, or by Air Mail to all other countries. Please see our Pricing Details page.
- Option 3: We can send payments directly to your bank account via Wire Transfer, also called Tele-Transfer in some countries. You may wish to consider this option if you have problems with the reliability or speed of mail delivery in your area. Please see our Pricing Details page. Your bank may also collect additional fees.
Other notes regarding payments:
- If you wish to receive payments less often than twice per month (for example, in order to reduce your bank fees), you can specify a Payment Threshold amount. We will only generate payment if the payable amount exceeds your chosen Payment Threshold on the 1st or 16th day of each month.
- All CCNow payments are adjusted for any refunds, disputes, or other fees as set forth in the Client Agreement.
When do Reserve Funds apply?
CCNow uses Reserve Funds in order to protect against catastrophic loss due to fraud, theft, human error, or excessive Online Shopper disputes.
Reserve Funds are held on all new accounts (30 days or newer) for a minimum of 30 days. The funds will be released on the next payment date following the 30 day anniversary of your account.
Other notes regarding Reserve Funds:
- Payments are adjusted for any Online Shopper refunds, disputes, or other fees as set forth in the Client Agreement.
- Your CCNow Account Statement, available online, shows all amounts held in Reserve.
- Additional Reserve Funds may be held in certain circumstances on any account, including but not limited to: excessive chargebacks, refunds, open inquiries, negative activity, or negligent, fraudulent or illegal activity.
Can CCNow pay in my local currency?
Yes, CCNow can issue payments in 27 different currencies using the Wire Transfer method. To utilize this, please log in to your account, and under the Wire Transfer payment method, select the currency you wish to be paid in and update your bank information.
CCNow supports the following currencies:
| Australia AUD | Hungary HUF | Poland PLN |
| Austria EUR | India INR | Portugal EUR |
| Belgium EUR | Ireland EUR | Saudi Arabia SAR |
| Canada CAD | Israel ILS | Singapore SGD |
| Cyprus CYP | Italy EUR | Slovenia SKK |
| Czech CZK | Japan JPY | South Africa ZAR |
| Denmark DKK | Latvia LVL | Spain EUR |
| Estonia EER | Lithuania LTL | Sweden SEK |
| France EUR | Luxembourg EUR | Switzerland CHF |
| Finland EUR | Mexico MXN | Thailand THB |
| Germany EUR | Netherlands EUR | UK GBP |
| Greece EUR | New Zealand NZD | United States USD |
| Hong Kong HKD | Norway NOK |
Can I see samples of CCNow screens?
Client Screens: Our Client Administration screens allow you to
add and remove products from your database, generate HTML code segments,
and set up your account preferences and options. See the toolbar
above for examples of these screens.
Online Shopper Screens: Our demonstration store, Amy Love's SportShop, shows you CCNow from the Online Shopper's
viewpoint.
What are CCNow's refund and dispute policies?
CCNow maintains an Online Shopper-friendly refund policy. This keeps our administrative
costs under control in two ways: First, it reduces the amount of time
spent researching Online Shopper inquiries; and secondly it reduces the occurrence
of chargeback disputes. (A chargeback dispute is a refund that is forced
by the Online Shopper's credit card company.)
In most situations when an Online Shopper asks for a refund, we want to try
our best to grant that refund. Here are some guidelines on our refund
and dispute policies:
- If an Online Shopper is dissatisfied with a product that he/she has ordered, the client should accept the product back and grant a refund. If desired, a client may specify that shipping charges are not refundable; however we would prefer to refund the shipping charges as well.
- If an Online Shopper claims that a product was never received, we
will grant a refund unless the client can show proof of delivery. If
you are shipping expensive items (or if the Online Shopper is returning
expensive items), please be sure to use a shipping method that provides
proof of delivery.
- CCNow order inquiries must be resolved to consumer satisfaction within 3 business days or CCNow may issue a full refund and a possible service fee.
What is a chargeback dispute?
A chargeback dispute is a forced refund: a refund that is forced by a cardholder's credit card company. This occurs when a cardholder decides to formally dispute a charge on his/her credit card bill, usually because someone else fraudulently used that cardnumber. According to credit card association rules, Internet merchants must accept credit card fraud as part of the normal risk of doing business on the Internet.
At CCNow, the average chargeback ratio is approximately 0.0025, or 1/4th of 1 percent. This means that for every $100 in sales, an average of 40 cents is lost due to credit card fraud.
The amount of credit card fraud you experience will vary according to the type of products you sell. Products which appeal to children, teenagers, and unmarried men will experience a higher degree of credit card fraud. Products which are purchased primarily by professionals, women, and families will experience a lower amount of fraud.
For suggestions on how to reduce the incidence of fraud and disputes, please view our Client Tips page.
When an issuing bank sends a chargeback dispute, the bank also charges a research fee. This fee can range from $10 to $80 depending on the issuing bank. But if the dispute occurred due to a violation of our Client Agreement (for example, if you attempted to sell non-tangible merchandise), or if a client experiences an extraordinary number of disputes, the fee may be higher.
Does CCNow use SSL encryption?
Yes. Our shopping-cart software runs in Secure Mode on the Online Shopper's browser, using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) to encrypt sensitive data such as credit card numbers.
While selecting products and adding them to the Shopping Cart, the Online Shopper is in Non-Secure Mode. After he/she presses the Checkout button, we switch to Secure Mode in order to collect the billing and shipping information.
All modern Web browsers support the SSL standard, but the Online Shopper can choose to checkout using Non-Secure Mode if necessary.
Can CCNow create my Web site shop for me?
We provide you with customized snippets of HTML code to insert into your existing Web pages, which links your Web site into the shopping-cart screens on our secure server.
However, if you do not already have a Web site and do not know how to create one, we can suggest some resources.
- Most authoring tools, such as Microsoft FrontPage, Netscape Composer and DreamWeaver will allow you to design Web pages with the ease of a word processor, all without HTML programming.
Most client questions are answered on this page or the FAQ page. If you have a question or a technical problem, please check these online help pages first.
If your question is not addressed on our Web support pages, please feel free to send E-mail to support@ccnow.com. Remember to include all applicable information, such as Client IDs, order numbers, error messages, etc.
You can also reach our Client Services staff by telephone at 1-877-CCNOW-77, Option 3.
Please note that CCNow does not offer support for Web page authoring. We do provide clients with customized HTML code segments to insert into their existing Web sites. But if you do not know how to insert HTML code segments, you will need to obtain assistance from someone with HTML web authoring skills.
Does CCNow offer a reseller or referral program?
CCNow offers a client referral program where you earn $25 for each new signup! Please click here for more details.
We are currently in development of an affiliate program to help boost your sales. Please check back or join our mailing list for an update.
How do I make Online Shoppers feel good about buying online?
Our Client Tips page suggests several ways to maximize sales and prevent Online Shopper problems.
Okay! How do I join?
Glad you asked! Just go to our Sign Up Now screen.