Natural Products. Can anyone define the term with certainty? Merriam Webster doesn’t even try. Oh, you can find “natural food,” “natural price,” and “naturalist” in their dictionary. You’ll also find the word “product.”

But you won’t find the compound term natural product — though if you continue searching on the Internet, hundreds of results appear. You’ll even find journals and conferences touting the natural products industry.

Search results show many pages of links including how to: sell natural products from home — sell health products — sell herbal products — and start a health food store online. Then there’s nutraceuticals, a word that regularly appears in listings for natural products ecommerce shops.

In this instance, our friends at Merriam Webster deliver: Nutraceutical, “a foodstuff (such as a fortified food or dietary supplement) that provides health benefits in addition to its basic nutritional value.”

So, dietary supplements, multivitamin supplements, organic foods, and healthy snacks… along with allergy-free, dairy-free, and gluten-free foods… and any number of items that don’t affect your stomach (like natural beauty products) fall into the natural products ecommerce domain.

The popularity of natural products reflects ever-increasing consumer interests in self-care, personal wellness journeys, and a return to real-food based natural products.

As a merchant targeting the expanding consumer base focused on living a healthy life, know that optimizing online payments processing can make or break your eCommerce success… A truism for new merchants as well as existing shop owners adding eCommerce sales.

Let’s take a look at what to know about optimizing payments for your natural products eCommerce store.

Natural Products Ecommerce Market

Merchants pursuing dreams in the natural products eCommerce sector joined a high-growth worldwide industry. Yet broad consumer perspectives about “what’s natural” make reporting of actual market size tricky.

Nonetheless, Statista reported that sales of just one category in the natural products ecommerce market — vitamins and nutritional supplements — were expected to top $36 Billion in 2017. In addition, sales of natural and organic food and beverages were $40.5 Billion in the U.S. alone.

Savvy natural products ecommerce marketers know that consumers gravitate toward (and purchase!) products labeled “all natural.” The Euromonitor Global Consumer Trends survey (2016) proved not only that, but also consumer willingness to pay more for products carrying such labels.

Explosive Market Growth and Payments Challenges

Along with celebrating the natural products market explosion, there’s one potential down side to the sector that savvy merchants need to recognize: Banks and some processors attach a high risk label to the sector.

Consider the product lines offered by natural products eCommerce shops. Some include merchandise subject to FDA approval and government regulation, such as food labeling and dietary supplements. Some service providers steer clear of regulated industries, while others don’t.

Also, natural products eCommerce business models include sales and marketing strategies like trial offers and subscription services (with recurring billing) — payment types that can lead to high chargeback rates. And they can be costly for everyone involved: banks, processors, and merchants alike.

Counter the risk by taking steps with your website content, business processes, and data handling so that you can accept payments online to turn a profit. Step one is to arrange a natural product merchant account.

Consider it a “must have” to build and grow your natural products eCommerce business.

Land an Individual Merchant Account

The best way to land a merchant account for your natural products eCommerce business is to demonstrate that you’re a serious, stable, organized, and responsible merchant. Once your merchant account is set, you’re ready to get payment processing up and running.

Look for these payments capabilities to help your natural product eCommerce business thrive:

• A secure online payment gateway offering risk management solutions to prevent CNP fraud and stop damage to your natural products eCommerce sales. Be sure the gateway is Level 1 PCI-DSS compliant.
• Multi-currency payment options that allow you to explore international markets. That alone enhances your market reach efficiently.
• Robust reporting capabilities that include high level, easy to read reports and granular data mining capabilities.
• If your business plan includes wholesaling your products to other retailers, be sure to seek a merchant account that allows sufficient monthly volume for the wholesale trade.
• To grow even more, consider Independent Sales Organization (ISO) status, if your payment processor supports it. You may find more pricing flexibility by referring their products to other merchants.

Optimize Payments with PayArc

When you need a scalable eCommerce payment solution that both saves your money and gives you peace of mind, look no further than PayArc.

Our mission is to bridge the gap between online merchants and payment solutions — for all types and sizes of merchants. Natural products ecommerce merchants included.

PayArc’s industry leading payment processing solution gives you all the tools you need to start accepting payments online, while lowering your risk to fraud and giving you some of the lowest rates in the industry. (To us, great pricing means no monthly fees and no cancellation fees.)

We leverage strong industry relationships… developed over decades in the payments industry… to help you land an individual merchant account so you can start processing payments quickly and securely.

Along with quick turnarounds, we offer great customer service.

Because PayArc wants to act as your payments advisor and consultant, not only your processor. You have a business to run… Our business is to help you run it better. Why not start processing with PayArc today?

“Philanthropist” derives from Late Latin and from Greek. A direct translation from philanthrōpos or “loving people,” Merriam-Webster defines it as “goodwill to fellow members of the human race; especially: active effort to promote human welfare.”

Nonprofit organizations are born from that love of other living beings, and the desire to improve their welfare. If your passion for a cause led you to start a nonprofit, maximizing results of online giving ranks as a top priority.

People are accustomed to making payments online for everything today, and they want charitable donations to be quick and easy too. Fortunately, today’s technologies facilitate digital donations via mobile payments and online giving websites., making it fast and easy to accept donations online.

But there’s a price to be paid by charities for this convenience due to transaction processing fees. These charges reduce the amount actually collected by a charity — a trade-off that most people don’t realize.

Let’s take a look at a few helpful tips for accepting donations online while optimizing results for your nonprofit.

Payments Industry Basics for Nonprofits

Processing payments carries a cost for all industry sectors — charities included. The first thing nonprofits should understand is that choices exist to help them accept payments online and to maximize results.

The payments ecosystem may seem complex to those not familiar with the industry. What with terminology like merchant accounts, issuing banks and acquiring banks, payment processors, payment aggregators, and other merchant service providers, how could it seem otherwise?

Don’t let either the cost or complexity of payment card acceptance stand as a barrier to your nonprofit success. Resources and budgets are tight enough.

Instead, choose a payment processing partner that specializes in working with nonprofits.  They’ll help you set up and optimize online transaction processing, and may offer payment processing at cost to qualified charities. Let the experts handle the intricacies of online payment processing for you.

Follow these keys to success:

• Choose a processor that provides the secure payment gateway needed to transfer payment information between your fundraising platform — the issuing and acquiring banks — and the processing networks.
• Ensure your processor’s gateway is PCI-DSS compliant (Payment Card Industry – Data Security Standard) — a requirement for processing online payment transactions. Maintaining PCI compliance can be burdensome to nonprofit staff, so choose to work only with a processor who handles all PCI requirements.
• Recognize that donors care about the security of their payment card data. Make website visitors comfortable by displaying information about security standards employed, so they feel comfortable sharing payment details — and become your donors.
• Accept multiple payment types. Increase your potential market to maximize your fundraising efforts. The right payment processor will help set up the ability to accept donations online via major card brands (domestic and international), multi-currency options, and alternative payment types like PayPal and others. Make it easy for potential donors to help your organization, no matter where they live.
• Easy integration with your fundraising platform or website describes the right processing solution for your nonprofit. Choose a processor that enables custom donation forms, or allows you to set up an online donation portal fitting the “look and feel” of your website. So that when you accept donations online, the processing solution facilitates an excellent customer experience and provides secure payment processing.

We hope those tips help you find a payment processing partner that you can trust, and that offers favorable rates — because that’s often the bottom line.

Charities That Accept Donations Online Make Giving Easier

Do your homework, and aspire to work with a processor that offers services at a reduced rate, while helping your nonprofit streamline processes and reduce expenses. There are processors out there who want to help nonprofits thrive in the competitive online world.

Yes, it does cost money to accept online donations. Flexible processing needs (like processing recurring donations and selling merchandise) can cost charities even more. But the good news is that some processors provide charitable payment processing at cost, for qualified 501(c) nonprofits.

As Melissa Johnson (writing for Merchant Maverick) points out, it is possible to qualify for charitable payment processing rates to accept donations online — simply by asking and proving non-profit 501(c) status. “Which has a positive effect on any organization’s bottom line.”

Let PayArc Reduce the Cost Footprint of Your Nonprofit

American banks and credit card companies make huge profits — in the neighborhood of $250 million a year — from processing online charitable donations. They can afford to reduce the cost burden for nonprofits.

PayArc’s program strives to do exactly that: reduce the burden on charitable organizations that accept donations online. We give them access to the lowest rates possible, and offer special processing programs that:

• Maximize non-profit donations with electronic payments made via credit cards, debit cards, and ACH/eChecks through nonprofit-hosted payment forms.
• Retain existing donors and reduce marketing costs with automated recurring donation options.
• Increase payment security through PCI-compliant payment processing solutions.

PayArc provides charitable payment processing at cost, for qualified 501(c) nonprofits. Explore working with us, and we’ll use our payments industry expertise to offer amazing pricing to your qualified charity.

Because we’d love to help.

Running a natural products store online can be highly profitable due to the growing consumer interest in organic food and beverage items, as well as supplements. The U.S. Natural and Organic Product Industry sales surged 6.5% to $207 billion in 2017, while the natural supplement market grew 6.1% to $44 billion in the U.S. over the same span, according to New Hope Network’s Nutrition Business Journal.

The number of individuals and investors opening up natural products stores is on the rise due to the high revenue opportunities that the natural and organic product space offers. Working with a reputable credit card processor can help these merchants optimize payments—and growth.

How to Get a Natural Products Store Merchant Account

Merchants in this space are well-advised to open a merchant account through a specialized payment processor that understands the industry. This requires completing a few simple steps and providing the necessary information.

Most applications for a natural products store merchant account will request that your business share a valid, government-issued ID, a bank letter or pre-printed voided check, three months of the most recent bank statements, three months of the most recent processing statements and a Social Security Number (SSN) or Employer Identification Number (EIN).

Working with a payments services provider that specializes in this niche can speed up the application process. In some cases, merchants can get approved within a matter of days. Specialized payment processors often offer one-stop solutions to help augment your payments operations, including fraud prevention, risk mitigation, and PCI compliance. This is to the merchant’s benefit as they have one resource to help manage and lower chargebacks, protect customers’ sensitive data and receive advice on streamlining payments.

Managing Chargebacks Natural Products Stores

Like most online businesses, natural products stores are not immune to the chargeback problem. In some cases, customers have buyer’s remorse, blaming the merchant for how supplements or other natural products that seemingly didn’t work. These disputes snowball into chargebacks, costing the merchant dearly in fines, fees, and penalties.

Many online shops offer free trials to customers as a way to let people try their natural products, risk-free. This is a handy marketing tool; however, it can also cause an increase in chargebacks. Without excellent communication about the terms of a free trial, customers can become confused about payment conditions—or simply forget about their purchase—and dispute the charges later on. It is imperative for natural product store merchants running free trials to provide email confirmations, email reminders, and other information on the website so that customers have the right information.

Optimize Your Site — and Your Brand Story

In an industry as competitive as the natural products business, you’ll need to develop a brand, website and line of products that are unique. Don’t try to carry every natural supplement or vitamin available simply to follow industry fads; quality always trumps quantity.

Be straightforward in your advertising. Maintain high standards and carry products that you know will help customers. Use a marketing approach with long-term goals in mind. Build your business as a farmer rather than a hunter, with a focus on harvesting a long-term relationships with customers rather than shooting for quick sales with customers who won’t return.

Avoid misinformation and clearly articulate the benefits of the products you offer. Where possible, reference industry experts that can back claims and provide additional guidance. Educating your customer base can add to your appeal and it also helps customers feel secure in what they are purchasing from your brand.

Another way to bolster trust is to ensure that your brand experience remains consistent from the home page through product pages and all the way to the end of the payments process. Checkout pages or portals that veer from the regular branding can cause confusion and distrust among consumers.

Follow up online sales with a branded confirmation email that includes a receipt for each customer’s purchase. This goes a long way in improving the customer experience, and also provides a way for customers to get in touch if they have a question or an issues. The more you communicate with your customers, the less likely it is that disputes will arise and snowball into costly chargebacks.

Conclusion

PayArc offers comprehensive payment processing services, which include a PCI compliant payment gateway, mobile payment processing solutions easy integration of your online systems with our full API and SDK.