Ecommerce Storefront Software

[mesocosm]

Greetings All !

I'm in search of ecommerce storefront software ... any suggestions?

Free or not ... price isn't the issue. Scalability, support, and compatability with payment methods, merchant banks, and gateways are the issues.

Speaking of merchant banks and gateways ... any preferences?

Many Thanks in advance!

[jsbzmcdaniel]

Authorize.net is the biggest / widely used gateway.

[Orion76]

Everyone seems to be using OS Commerce, which is what I would use too if I were to setup an e-commerce site:

http://www.oscommerce.com/

[tonkadawg]

Talk to SeanCallan - He does this exact stuff and probably already has a base app ready to go. That and he is on xmas break and has nothing better to do!

[GTR]

I'm using an application based on MS Access. It is written for the Auto Parts industry due to the need for certain search parameters. I'm sure there are many similar programs on the market for a wide variety of business types. The reason I chose the one I did was the fact that the data base is on my office network and is used for all transactions such as invoicing, purchasing, etc. When I make price changes or add/remove parts from the data base there is a built-in uploader that only uploads those fields that have changed. Basically this keeps the site as current as the data base without the need for double input. Making changes to a live web data base can be time consuming if you are making those changes directly on the web. With over 14,000 part numbers in the data base I only want to key this stuff in once.

As for CC processing you don't really need to use a different service to handle these transactions. You should be able to use your current company and just have the need to utilize a secure server to encrypt the information sent to you. You need to check though first that the CC company you now use will allow you to do these "card not present" transactions which BTW are considered by most to be "unqualified" which just means the percentage fee is higher (kinda like all AMEX or business member MC and Visa transactions).
I've used three different companies in the last six years and I now go through Costco which I think uses Novus. They by far have the best customer service of the three I've used. When you have a problem with the machine or software they have enough staff with the knowledge to solve the problem in a timely fashion. In the past I would commonly be told I'd have to wait until the next day or Monday to solve an issue.

SteveU