• Merchant Accounts. Salespeople may try to sell you what you don't need. Their commissions may run several hundred dollars. We tell you where you can go to obtain a Merchant Credit Card account for with little or no application fee.
• A payment gateway is the connection between your website and your bank's credit card processor. Unfortunately, you can be shoved into one that's inappropriate for your needs. You can back out when you get wiser (if you can break the long-term lease you may have signed), but by then you'll have paid all the non-refundable fees. This mistake can cost you many hundreds of dollars and set you back several months.

There are sharks in the waters looking for your money -- and some very legitimate, helpful people. You absolutely must get some understanding before you buy -- or you're shark bait, just waiting for Jaws to bite.

On our site you'll find several key articles that will steer you around the obstacles. Search for them by name:

• "Why You Need to Take Credit Cards on Your Website"
• "Unraveling the Mystery of Merchant Credit Card Accounts"
• "Guidelines for Obtaining a Merchant Credit Card Account for Web Sales"
• "Shopping Guide to Real-Time Credit Card Authorization for Internet Websites,"
• "A Short List of Internet Credit Card Gateways"
• "How to Decide Whether You Need Real-Time Credit Card Authorization for Your Site"
• "How Does a Foreign Business Obtain a US Merchant Credit Card Account for Web Commerce?"
• "International Payment Issues"
• "Non-US Credit Card Gateways"

These articles are all free of charge. But from them you can see the kind of abundant, good, and reliable information is available for subscribers. Our goal is to make you successful. Credit Cards are just the beginning of what you need to know to keep out of the reach of sharks.

Special if you subscribe to Web Marketing Today Premium Edition before the end of the Month I'll give you 13 e-books worth $237.44 absolutely free if you subscribe before the end of the month. (If you're already a paid subscriber, login now at the top left corner of the main webpage to download your e-books). 1. My 89-page How to Develop a Landing Page -- completely revised and written for mid-2008 -- explains how to maximize the effect of your advertising, by pointing to a specific "landing page" that leads the shopper to decide to complete the transaction. This comprehensive guide, now in its third edition, will help you raise your conversion rate and maximize profits. It sells for $29.95 on my website. 2. Guide to Search Engine Optimization (2007 Edition) is a 97-page e-book that explains in simple terms what search engine optimization (SEO) is all about. It is not a guide for experts, nor will it make you an expert. But you'll understand how to (1) make your webpages and navigation system search engine friendly, (2) develop an effective link campaign to boost your PageRank, and (3) outsource SEO if you decide not to do it yourself. I sell this for $14.95. 3. How to Promote Your Site through Article Marketing. This 25-page report gives an overview of article marketing, that is, offering your articles to be used on other sites and e-zines in exchange for a link to your site. This approach that can be pursued for no money at all. On page 16 Dr. Wilson reveals a secret SEO experts know, but most article marketers don't, a strategy that can significantly raise PageRanks on your website. Sells for $11.95 on my website. 4. My 28-page Social Bookmarking and Marketing helps you get to the bottom of the social bookmarking phenomenon. Explains what social bookmarking is all about, outlines two main marketing strategies -- one that can get you in lots of trouble unless you know how to avoid the potholes -- reviews tools. Sells for $12.95 on my website. 5. Report on Pay Per Click (PPC) Bid Management Software. This 52-page report is a "must read" if you're doing PPC advertising using only Google's or Yahoo's native bid management interface. Bid management software can often save you 30% to 50% of your current level of ad purchases by maintaining your desired position, optimizing prices by reducing bid gaps on a frequent basis, and showing your ads only at times when you know your products sell best -- all working on autopilot. Which program should you select? This report outlines the features you should look for, compares 16 different bid management programs, provides user feedback, and makes recommendations. $14.95. 6. Research Guide to Online Niche-Finding. This 49-page book leads you through the steps necessary to discover a potentially profitable online business niche, consider the competition, and develop a unique approach that will bring traffic and revenue. We examine the 5 principles of research, examine the various formulas used to spot potential winners, consider the strengths and weaknesses of the existing research software, briefly survey 24 keyword, PPC, and niche-finding research software programs, and provide more in-depth reviews of WorldWide Brands Research Wizard, P.I.P.E. and the Online Research Guide to Picking Products that Sell. Price: $14.95. 7. How to Promote Your Local Business on the Internet. This 44-page book is designed for local business owners and marketing directors, as well as professionals who serve them -- web designers and marketing consultants. While not repeating all the Internet marketing basics, it focuses on the elements that can make local business marketing a success, localized search engine optimization, Yellow Page ads, awareness of local portals, use of local PPC options and geotargeting at Google AdWords and Yahoo Local, e-mail newsletters, etc. I sell this for $13.95. 8. The E-Mail Marketing Handbook (Second Edition). This 875-page e-book provides a broad look at all aspects of e-mail marketing -- publishing your own company e-mail newsletter, e-mail promotions, e-mail marketing programs, formatting the e-mail, ad tracking systems, autoresponders, getting through spam filters, RSS feeds, and obeying anti-spam laws. The book also includes four appendices with user comments and ratings of various programs, a directory of 250 e-mail marketing programs, and detailed vendor answers to 99 questions about their software. This is by far the most comprehensive book on the market, especially as a buying guide to software that could be used by small to medium businesses. I sell this for $27.00. 9. The 766-page Shopping Cart Report, revised in January 2004, is the most comprehensive purchasing guide to e-commerce software ever published. It provides a basic overview of carts and my recommendations of 36 particular carts. There's a shopping guide for 12 different cart applications. I provide a directory to 225 shopping cart programs, with detailed information on 50 of the top vendors. I sell this for $34.95. 10. My 135-page "Report on Affiliate Management Software 2005, looks at the basic and advance features of affiliate software, looks in detail at 48 stand-alone programs and 55 affiliate modules integrated into shopping carts. Then offers candid feedback from about 200 users and makes recommendations. I sell it for $22.95 on my website. 11. My 80-page "10 Steps to E-Business on a Shoestring" helps you see how to envision an e-business, find an unfilled niche, and then develop it a low cost. I tell you where you'll need to spend some money, and where to find low-cost services that can get you started without a high investment. I sell it for $17.95 on my website. PLUS my recent short reports: Reciprocal Linking Tools, 23 pages, $8.95 How to Optimize Your Landing Pages Scientifically, 32 pages, $11.99 But if you subscribe (or renew your subscription) to Web Marketing Today Premium Edition before the end of the month, I'll give you a copy of all these e-books absolutely free. Together they're worth $237.44 -- and if you add in the subscription price of $49.95, the total value is $287.39. But you'll receive the e-books absolutely free when you pay only the subscription price of $49.95 . Don't miss out. Subscribe now!

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