Online e-Commerce Store
Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why do I need a digital certificate?
A: A digital certificate serves two purposes. First, it enables us to encrypt your customers' personal information as it traverses the Internet. Second, it allows your customers to verify who they are actually doing business with.

Q: How much does a digital certificate cost?
A: Digital certificates typically cost between $300 and $600 depending on the level of encryption you want and who you purchase it from.

Q: How do I get a digital certificate?
A: We recommend purchasing a digital certificate from Verisign or Thwate. These are the recognized leaders in the industry.

Q: I already have a digital certificate, can I use it with my online e-commerce store?
A: When purchased, digital certificates are associated with a specific host and domain name. For example, if you purchased a certificate for your website at www.mycompany.com but your online store is going to be located at shop.mycompany.com then you cannot use your existing certificate because the URL's are different.

Q: What is a merchant account?
A: A merchant account is an account with a financial institution that allows you to accept credit cards as payment for your goods or services.

Q: How much does a merchant account cost?
A: The costs associated with merchant accounts vary. Some banks offer them to their business accounts for very little to nothing. There are typically one-time setup fees, fixed monthly processing fees and a small percentage taken from each credit card transaction.

Q: How do I get a merchant account?
A: You can inquire with your business bank or you can visit AuthorizeNet or Cardservice. Internovations' online store is compatible with these two providers. You can also fill-out an application for a Cardservice account via Internovations by clicking here.

Q: How many products can I have in my store?
A: The number of products that you can maintain in your store depends on the e-commerce package that you select. Our entry-level packages allow for you to maintain up to 1000 products online at any given time.

Q: Can I include more than one picture of a product?
A: Yes. You can include up to 10 views of each product. For each view, you will need to provide a small (thumbnail) and a large image. When a shopper visits a product page, they will be shown all of the thumbnail images and one large image. The shopper will then be able to click a thumbnail image to see it enlarged.

Q: Can I use my own part numbers?
A: Yes. While our e-commerce system assigns a record ID to each product that you enter, you can also specify your own part number. The site then allows you the option to display your part number or the record ID on your website.

Q: How does the store calculate shipping costs?
A: The e-commerce store provides several ways for you to specify how you want shipping to be calculated. You can specify that a fixed rate be charged, or you can specify a rate that is multiplied by the number of items ordered, or you can specify a rate that is multiplied by the total weight of the items orderd. If you ship via FedEx or UPS, you can also specify weight and zone tables to allow for more precise calculations of shipping costs. The shippers (FedEx , UPS, etc) and methods (ground, 2nd day, air, etc) that can be specified are completely configurable by you.

Q: How will I know when I receive orders online?
A: The e-commerce system uses email for all communication between you and your customers. When an order confirmation email is sent to a customer, a copy of the email will also be sent to an email address that you specify. The administration site also includes a new orders page that lists all orders that need to be fulfilled.

Q: How will I inform customers that their orders have shipped?
A: The administration site provides a ship order page that you'll use to enter the items shipped and a tracking number. When you enter and submit this information, the system sends an email to your customer notifying them that their order has shipped.

Q: Can I use my own system to manage my orders and customers?
A: Yes, the administration site provides an order export feature that allows you to extract your orders, order detail and customer information from the e-commerce system. You can specify the date range of the orders that you want to extract. The system then generates a comma-delimited text file that you can then import into your own system.