Card payments in a Bulgarian online shop

Card payments in an online shop

“I want to accept cards” sounds like a single task. In fact it's three different solutions, with different requirements, different lead times and different fees — and the choice is made before the build, because it affects it.

Ways

Decided

Before the build

Fastest

Cash on delivery

Longest

Virtual POS

The three ways

Which suits whom.

Most Bulgarian shops end up using two of the three at the same time. The question is which one you start with.

01 Cash on delivery The customer pays the courier on delivery. It needs nothing from a bank, goes live the fastest and, for many Bulgarian buyers, is still the preferred method. Its cost lies in courier fees, uncollected parcels and money that spends several days in transit. fastest 02 A virtual POS from a bank Proper card acceptance through your bank. It requires a company, an account, documents and approval — which is also the longest part. In return, the fee is usually the lowest at higher turnover, and the money goes into your account. longest 03 An international platform Services that handle card payments instead of the bank. They go live in days and work well with foreign customers and subscriptions, but not all of them are available to a Bulgarian company, and the fee is usually higher. Check the currency they pay out in, too. in days 04 Bank transfer Not fashionable, and that's exactly why it's underrated. For more expensive or slower orders — furniture, made-to-order equipment, services — it remains a perfectly sensible choice and costs nothing. no fee

The fees

What the cost of a payment is made of.

The figures change and depend on the bank, turnover and industry — so here's the structure, not the amounts. Ask for each of these items in writing before you sign.

A percentage of the amountThe main item. It usually falls as turnover grows, which is why it's renegotiated after the first year.

A fixed fee per transactionA small amount on every payment. On an average order of €10 it weighs far more than on one of €100.

A monthly feeSome solutions have one and others don't. If you sell seasonally, ask what happens in the dead months.

A refund feeA cancelled order doesn't always refund the fee too. Ask explicitly — for a shop with many returns, it's a real cost.

A chargeback feeWhen a customer disputes a transaction, there's usually a separate fee whatever the outcome. It rarely happens, and it hurts when it does.

Currency conversionIf you sell in another currency, the exchange rate and the mark-up on it are a separate item. Sometimes bigger than the percentage.

When the money arrivesNot a fee, but it's money over time. The difference between one day and seven is keenly felt at low turnover.

Note

Six things that get overlooked.

Each one crops up after launch, and each is easier to sort out before it.

A certificate isn't enoughAn encrypted connection is mandatory, but on its own it doesn't make a site fit for payments. The bank's requirements usually include specific pages with terms too.

Terms and returns have to be thereTerms and conditions, a returns policy and a privacy policy. They're read during approval, and in a dispute with a customer they decide the outcome.

Test mode isn't live modeA payment that goes through in the test environment doesn't always go through in production. The first real order is placed by you, with your own card, for a small amount.

Cash on delivery has its own billCourier fees, money-transfer fees and uncollected parcels. With cheap goods, the three together eat the margin faster than a card fee.

Mobile payment isn't a separate solutionPaying by phone goes through the same POS. If the shop works well on a phone, it comes ready-made.

Switching later is workMoving from one solution to another affects orders, returns and accounting. That's why the question belongs in the brief, not after launch.

In the shop

What changes on the site itself.

The payment method isn't just a setting — it changes several things the customer sees.

The steps to an orderEvery unnecessary field costs a share of completed orders. Card payment allows a shorter path than cash on delivery.

How the price is shownIf there's a courier fee with cash on delivery, it needs to be visible before the last step, not sprung as a surprise at the end.

The page after paymentWhat the customer sees and what email they get. This is where it's decided whether they'll call you in a worried state.

DeclinesA payment gets declined for ten different reasons. The message should say what the person should do, not just “error”.

AccountingHow the money comes in, what document is issued and how it's matched with orders. Ask your accountant before you choose, not after.

MeasurementIf it isn't recorded which ad led to the paid order, you're paying for advertising blind. See tracking.

Questions

Short answers.

If your question isn't here, call us — we answer by phone too.

+359 882 95 89 89

How long does it take to set up a virtual POS?

Technically it's connected in days. The time goes into the bank's approval — documents, a check of the site and of the business.

So apply in parallel with the build, not after it. Otherwise the shop sits there finished and doesn't sell.

Do I need a company?

For a virtual POS — yes, and usually for the international platforms too. Cash on delivery also runs through a contract with a courier, which requires a company.

If you haven't registered a business yet, that's the first step, not the last.

Which is cheapest?

It depends on your average order. With small amounts, the fixed fee weighs most; with large ones, the percentage.

Work out both on a real order of yours before choosing by the advertised percentage.

Can I have both cash on delivery and cards?

Yes, and most Bulgarian shops do exactly that. You leave the choice to the customer and gradually see which they prefer.

Sometimes a small discount for paying by card shifts a large share of orders and saves on courier fees.

Who's responsible if payments break?

It depends on where it broke — in the shop, in the plugin or at the provider. That's why the contract should state who maintains the connection and with what response time.

With us, this is part of maintenance, not something you go looking for when the problem hits.

What do you sell, and what's your average order?

These two answers almost always make it clear which solution is yours. The conversation takes half an hour and doesn't commit you to anything.

+359 882 95 89 89 office@illumi.bg

Sofia, Bulgaria We reply within 24 hours In business since 2012