Internet Merchant Certifications for Small and Home Based Businesses

How do you distinguish your website from all the other ones out there? And how do you get your customers to believe that you operate a serious business where they can feel comfortable shopping? Well the standard is increasingly turning to various forms of merchant certifications and seals of approvals for websites. But which one is right for you?

There are plenty of organizations out there that offer all kinds of certifications. Most of them are however very expensive or they only certify security of transactions or verify actual incorporation. In other words for most home based or new businesses there are not a lot of certification options out there. There are some exceptions of services though that focuses on giving a Seal of Approval to websites based on a good service history and other qualifications geared to the small and home based internet business rather than the large corporation.

An example of this type of certification is IBCIM.ORG, The International Bureau of Certified Internet Merchants. They operate the Merchant Certified Seal of Approval program where internet businesses from any country or industry can obtain a Seal of Approval to display on their website. The Seal is linked to an Instant Verification Page where the website's customers can instantly go and verify membership and the certification status of the business. A seal such as this one is a powerful tool to enable businesses to compete online.

The bottom line for small businesses is to find way to stand out from the crowd and initiate that first sale which is precious when you are starting out. And the only way to do that is to make sure that your visitor is comfortable shopping on our site. In other words they have to trust you.

To learn more about an internet merchant certification visit www.ibcim.org