Frequently Asked Questions

  • How do I sign up?
  • What does iTransact E-Commerce do?
  • What does it cost? How and when am I billed?
  • What is included in the price?
  • How long does setup take? How will I know when it's done?
  • What payment types can I accept?
  • How do I know when I receive an order?
  • What do I do when someone orders Market America products through my portal?
  • What do I do when someone orders Partner Store products through my portal?
  • How do I process card payments received in person or over the phone?
  • How and when do I receive my money?
  • How do BV and IBV work with E-Commerce orders?
  • Can I use E-Commerce to sell web sites?
  • Can I use E-Commerce to sell non-Market America items?
  • Are there transaction size limits or daily or monthly sales limits?
  • What are the "imprinter plate" and the phone-authorization card that were mailed to me?
  • What about fraud?
  • How do I change my contact email address that iTransact uses?
  • How do I change the checking account linked to my E-Commerce?
  • I have a merchant account for another business. Can I use it for Market America?
  • How do I get answers to additional E-Commerce questions?
  • How do I sign up for or get answers to questions about the web portal, Web Centers, NMTSS, etc.?


    How do I sign up?
    The application and instructions are available     here.   

    What does iTransact E-Commerce do?
    If you have iTransact E-Commerce, your customers can pay you with credit and debit cards - anytime, anywhere. They can pay you via your portal AND in person, via phone, fax, etc. Your customers can pay you 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, making secure payments that are transferred directly into your checking account. There are major advantages to upgrading to iTransact from Market America's "free" service; they are outlined in the chart at the bottom of     this page.    

    What does it cost? How and when am I billed?
    Details are     here.   

    What is included in the price?

  • A merchant account, i.e., the authority to accept most credit and debit cards - anytime, anywhere, from anyone - and have the money transferred right into your checking account.
  • iTransact's secure payment gateway and Virtual Terminal, i.e., the ability to securely accept payments on (and off) your web portal (and mini-websites) and have the information automatically relayed to the back-end processing network (bank). iTransact also provides emailed receipts to both you and your customer for each order, and an interactive transaction listing for any date range.
  • E-Commerce activation on Market America's shopping cart, i.e., the function on your portal (and mini-websites) which allows your customers to interactively shop, select, and pay you for Market America products.
  • iTransact's Transactions by Telephone service, i.e., the ability to dial into your iTransact account and run sales via any phone (which is handy when you're at a product presentation or on the road).
  • Full installation of all of these features, saving you from the hassle of managing any of the technical issues.   

    How long does setup take? How will I know when it's done?
    E-Commerce setup generally takes less than two weeks from the time we receive your complete application. When it's ready, you will be notified by email.   

    What payment types can I accept?

  • Visa credit and debit card acceptance is automatically included with your merchant account.
  • MasterCard credit and debit card acceptance is automatically included with your merchant account.
  • Diners Club cards now feature a MasterCard logo, so you can accept them like any other MasterCard.
  • Discover Card acceptance typically requires an additional membership fee and/or monthly fee, but iTransact has arranged to have these fees waived for MA distributors. We also take care of the setup for you.
  • American Express card acceptance is available as well; American Express charges additional fees, however (usually $5.95 per month), so we will not set you up with them until you request it.   

    How do I know when I receive an order?
    Each time a payment is made through your iTransact E-Commerce - whether you have input the transaction yourself or your customer has placed an order for Market America products through your portal - the transaction will show up in the Transaction Listing of your Transaction Control Panel. You can click on a transaction for all the details. Be sure to check your Transaction Listing regularly - preferably on a daily basis.
         At the time of each transaction, iTransact will also send you a confirmation email with the order details. Remember that emails sometimes get blocked or filtered, however, so please make a habit of checking your Transaction Listing regularly.
         Finally, if the order was placed through your portal, it will also show up in the E-Commerce section of your Unfranchise.com website.   

    What do I do when someone orders Market America products through my portal?
    One advantage to having iTransact E-Commerce is that all of your customers' orders (and payments) go directly to you (not to Market America), like they would if you had made a cash or check sale. With each portal order, you have the advantage of being able to choose: Do you want to fill the order from your existing inventory, or do you want Market America to fill the order for you? To fill the order yourself, simply give your customer their products. To have Market America fill the order, go to the E-Commerce section of Unfranchise.com. Your portal orders are displayed there. Select the order and click "Send Order to Market America"; Market America will ship the products to your customer and charge you your distributor cost.   

    What do I do when someone orders Partner Store products through my portal?
    Nothing. Each Partner Store will deal directly with the customer. Since Partner Store sales are made by each Partner Store, not by you, you do not collect payment or deliver product in these cases, and the Partner Store sales are not listed in your iTransact transaction listing.    

    How do I process card payments received in person or over the phone?
    An included feature of the E-Commerce package is the iTransact Virtual Terminal. When a customer wants to make payment in person or calls you on the phone, you can manually enter their information into your Virtual Terminal and have the payment authorized immediately. To use the Virtual Terminal,     log into the Transaction Control Panel and click the Virtual Terminal button. If you have misplaced your Gateway ID and/or password, please call iTransact at 801-951-8250 or use our online support system.
         If you do not have an Internet connection handy, you can run the sale via iTransact's Transactions by Telephone service.   

    How and when do I receive my money?
    Funds from credit card sales are deposited into your checking account approximately 2-3 business days after your customer's payment is made. (Business days are Monday-Friday, not including bank holidays.) Funds go directly to you, not to Market America.    

    How do BV and IBV work with E-Commerce orders?
    The same way they do with all sales: Your Market America product sales earn BV, and Partner Store sales made through your portal earn IBV. iTransact is not involved in this aspect of your distributorship, however, so questions about BV and IBV are best asked directly to Market America.    

    Can I use E-Commerce to sell web sites?
    Can I use E-Commerce to sell non-Market America items?
    The Market America/iTransact E-Commerce package includes a merchant account that is approved for the sale of Market America products (including Nutrametrix and Motives products), but not web sites or other items. If you would like a separate account for the sale of web sites or other products or services, however, iTransact can help you with that. For more details, see     What (and How Much) Can I Sell?   

    Are there transaction size limits or daily or monthly sales limits?
    Yes. To ensure rapid, nearly 100% approval of distributors' merchant account applications, the underwriter/processor (e.g., iPayment) sets processing limits. There is no daily limit, but there is a transaction ("ticket") size limit of $500 and a monthly Visa/MasterCard sales limit of $10,000. If you need higher limits, you can submit a request to the processor for review. Always make sure that your request has been approved before exceeding these limits. For more details, see     What (and How Much) Can I Sell?   

    What are the "imprinter plate" and the voice-authorization card that were mailed to me?

  • Imprinter plate: This is the little metal plate with your merchant name on it. All new merchants receive one of these from the processor, but you are not required to use it. You would only need it if you wanted a card imprinter ("knuckle buster") to make imprints of credit cards for your files.
  • Voice-authorization card: This is a yellow card with a voice-authorization phone number. Please note that this is not the number you use for the free Transactions by Telephone service. You would only need this card if you submitted a transaction normally and received a "call auth center" message as a response.   

    What about fraud?
    It is unlikely that you will receive a fraudulent order, but as a merchant accepting credit cards, you need to be aware that there are some dishonest people out there. There are some features in place to help you deal with them:

  • If someone attempts to order from you using a card that (a) has been reported lost or stolen, (b) is blocked by the card-issuing bank, and/or (c) does not have enough available credit on it to complete the purchase, the transaction will not succeed and you will not receive the order. The person submitting the order will receive a message that that card cannot be used.
  • All orders are run through an Address Verification System (AVS) to determine whether or not the address the customer provided matches the information on file with his/her card issuer. The AVS response is included in your transaction confirmation email as well as in the transaction listing in your iTransact Control Panel. Please pay attention to the AVS response and use it to help determine whether you want to ship product. If you'd like, iTransact can automatically void all orders for which the address does not match; please contact us to arrange this.
  • You will receive all customers' information as entered (e.g., address, phone, and email address) and are always welcome to contact them for additional information.
  • If you ever receive an order from someone you are suspicious of (or choose not to do business with), you are not required to ship product. You can return the payment by voiding or crediting it back through the transaction listing in your iTransact Control Panel.   

    How do I change my contact email address that iTransact uses?
    Please use the "Account Settings" interface in the Control Panel. To do this,     log into the Transaction Control Panel and select "Account Settings."
    If you have misplaced your Gateway ID and/or password, please call iTransact at 801-951-8250 or use our online support system.   

    How do I change the checking account linked to my E-Commerce?
    Your merchant account is linked to a checking account of your choice for deposit of your customers' payments and withdrawal of your fees. To link your merchant account to a different checking account, please see     these instructions.   

    I have a merchant account for another business. Can I use it for Market America?
    According to Visa and MasterCard regulations, each business type requires its own merchant account. To get a merchant account approved for the sale of Market America products, please apply     here. If you have an existing merchant account for another business, you can continue to use it for that business. Chances are that iTransact can save you money on that merchant account too, however, and if you send us a referral through the Regional IBV program and subsequently set up with iTransact, you will earn 100 IBV plus the opportunity to join the Market America Partner Program. For the Regional IBV referral form, go to your Unfranchise.com website and select the Regional IBV tab.   

    How do I get answers to additional E-Commerce questions?
    Please call iTransact at 801-951-8250 or use our     online support system.   

    How do I sign up for or get answers to questions about the web portal, Web Centers, NMTSS, etc.?
    Please contact Market America directly with questions about these or any Internet service besides E-Commerce. Market America can be reached at 336-478-4006.