Increased concerns about the economy and the availability of credit are driving up interest in eLayaway LLC, which now has more than 1,000 participating merchants and recently launched an online shopping mall to get merchants started, vice president of strategic relations Michael Bilello says.
Computer and consumer electronics e-retailer CompSource Inc. recently decided to offer eLayaway because of rising demand from customers, CompSource president Dean Bellone says. Because of economic times we’ve had requests for a lay-a-way type product, but this is not something we want to handle ourselves, he says.
Tallahassee, FL-based eLayaway provides a system that lets a consumer pay for a product in monthly installments through automated direct debits from her checking account. Payment periods can range from a few months to more than a year, depending on the merchant’s needs. The consumer pays a flat fee based on 1.9% of the purchase price, but no additional transaction fees, Billelo says.
Payments made by consumers are held by HSBC bank until a complete purchase price is paid; HSBC then forwards the full payment to the merchant, who then ships the customer’s order.
Online merchants can deploy eLayaway as a payment option integrated with their shopping carts under multiple arrangements. For merchants with $20 million or more in annual sales, eLayaway charges no fees, earning revenue only through the 1.9% fee it charges to consumers.
Merchants with less than $20 million in annual sales have multiple options. A demo package lets these merchants try out the system with three initial transactions at no charge, then a per transaction fee of up to 2.49% of the sale. For a flat monthly fee of $49.95, merchants pay no transaction fees. For a flat monthly fee of $74.95, merchants get marketing assistance from eLayway in addition to paying no transaction fees.
ELayaway recently launched a shopping mall at eLayaway.com/mall, where it works with participating merchants to feature a limited mix of products and price ranges. Merchants participating in the mall pay no monthly or transaction fees. ELayaway is offering the mall as a way to introduce the service to retailers and provide evidence of how consumers use it, Billelo says.
At CompSource, No. 412 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, Bellone says he also accepts payments through eBillme, PayPal and Google Checkout as well as all major credit cards. He’s also planning to accept BillMeLater. But as he accepts more payment methods, he’ll probably discontinue any that are not performing well so as not to confuse shoppers with too many payment options, he says.
ELayaway also recently introduced eLayaway Advantage as a service designed to help consumers rebuild their credit ratings. Participants pay a flat monthly fee of $8.95 instead of the 1.9% transaction fee. Every time they complete a purchase, eLayaway automatically reports their transaction to credit rating firm Fair Isaac to help them rebuild their credit score.