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Author: Joel Kristenson
Last Updated: 2016-08-24
Overview
This article walks through the steps to get your Vanco merchant gateway account setup and activated in your Trail Blazer database.
Vanco is one of the most streamlined merchant gateways to get setup because their support techs and ours will do the majority of the work for you behind the scenes, unlike the PayPal and Authorize.Net options, which require a bit more work by the customer. It usually takes about 4-6 days to get the Vanco account approved by their company before we can enable it in your database.
Tip: You can choose from a variety of merchant gateway accounts that integrate with Trail Blazer (as of the time this article was written there are 3). Each has their own pluses and minuses – this page provides details about each option as well as a price calculator. Contact us if you have questions about which one to go with.
Steps
First you’ll need to get the process going by setting up your Vanco account on their website (https://apply.vancopayments.com/trailblazer.html):
Once you complete their forms it will take about 4-6 days for them to approve the account.
At that point they’ll send our support techs the required information that is needed for your database. We’ll take care of this process on our end and notify you once it’s complete, but just so you are aware (or want to verify this yourself) the 3 pieces of information required includes:
- Vanco User ID (Ex: BENCHMAR)
- Vanco Client ID (Ex: ES11219)
- Vanco Password (Ex: v@nco2oo)
This information is entered into the Payment Gateway section of your database under the System Manager branch (requires appropriate security clearance).
Here’s the example from my database:
You’ll also need to fill out a form if you want to utilize the EFT/ACH option on your donation/checkout page(s).
The next step that we’ll take is to send Vanco back a recurring URL from the Website Configuration area of your database so that you can utilize the recurring URL options on your donation form(s). My example is below.
Once we finish these steps you’ll receive an email from one of our support techs that the process is complete, and the next steps you’ll need to take to generate a donation form iFrame, and implant it into your existing website. You’ll also want to create a thank-you redirect page, and a custom email responder to send to your donors once they make a contribution.
Once everything is complete, run a test donation of $5 or more on your donation form, hosted at: https://www.trailblz.info/YourDatabaseName/donations.aspx
Replace ‘YourDatabaseName’ with your Database Name (ex: https://www.trailblz.info/DemoNonprofit_Joel/donations.aspx).
Tip: We can put your donation form in test mode prior to getting your merchant account setup so that you can begin the process of implanting it on your website, creating the thank-you page, and thank-you email responder. Once the gateway is setup we’ll simply take it out of test mode for you.
The related resources below provide a lot of useful information on how integrate our forms into your website. If you have any questions along the way, don’t hesitate to contact our live support line (1-866-909-8700).
Related Resources
Website: List of Merchant Gateway Options that Integrate with Trail Blazer
Website: Gateway Cost Comparison
Article: Linking your Website to your Database with Configurable iFrame Forms
Article: Configure Website (iFrames)
Article: How to Configure Recurring Donation Options for your Trail Blazer Donation Form (must be either using Vanco services or Authorize.Net as your Merchant Gateway)
Article: How to Enable ACH (E-Check) Payments with the Vanco Merchant gateway on Trail Blazer’s Donation Form
Article: How to Verify you’re PCI Compliant by Filling Out Vanco’s Required Form
Article: How to Verify Authorize.Net Recurring Donations (ARB) Transactions are Configured Correctly in your Trail Blazer Database
Article: How to Setup your PayPal Payments Pro API Configuration to Work with Trail Blazer by Generating a Username, Password, and Signature
Article: Website Email Notification
Article: Configure Website – Legacy Article
Video: Iframes
Video: Donation Auto Responders with Merge Fields
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