The number of companies offering merchant accounts has made the process for applying to accept credit cards online simpler than ever before. A majority of the major card processing companies now have the application on their Web site, and it only requires a little over 10 minutes to complete. And though there are monthly charges that go with processing plastic, the advantages far outweigh them. According to several studies, e-stores that take credit cards are more likely to see increased customer traffic, sales and profits. And customers are more likely to become repeat shopper if they feel ease and convenience during a shopping experience.