Benefits of Merchant Services

No matter what size your business may be or the industry in which you operate, there are a number of positive aspects to being able to accept credit cards as a form of payment. In addition to giving your customers or clients another payment option, you also introduce your business to a new segment of clientèle – always a good thing!

Moreover, paying with credit cards into today’s virtual, cashless society helps you ensure timely, guaranteed payment that can be transferred into your account with little to no effort on your part. You can also offer customers various incentives for paying with credit cards, including prepaid programs and special gift card offers. Many credit card companies will offer their own incentives, a powerful duo when combined with your product/service offers.

What (Who?) are your choices for credit card processors?

When choosing credit card merchant account services, there are a number of options from which to choose. Here are a few to consider:

- Your bank: You can use the bank in which you do regular business as a potential merchant account provider. Keep in mind that many banks do not do this type of processing themselves, but are able to farm it out to a third party entity. In fact, in many cases, your bank will offer merchant account services in conjunction with a business account package. When you approach a bank to do general business services, ask if this service is included when opening your account. Moreover, you should shop around to different banks to get a feel for the different rates. This will allow you to get a sense of the competitiveness of the various packages and help you make an informed decision about who will be handling your credit card processing needs.

- An established credit card company: Each company handles credit card merchant account services differently; however, this may be a viable option for a business looking to offer credit card processing. For example, Visa will require you to have an established account through another intermediary organization before offering you credit card processing for your business. Conversely, American Express will work with you directly to set up an account.

- International merchant account company: Also known as an offshore merchant account, this may be the riskiest option. Most businesses that opt to have credit card processing done through an international merchant account provider are usually those with little or poor credit history, odd location or another reason that doesn’t allow them access to companies located in the United States. Keep in mind that most of these companies are not regulated in the same manner as those in the United States, making them a risky investment for your merchant account provider choice.

- Registered credit card broker: These also are known as independent sales organizations and usually represent several third party processors at any given time. Similar to banks, they do not actually process the transactions themselves, but set up accounts with those that do. These are usually more expensive services than smaller merchant account provider organizations. Many of these organizations are not as regulated as banks are so, again, this is a bit of a riskier investment for your credit card processing needs.

A good source for comparing credit card processing price quotes is Resource Nation’s Price Comparison Service.