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Which merchant service you choose and how you develop a good relationship with the people who run it should all be integral to the smooth running of your business operation.

Choosing the Right Merchant Bank

When you are first starting out in business, it can often be the path of least resistance to choose the first merchant bank you come across. Like all other things in life, however, you should shop around and take a closer look at the service you are being offered. If you already have a merchant bank but feel that you have made the wrong decision in choosing them, then it might also be time to look around at the market and what’s on offer.

The problem many businesses find is that some merchant banks tend to be poor at communication. That, in turn, can make it very difficult to build a profitable relationship which is flexible to their needs.

When you are choosing your merchant bank you need to:

• Check their helplines and support thoroughly. Either give them a test call or research online to see what complaints have been made.
• Check the costs you are being asked to pay and compare these with other providers – it can be difficult to do but if you know the sector it’s a lot easier.
• While there are many reputable suppliers of merchant services out there, you can also come across ones that are not so great.

The last thing you want is to start using a merchant bank and find there are problems with connections, the tech you are using or the costs you are being charged for the service. If you are not sure about the market and what you should be looking for, choosing a company that helps you find the right card payment or online merchant service is a good option.

Building a Relationship

Gone are the days where we used to have a local bank manager who we could sit down with and chew the fat. Most business relationships are carried out remotely nowadays, either online or via a web chat facility. That doesn’t mean you can’t still build that relationship and get what you want from your service but is a little more difficult.

Doing your research is a good start and understanding how your merchant bank works with customers is important. You want to know how flexible that bank is going to be as your business grows – for instance if you want to take on new payment options to give your own customers choice. You can often tell a lot about a merchant bank, or any other service, from their helpline and support. This includes how flexible they are in dealing with your queries and, perhaps more importantly, how knowledgeable they are.

• Do they operate a 24/7 helpline service?
• Are they easy to contact?
• Do you get a polite and, above all, helpful response?
• Are they responsive to changes in the payment market and delivering what your business needs?

All these are important if you want to build a trusting relationship with your merchant bank. It can be difficult to gauge with so many providers available but this relationship should be top of your list when you are looking for a service that compliments and benefits your business.

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What Do You Really Need?

The best place to start is with your own, individual business banking needs.

• Are you a store owner who wants to make sure you can accept cards when people come into your shop?
• Do you want a simple method that ties into your tablet or laptop or something more complex?
• How much do you want to be charged for the service?
• What range of cards do you need to be able to accept?
• Are you also operating online and want to tie up your payment service with your bricks and mortar store?
• Do you want a basic merchant service provision that can expand as your business develops?

There are plenty of issues to consider as a small business and it can often be useful to talk them through and get independent, impartial advice from someone who knows the industry.

Shop Around

Not all merchant services are born equal. There are also many of them out there to choose from.

It’s not a simple case of picking any one for your SME and expecting them to provide everything you need. Costs and packages vary which is why you need to be sure of what you need with any card payment system. As with all service purchases nowadays, you should be shopping around as much as possible to find the right deal for your business. Don’t just settle for the first merchant service you come across.

Ask Questions

There are plenty of questions to ask and you shouldn’t let any rep that contacts you simply run through their sales spiel without challenging them. Work out what could go wrong with the service – for example, what happens if a terminal breaks down? – and ask these important questions. There are other more technical issues to understand such as how the merchant service gateway works and what useful features they offer that sets them apart from competitors.

The other area that you obviously need to check out for your SME is the range of fees that a service charges for card payment solutions. These can vary quite considerably between providers and they are not always immediately obvious.

Do Your Research

That means you need to know something about the industry. There are plenty of resources online about choosing the right card payment service and what questions you should be considering. Once you know what you are talking about, you can quiz any rep about what happens if certain things go wrong or if you need to change your service package.

Check the Support

Unfortunately, it’s one area that many merchant services are falling down on at the moment. You have a problem and want to get in contact with someone but find it difficult simply to pick up the phone and get through. Support is important when you choose any service and this is one area that you need to check out thoroughly. You want it to be readily available and helpful once you get the support on the other end of the line.

Getting good advice when choosing your card payment service is vital and something that can benefit your SME immensely. At acceptcardpayments.com we provide a comprehensive and friendly advice service that puts you in contact with the bespoke merchant service that your business needs. Ending up with a poor merchant service and card payment solution can not only badly impact on your business it can cost you money that could be better spent elsewhere.

The post Top 5 Tips for Finding the Card Best Payment Method for Your SME appeared first on Accept Card Payments.

That’s led to a revolution in the merchant services marketplace.

The good news is that is now easier than ever to find a card payment service whatever the size of your business. The bad news is that some SMEs are still not making smart choices when it comes to selecting the right provider.

The first mistake small businesses make is believing that all merchant services are the same. They pick the first one they come across, apply and start working with them without really understanding fully what they are getting into. That includes what fees they are expected to pay for credit and debit card payments and what happens if something goes wrong including who is responsible.

• Reading the Terms and Conditions: Surprisingly, this is something that many small business owners fail to do properly. They give the small print a cursory glance and sign up for their merchant service without being entirely sure what their commitment is. While many merchant services are reputable, this is a crowded market place and there are others who are not so concerned about your future success or delivering the kind of service you are looking for.
• Hidden Fees: When you sign up for a merchant service and start to discover a bunch of hidden fees being applied to your account, it can be very frustrating as well as costing you money. There are several reasons for this – the merchant service could be a new company and not have the right processes or transparency in place or you might have been deliberately deceived by the rep who dealt with you.
• Terms of Contract and Cancellations: These can vary in length up to about three years and means you are tied to that service for that set time. Cancelling your agreement can cost, if you decide to leave so it really is worth checking those T’s and C’s.
• Commitment to Volume: When you sign up for a merchant service you may also have agreed to produce a certain volume of sales per month. This can change, particularly for small business that have, for instance, a dependence on seasonal trade. You are more likely to find this kind of restriction in the US than in places like Europe or Canada, where it is considered unfair.

There may be other reasons why you could have chosen the wrong merchant account. One of the biggest complaints in recent years has been the level of customer service these organisations offer. How easy is your merchant provider to get hold of? Did you get a professional and timely response to your query? If you’re frustrated at not being able to get a solution to an issue, you are not alone. Quite a few merchant services are failing in this area at the moment.

If you are concerned about your current card payment service and want to change, it pays to get some good, impartial advice. Acceptcardpayments.com was set up to do just that, enabling small businesses to get the right merchant service in place which is not only tailored to their needs but is flexible enough to change when that SME begins to grow and thrive.

The post Does Your Small Business Have the Wrong Merchant Account? appeared first on Accept Card Payments.

To handle any card transactions, of course, you need to hold a merchant account.

What is it?

A merchant account is specifically designed to take debit card and credit card payments from your business. In the past, this was fairly costly business for SMEs and was often difficult to set up. With the development of better online resources, however, the merchant services industry has exploded, the cost has come down and accessibility has vastly improved.

Payment Gateways and Payment Processors

When you start looking at merchant services, the first term you’ll probably come across is the payment gateway. If you are using a card machine in a store this transaction goes to the card company to see if the person paying has enough money in their account. For ecommerce transactions, the payment gateway accepts the order and processes the transfer of money from the cardholder’s account to the merchant account of the business.

The other term you might hear is payment processor. Most people think this is the merchant service but it’s really the payment service that the gateway sends information to. Payment processors also handle other transactions such as chargeback requests when a customer requires a refund.

Applying for Merchant Account

You can’t just set up a merchant account, you need to apply for it and be accepted by the provider. This is because each time a card transaction is undertaken, for the merchant service there is a risk and the potential for it to be fraudulent either on the customer’s side or that of the business. All reputable merchant services therefore have a screening service (and may charge for you to apply). The application process generally involves:

• Providing financial statements for your business: For startups this can be problematic as they’ve only just begun trading, though in most cases the potential that you have a lower trading volume could well see you accepted.
• Processing history: If you are swapping from an existing merchant service to a new one, they will look at this to see if there have been any problems.

Getting the Right Advice

The number of merchant services out there is good news in one way for small businesses – there’s plenty of choice. The problem is finding the merchant account that works for you and which meets your needs as you start your business and begin to grow. There are plenty of options to consider and it always pays to get some sound advice and support when setting up. You could do all the research yourself or you might want to get advice and guidance from a service such as acceptcardpayments.com. We will not only be able to find the right merchant account for your startup business but we will be able to work with you so that you improve your chances of being accepted. Having a card payment solution for your business is vital in today’s world of commerce, not only for improving sales but ensuring you have a safe and secure way to do business with your growing customer base.

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