Whether your business is retail, virtual or online, one thing is certain — getting paid in full by your customers is essential to your success.

And if you accept credit cards already (or not), knowing how credit card processing really works can pay off for you.

Big time.

That’s because knowing how the system works can help you get the best account for your business.

Credit Card Processing Simplified…

To accept credit cards for your business, you’ll need some way for customers to give you their credit card information.

For retail, that means having a credit card terminal or POS system. For online businesses, you will generally need some sort of shopping cart software that links to a “gateway” in order to securely capture your customers credit card information.

Once the transaction is approved you can expect the money (less fees) to be direct-deposited into your bank account.

This generally occurs 24 to 48 hours later, not counting weekends.

Yes, even merchant accounts run on “banker’s hours.”

Probably the most common question people ask about is how your rates and fees are calculated.

That’s because most merchant account providers promise you that their rates are the lowest, and will even advertise extremely low rates to get you to sign up.

However, the actual processing rates you will pay are based on three (3) factors:

1. How you accept credit cards (i.e. online, face to face)
2. The type of card you accept (i.e. rewards, corporate)
3. Your business type

Face to face transactions will cost less than processing payments online. This is useful to know because many of the rates you see published online only apply to a very specific face to face processing rate that applies to 25% of retail transactions (or less).

That means most businesses will never qualify for this rate.

Ever.

Additionally, if you process a lot of rewards cards or corporate cards you will generally pay more for these transactions.

And these higher processing fees may not even show up on your statement in black and white. Typically these additional fees get lumped together as a “surcharge” of some kind.

Which means that credit card processing involves much more than just a single rate.

So beware of sales people only quoting one rate to you without disclosing all the rates and fees that may apply to your business.

Finally, some businesses (like gas stations) get a better deal on processing rates. However, most retail businesses get lumped together into the same category.

There are other rates and fees that most merchant account providers charge as well.

These include:

1. Transaction fees
2. Monthly fee
3. PCI compliance fee
4. Annual fee
5. Chargeback fees
6. Monthly minimum fees

So what does this all mean?

There’s more to accepting credit cards than signing up with the first company to walk through your door. Knowing about these additional rates and fees gives you a chance to negotiate for a better account.

And by comparing a handful of companies you can be sure that you have found…

The Right Merchant Account Provider

For a new merchant account, simply request your free rate quotes today by clicking the link below.

And if you already have a merchant account, request a merchant account comparison from qualified providers today…

Click the link and compare free
merchant account quotes today >>>

Or you can follow the link for our directory of retail merchant account providers that can help you get set up for your State or Metro area.

Either way the choice is yours…