MERCHANT ACCOUNT ANALYSIS

First of all I want to say that this article is not for merchants but is for MLS and ISOs who understand what I am about to say:  Merchant processing statements are a pain! Now with that out of the way, let's talk about why that is. With credit card interchange rates constantly changing, many agents have difficulty reading and offering a merchant account quote .   How much time do you think you have spent staring at merchant statements while still not being able to offer them a competitive statement quote?  Is the merchant account priced as Standard tiered, Interchange-Plus, or the confusing  Enhanced-Recovery pricing?  How much time has been lost in the sales process during this important step! On the other hand, perhaps you currently work with a processor who  offers a free merchant statement analysis service.  They want to do it, but there are more pressing tasks that must be handled.  I know as I worked for a company for many years as ...

Less than five years ago, barely anyone even knew there was an option to get a free terminal from their merchant account service provider. You used to have purchase, rent or even worse – lease a terminal for 3-4 years and pay nearly four times as much. Now free terminals are everywhere! This may cause you to wonder if there is any reason why you shouldn’t get a new free terminal when you switch providers. WHAT THE FREE TERMINAL PROGRAM INVOLVES We have all heard the phrase, “Nothing is free.” That is most often the case. But some companies really do offer a free terminal placement. In other words, they let you use their terminal for as long as you process with them. But of course your merchant account requires certain fees that cannot be waived if you choose a free placement terminal. Most merchants don’t even know that they can get these fees waived. Most companies require a monthly minimum discount fee of $25.00 and even an annual fee which can range from $50-100. And finally...