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Any smart business owner knows that accepting credit cards as a
payment option will dramatically increase revenues. Not only do
credit cards offer customers the convenience and ease of not
having to carry around cash or checks, it lends a sense of
professionalism to your establishment as well. The process of
applying to become a credit card merchant can be a bit confusing
and frustrating, so let's take a look at how it all works.
The Credit Card Account
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What you do need to pay attention to are the fees. These fees
will come in three different forms. First, the initial setup fee
(pretty self-explanatory), moving on to the percentage fee (the
provider will take a percentage of each transaction based on
amount of sale), and then ending with the monthly service fee.
Read the fine print of any contract before signing it. Pay
attention to all three fee categories, not just one.
Also, look for contract obligations. Some providers will offer
you great deals but will want you to sign on with them for a
long period of time. You need to be aware of what, if any,
penalties will be charged for getting out of the contract if
things don't work out.
How Do I Actually Get Paid
Obviously, this is pretty important. If a customer has used a
credit card, no money has actually changed hands. Since more and
more customers are now using credit cards, how that money gets
into your account and how fast has become vitally important.
Any of the reputable merchant account providers will provide the
business owner with payment into their account within the first
24 to 48 hours of the initial transaction. Whether that customer
has a balance on that card is not a concern of yours. The bank
will pay you anyway.
If the customer disputes the said transaction, the bank is
usually under no obligation to pay the business owner,
especially if that dispute has been deemed acceptable. If a
business owner has a high number of legitimacy claims against
them, the provider may just drop them.
The majority of the time, though, things go as planned and the
money shows up in your account within a day or two.
Visa is accepted at millions of locations worldwide, so you can use it almost anywhere you can pay cash or write a check.
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