At first as a small business owner myself, when it comes to credit card processing, I get skeptical because you never know who to trust, who is telling the truth, or just trying to make another sale by promising you the happy land. However, after I became well educated I'm able to detect who is trying to make a sale and who is telling the truth.

In today's blog, I want to share with you how to avoid being overcharged:

1-Properly set up your account and terminal

Sometimes, a simple mistake can lead you to paying higher credit card processing fees. An easy way to avoid this little costly mistake is by understanding how you accept your payments. Do you mostly swipe the card or do you key/ type in the card? What is the percentage for each one?

To explain this:

Let's say your account is set up to accept payments by swiping the card, that means if you key in the card information you will be charged higher fees.

There are 3 ways for us as small business owners to accept payments:

- Swipe or inserting the card via terminal, POS or mobile payment

- Key in the card information (Mostly phone orders)

- Online orders where the customer keys in their own information

You need to understand your business and discuss it with your account representative, maybe that will get you lower rates

**If you have to key in the card information, make sure you enter all the information such as Zip code, CVV, and the address each time. If you skip something, you miss out on potential cost savings.

2- Do not avoid PCI

PCI stands for "Payment Card Industry" which means that you're following the rules and procedures set by the major card issues, OK what does that mean? It means that you're securely handling, processing, and disposing of the sensitive cardholder information.

If you just have set up your account or have been with your current processor for a while and did not get compliant or unsure ASK YOUR account manager. Normally what happens is they send you a link to answer a lot of questions. It normally takes about 20 minutes but make sure you answer each question correctly.

The PCI Certification program usually costs anywhere from $90 to $165 annually HOWEVER if you are not compliant the fee will be in the ballpark of $20 per month. So, 20 minutes can save you $20 a month.

** Make sure when you do the survey, you finish it to the end and receive the certificate at the end

3-Rates vs. Cost

"What is your lowest rate?" Every business owner thinks the lowest the rate is the lowest the cost. I know because I used to think the same way but after comparing hundreds of statements from my own businesses throughout the years and some other small business owners. I found out that one of the two things happen if not both:

A- When they give you the lowest rate, they high jack the fees.

For an example: A processor will give you the lowest rate and even sometimes they say "No rates" or "Zero rates" but they will charge you $40/month PCI Compliance fee.

B- They do provide you with the lowest rate, just because they want to take your business but the rate will go up after the first 3 months, or for the first year. In most cases, it's called "Sign up rate".

So, you were happy that you got the lowest rate and you feel like a winner but down the road, you see your statement and the prices are going up. Now you know what is going on.

The bottom line is just make sure to read the fine writing and clear it with your account manager and do not celebrate too early.

When shopping for credit card processing, it's easy to fall into the traps. Just be aware because I do not want you to be losing money because of a dishonest salesperson. Do NOT let anyone take advantage of you and your money because at the end of the day, no one will care about your money but you.

If you feel that you could be paying less in credit card fees, Contact me and I will walk you through the process and what you should do.

803-586-3584

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