How you accept online payments goes a long way to determine the scale and success of your online profits. Small business owners must not only be ready to represent their businesses online, they must also be ready to start accepting credit card payments for their goods and services. Here are three things you need to know that will help you determine if merchant services are right for your small business.
What Are Merchant Services?
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Beginning a new aspect of your small business presents many paths, many doors, many options. A good definition is a good place to start. What exactly are merchant services?
Merchant services are authorized financial services that allow a business to accept credit card or bank debit card transactions using online ordering or point-of-sale systems. The process involves obtaining sales information from you, the small business owner, receiving authorization for the transaction, collecting funds from the issuer of the card (a bank), and sending the payment to you.
Do You Pay Fees for Merchant Services?
As relevant as merchant services are to your small business, there are regulated fees you must pay to enjoy their services. If you don’t select your merchant service provider with care, you will have to contend with fees that can take away a large portion of your profits.
Transaction Fees
The moment customers enter their credit or debit card details online to pay for your goods, you will be charged a fee for the transaction. Transactions fees are determined by a number of factors, which your agreement with your merchant services provider will explain.
Chargeback Fees
Chargeback fees are also called incidental fees. Some merchant services will charge you a fee for every chargeback you incur. If your small business receives a high amount of chargeback, it can be a heavy load on your business profits.
Flat Fees
Some merchant services will charge you some flat fees annually or monthly. There are different variations of merchant services flat fees with the different merchant services providers. You should find out details of this before you choose a merchant service for your business.
Types of Services Merchant Services Render
The following are some of the services merchant services render.
EMV Enabled Payment
EMV is a global standard for credit and debit payment card based on the chip card technology. It’s important you understand the process of EMV-enabled payments and of how merchant services help businesses determine fraud.
This is a powerful option for your small business. Credit card fraud is prevalent in our society today. So this extra line of protection is extremely useful for your small business.
Rewards Program of Merchant Services
A common example of a rewards or loyalty program of merchant services is when you are offered some cash for referring other customers to their services. There are many other types of reward programs from merchant services that an average small business owner can exploit.
If you understand what merchant services are, the types of services they render, and the various types of fees associated with their services, you could be ready to start using the services of one for your small business.