Merchant Account Blog & Credit Card Processing Blog

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Potential Largest Breach In History

Heartland announced this week that the company breached possibly over 600 Million credit card transactions, since May, 2008, as reported in the Ny Times. Seems hacker’s secretly installed a software program that captured the personal credit card numbers, of customers swiping their credit cards at merchant locations who process credit cards with Heartland.

Information seems limited and it’s not clear, as to the extent of damages.

Heartland Payment Systems, Princeton, N.J., works with about 175,000 small merchant accounts and processes about 100 million credit card processing transactions a month.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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Consumer Credit Line Cutting Has Begun !!!!!!

Starting last December, credit card companies have begun to cut credit card limits on consumer credit cards. The cut backs seem to be across the board for all consumers, as even cardholders with +700 credit ratings are feeling the pinch. In an effort to reduce their risk, credit card companies will put a strange on the average business owner, by not only cutting their credit lines, but reduce the buying power of consumers and other business owners, as well.

These actions are sure to increase the pain of the current recession, by snowballing the slowing spending on both the consumer side and the business investment side. As spending slow’s, more jobs will be cut, more mortgages in default, and more folks seeking the social safety nets of welfare.

We firmly believe that things will get worse, before they get better.

Today, we had a new President sworn in, as the 44th President of the United States. We’ve handed the reins to a social idealist, with many Anti-Capitalistic Idea’s in his heart.

Not sure if this is a time for social change, when financial growth is the crisis that will destroy the well-being of every American.

SOCIAL CHANGE ??????  FINANCIAL CRISIS ??????

God Bless America !!!!!!       DIGG THIS NOW !!!!!!

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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Understanding Your Merchant Account Responsibities !!!!

If you are shopping for a new merchant account, you need to understand what you are getting into. Many times business owners are in a rush to set-up credit card processing for their business, they overlook the fact that they are entering into a contract that has many responsibilities and rules to abide by.

Many times merchants will find out the hard way, by being fined or getting their merchant account shut down. In some instances, merchants are “TMF’d” which means they lose their privilege to accept credit cards in the future. It surely make more sense to understand your responsibilities and model your business to conform with the rules set-forth by Visa and Mastercard.

Accepting Credit Cards - A Privilege:

Understand that being accepted to accept credit cards is a privilege, not your right !!!! Should you take this lightly, you could find yourself losing this privilege, permanently. That’s right, permanently !!!! You could personally be banned from ever accepting credit cards, for any business endeavor in the future. 

Unhappy Customers Can Destroy You:

An unhappy customer can create havoc on your business. Credit card holder’s have the right to call their credit card company and dispute a transaction on their credit card. These disputes have the potential of becoming a “Chargeback” to your business. A chargeback is simply a reversal of the charge, from your bank account, back to the customers card. These reversals come with very stiff fines to the business owner and could get your account terminated. Here some key points to avoiding chargebacks.

• Offer A Superior Product Or Service
• Quickly Resolve Customer Service Issues
• 100% Unconditional Return Policy
• Toll Free Customer Support
• Maintain Signatures + Shipping Records

Exceeding Volume Limit’s:

Every merchant account agreement has an “Average Monthly Volume” amount for Visa & Matercard. During your approval process, this amount is underwritten by the processor and is usually based on the credit scores of the merchant. If you are approved for that amount, you must process within the limit.

Should the limit become an issue, you must call in to ask that it be re-evaluated by the underwriting department. If your credit scores are too low, you may not get an increase.

If you simply ignore this limit, at some point your account will be shut-off.

Exceeding Ticket Limit’s:

Every merchant account agreement has an “Average Ticket” amount for Visa & Mastercard. Again, during the approval process, this amount is underwritten based on your credit scores. From an underwriting stand point, the higher the ticket, the higher the risk. If your account is approved for a certain ticket amount, you must process within that limit. Occasional “High Tickets” should be disclosed on the application, prior to underwriting. Contacting your “Risk Department”, prior to running high tickets is advised.

If you simply ignore this limit, your account could be terminated.

Honor All Cards:

Every merchant account agreement has a “Honor All Cards” Claus. This means as a Visa / Mastercard Merchant, you are bound to honor every credit card transaction presented to your business. That tiny sign at your local diner that states, “$10 Credit Card Minimum” is in direct violation of the terms of the merchant account agreement.

You cannot charge a “Surcharge” on credit card transactions either, this would also be in violation of the merchant agreemnet, as well.

Reserve Account:At any time, at the sole discretion of the bank, the bank has the right to place funds on hold in a non-interest barring reserve account. Reserve account is to protect the bank from future losses due to fines, chargebacks, ect that may come through your merchant account. Hold time-frame will be determined by the bank and is usually for long enough time period to cover future customer chargebacks.

In Conclusion:

As you can see, “Your Privilege” to accept Visa & Mastercard comes with many duties and responsibilities. Failure to comply, could prove to be very costly and cause your account to get “Terminated” and potentially lose your credit card processing privilege in future business endeavours. Play it safe, understand the rules and play by them.

If you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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Understanding Different Merchant Account Types

Today we are going to discuss different types of merchant accounts for credit card processing. Their are different methoods of payments, such as face-to-face retail sales, telephone orders, fax orders, ecommerce orders, and wireless point-of-sale transactions. We will discuss each transaction type in detail below.

RETAIL - Face To Face / Swiped Card Transactions

We are all familiar with making a credit card purchase at a retail location, where our credit card is physically swiped through a credit card machine. Card information is transmitted via phone-line or tcp/ip internet connection. Card is authorized and the transaction is approved or declined. Customer signature is required and maintained by the merchant for future reference.

These transaction types receive the Best Rate for the merchant, as the card is present and signatures are verified at the point-of-sale.

KEYED - Telephone Order / Fax Order

A “Keyed” credit card merchant account is for businesses that take’s credit cards from customers who are not present to swipe through a credit card machine. Customers card information is manually keyed into a credit card machine, credit card processing software, or online virtual terminal. Card data is transmitted and verified, including customer address, zip code, and cvv2 information.

These transactions are of higher risk of fraud and typically cost slightly more in fee’s.

E-COMMERCE - Internet Sales / Order Entry

Ecommerce transactions are originated on the interent. Going to an online store, adding things to a shopping cart, and finally clicking “Check-Out”. The customer enter’s in the card information, address information, and the cvv2 code from the back of the card. Information is securely passed and authorized in real-time. Merchants as a rule, never see the customerrs card number for added security.

These transactions are of higher risk of fraud and typically cost slightly more in fee’s.

WIRELESS - Mobile Merchant / Off-Site Sales

Lastly we have a Wireless Merchant Account, where the merchant processes credit cards using a wireless point-of-sale device. Credit cards are swiped through the terminal and data is passed through a wireless signal, which is enqripted for security purposes. Transaction is approved or declined and a signature is required on the receipt. These devices are also becomming popular at restaurant settings, where the device is handed to the customer and the card never leaves the customers hand.

These transactions are considered “Retail”, as the card is present and swiped through a machine.

If you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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Saving Money On Your Merchant Account Fee’s !!!!!!!!!!

Saving money on your merchant account & credit card processing fee’s has never been more simple. We have put together a program to save you hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in fees, depending on your current monthly volume. Perfect solution for any business owner looking to cut cost’s.

INTERCHANGE PLUS PRICING - Start Saving Today !!!!!

In the past, this program has been reserved for High Volume Chains, such as Wal-Mart or McDonalds. We have opened the flood gates for any business size to profit from the savings. For those of you who are not familiar with the term “Interchange”, interchange is the cost passed on by Visa & Mastercard which accounts for the majority of your transaction cost’s. Interchange consists of several hundred catagorys which any transaction could fall under. Here and links to the most recent Interchange Schedule’s for Visa and Mastercard, as you will see this is quite complicated.

To simplify matters, most merchant account’s are on a “Tiered System”, consisting of Qualified, Non-Qualified, and maybe Mid-Qualified rate. These tier’s cover any downgrades by Visa or Mastercard in which certain transactions may fall. This simplifies “Interchange”, but alway’s cost’s more in credit card processing fee’s to a merchant on the Tiered System.

BOTTOM LINE - SAVING MONEY LIKE THE BIG BOY’S !!!!!!

We are now offering “Interchange Plus Pricing” to merchants of any size. Previously reserved for large corporations, this pricing schedule will saving you money on your credit card processing fee’s and is available to any merchant account, regardless of size.

Call us immediately for a cost analysis and began saving like the big boy’s.

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Convenience Store Merchant Account

Accepting credit cards at a convenience store is a must in today’s marketplace. Getting the best rate is equally important to be competitive in your business. We offer special pricing for C-Stores with good monthly sales volumes. Now, convenience store owners can receive special pricing, once only reserved for corporations like WalMart. Saving money on your credit card processing rates & fees has never been more important for convenience store merchant account owners, as we move into a slowing economy.

OTHER C-STORE PRODUCTS:

Convenience store owners looking to reduce their expenses should grab their current statements and give me a call to immediately cut their current credit card processing costs. We look forward to working with you.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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PAY AT PUMPS | MERCHANT ACCOUNT | SAVE THOUSANDS


Gas station owners are in a very competitive business. Every possible edge over the competition is a must to compete in this industry. Saving money on credit card processing can be a lucrative edge over your competitor down the street, who has not analyzed his merchant account expenses.

When you are working on pennies, your credit card processing rates and fees matter. Understanding what those transactions cost workout to on an average basis is key. If your average gas purchase is $40, you need to understand what your current cost is on that card transaction. This cost could really be eating away at your profits, if this goes unchecked.

We can offer you an interchage plus pricing program, at a small fraction above true interchange cost. This program is usually reserved for high volume accounts, but we are now offering it to independant gas station owners of all sizes. We can even included your in-store sales of food & convenience products. We even offer Fleet-Card acceptence like Wright Express and Voyager cards.

Grab your most recent credit card processing statements and give me a call. I’m confident that we can save you money, making your business more competitive.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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As we face these uncertain times in the worldwide financial markets, it seems that Ecommerce Sales may be resilient, even if we face a economic downturn and potentiel recession in the United States. According to a recent article in Barron’s, Jeff Lindsey reports that dispite a slowing economy, he forecasts Ecommerce Transactions to grow 14.3% in the US in 2008.

Online merchants should also benefit from the rising cost of fuel, as many customers would prefer saving the time & gasoline expense of traveling to make a purchase. Ecommerce merchants offering Free Shipping will really make it a “No Brainer” for the consumer looking to save money.

Lastly, online merchants selling products abroad, will benefit from the “Lower Dollar”, as foreign consumers can purchase products & services at a discount.

If you are looking to save money on your credit card processing fees and merchant account rates, please feel free to give me a call on getting your overall cost a an affordable level.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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Getting the best rate on credit card processing is most important for any business with a mercant account. Many merchants were never really trained properly and small mistakes could be costing them unnecessary costs. First of all, transactions must be batched or setteled out each evening or you run the risk of all those transactions being surcharged as Non-Qualified transactions by Visa or Mastercard. Be sure that you are closing all batches within 24 Hours to avoid the penalty.

Next, if you are “Keying” a card number rather than “Swiping” it, Visa & Mastercard require that AVS Information be attempted and passed-through with the transaction data. This includes the “Street Number” and “Zip Code” of the customer, along with the “CVV2″ code on the back of the credit card. If this information is Not Attemped, the transaction will be surcharged as a Non-Quailified transcation by Visa or Mastercard. Aside from avoiding a surcharge, this information will assist merchants in reducing the risk of an expensive chargeback and the fees associated with them.

SAVE MONEY ON YOUR CREDIT CARD PROCESSING COSTS:

If you are looking to reduce your overall cost on credit card processing, please grab you current processing statements and give me a call. We can do a line-by-line comparsion and save you hundreds if not thousands, on your current credit card processing costs.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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Visa has announced changes in Interchange Rates, due to take effect on October 3rd, 2008. For the most part, the average merchant should not feel any pain. As most of you know, “Interchange” is a complcated mass of different catagories for different transaction types. Seems that for the most part, the major change is the addition of the following New Interchange Catagories:

Debt Repayment -This category allows agencies that take payment for auto loans, student loans and mortgages to pay a lower rate. This Interchange category does not apply to past due debt such as items in collections.

Pay at the Pump - This fee is a reduction. Consumer credit cards used at gas pumps have been lowered by as much as .50 basis points. Prepaid gas cards will also now be to “Partial Authorization.” Some examples of these types of cards are Shell Cards and Wright Express cards.

Tax Payments - This program is a requirement for all merchants. There will be no cost for the program until April 1, 2009, but a convenience fee may be assessed. This fee may vary for consumer credit cards and commercial credit cards. For consumer debit transactions, a flat fee may be assessed and cannot exceed $3.95.

Government to Government - This category has gone up by .25 basis points for transactions over $8,750. The $5,000 minimum has been removed and Level 2 and Level 3 data is not required.

Again, most business owners will not be effected by the changes. Gas stations actually will benefit and will hopefully pass that savings on to the consumer, as Visa had intended to help consumers with the high cost of gasoline in this change.

If you have any questions or are looking to Save Money On Processing Costs, please give me a call.

MARK SANDS
1st National Processing
http://www.usa-merchantaccount.com
1-866 828-8683

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