3 Things to Keep in Mind When Hiring a Credit Card Processing Company
Processing credit cards for customers who want to buy your products is a must in today's world, so it's important to find a reliable processing company to work with long term. Here are a few things you should keep in mind while choosing a credit card processing company:
1. Understand Multiple Payment Options
One important thing to think about when choosing a credit card processing company to work with is the types of payment options you want to offer to your customers. If you run only a storefront, then you likely don't need to worry about anything but point-of-sale payment options. But if you sell your products online or through multiple sales outlets, you may want to be able to take payments on the Internet and over the phone.
Determine what your exact needs are now and keep future needs in mind when deciding which payment options your service provider should offer. If you plan to expand your business in any way, will that expansion require additional payment options for your customers? If so, find a credit card processing company to work with now that can offer those payment options later when you need them.
2. Calculate the Processing Rates
Don't just assume that all the credit card processing companies you consider working with will offer similar processing rates just to stay competitive; rates can vary greatly from company to company depending on the size and reputation of the company, the services they offer, and the types of clients they serve.
Ask for a copy of the processing rates in writing before committing to a particular credit card processing company so you can take the time to compare those rates to others on the market. When comparing rates, keep everything from customer service availability to payment processing convenience when determining the value of the rates you're being offered. This will help ensure that you will get the most bang for your buck.
3. Get Access to Reports
You need convenient access to your credit card processing reports as time goes on. So the processing company you decide to work with should allow you to log in to an online account to read and print reports and statistics in real-time whenever you want to. You should be able to look up important topics individually or as a whole such as who made purchases from your company within a specified time, how much your business made on a particular day of the month, and what percentage of charge backs you have experienced lately.