How to choose the correct Payments Processor for Your Business?
AUTHOR: JOHANNA SAEED, 2ND MAY 2024.
Hi there, so it seems you are looking for the right Merchant Processing Company or Payments Processor for Your Business. Well you’re in the right place as in this blog we’ll cover which payments processor to go with depending on the Type, Volume and Needs of Your Business. (Approx. 7 Minutes Read)
New Business Owners
For any new business there can be a number of challenges that they have to overcome before you even hit the market. Not only have you got to take care of the legal stuff, you also have to make sure to keep costs at the lowest while making sure whatever you’re setting up goes a long run.
When it comes to Merchant Processing or Payment Processors they can be quite tough on any new business in the market. Since you’re just starting out merchant processing companies just aren’t sure if your business will stick around or not, and we’ll be honest they will try their best to profit off of you as much as possible.
There are some great options such as Square if you are not sure yourself of your business’s potential. (by potential we mean your average monthly sales volume) Not only does Square not have any monthly fees they also usually don’t have contracts. (Always try and avoid contracts when not sure of what to do)
Some merchant processing companies may not even board your business such as First Data/ Clover since they usually only support businesses who have been in the market for some time at least. The Key is to have your business document(s) and information with you such as your Business License or Articles of Incorporation, for Sole Prop Business Owners it is your Business Registration before applying for a merchant processing account to be able to take payments at your business whether your business is Online or a Physical Location.
All companies have their own requirements, majority of the time you will be asked for your ID, Business Registration and your Banking Information such as a Void Cheque or Bank Pad.
The Key here is to avoid High Credit Card Processing Fees and especially Miscellaneous Fees such as Non-PCI Compliance Fees, Risk Assessment Fees & Dial Communication Fees. These are just a few names of the various different Random* fees that some Merchant Processing Companies or Brokers will charge you to make profit.
If this sounds like too much information, you can always speak to one of our helpful Team Members here at Rare® who would be more than happy to guide you to a better system of taking Payments at your business without breaking bank. Please feel free to Contact Us
What about Businesses who have been here for some time? How do you know if you're with the right Payments Processing Company?
The Answer is Simple, we usually ask anybody this question… “How would you rate your current merchant processing company from 1-10?”
If your answer is below 8, you definitely need to switch your Payments Processing Company, whatever the reason may be. For some business owners it is bad customer service and for some it’s higher fees. We also speak to some business owners who are overall satisfied with the services but simply cannot get the solutions they’re looking for on top of their Payments ability such as compatibility with QuickBooks (now known as Intuit) or POS Capabilities such as Inventory Management.
In order for you to consider the right payments processing company you need to consider some things;
1. If your business processes any more card payments than the amount of $5,000 per month, Square is not the right choice due to very high processing fees on Debit/Credit Cards. You need to look for low processing fees when changing your providers, a good processing fees would range from 0.30%-0.15%
2. If you have an Online Business, it’s always better to see if your Shopping Cart is compatible with the Gateway from the payments processing company before making the change.
3. Always try and avoid purchasing the terminal or hardware, Rentals and Leases are your best friend in this market. Why would you buy a device that you have no idea about? Some companies may say that you can resell the devices at some point in the future but that simply isn’t true. A Terminal bought from another company cannot be used with another companies software.
4. Be on the look out for Miscellaneous fees such as Annual Fee or Set Up Fee.
5. Before signing any contracts or documents always ask for written proof of the offer being made to your business, even an E-mail is fine, don’t just trust anything that somebody says.
If you’re still not sure whether making the switch would be a good decision for your business.
Well we got good news for you, we here at Rare offer 100% Free Statement Analysis which basically compares your previous processing company to services from us and showcases whether it is a good decision or not with full transparency.
All you have to do is simply send us one of your monthly merchant statements that you receive from your current services provider and we’ll do all the maths for you! If you’re not certain on how to get your hands on one of these monthly merchant statements, once again our team would be more than happy to guide you through the 2 minute process of getting one, all for the good of your business.
Once again this is a No Obligations Zone, so, if you believe that the switch won’t be worth it for your business, we’ll be glad that we were able to show you how good your current services provider is for your business.
