Credit Card Processing
Not all credit card processing services are created equally. Many companies offer something called third-party credit card processing where they process credit card transactions for you using THEIR merchant account. This is not the same thing as having your own merchant account and has many drawbacks:
- Third party processors typically charge much higher discount rates and transaction fees. The third party processor has a merchant account that has its own fees that the processor has to pay, and the processor must then mark these fees up substantially to make a profit. For example, when you get your own, real merchant account with Charge.com for a business conducting Internet, mail order, and phone order transactions, the discount rate for credit card processing is 2.25% and the transaction fee is 25 cents per transaction. Third party processors typically charge more than twice that amount, charging a discount rate of 5% or more and 50 cents per transaction. The processing costs with third party processors are typically astronomical!
- Third party processors typically hold your money for a long time before paying you the money that YOU EARNED. The typical wait time is between 2 and 4 weeks! When you have your own merchant account with Charge.com, you will get your money in only 2 to 3 days.
- When third party processors process credit cards, the third party processor’s name appears on the credit card statement along with the merchant’s business name. Sometimes, the merchant’s business name might not even appear on their customer’s statement, at all! This looks extremely unprofessional for merchants and is bad for business. When you have your own merchant account with Charge.com, only your business name will appear on your customer’s statement, not ours!
- When third party processors hold funds, it is typically not FDIC insured. That means that if the processor goes out of business, it is unlikely the merchants will ever be able to recover the funds that were being held. When you get a real merchant account with Charge.com, your merchant account is issued by Wells Fargo Bank and it is FDIC insured!
Click Here to sign up for credit card processing with a real merchant account from Charge.com