A business that selects a credit card processing (CCP) agency, solely because of its cheap processing rates, is making a grave mistake. Processing fee is only a small part of the complete CCP solution you buy from the provider. You must evaluate the other services offered by a merchant account provider before signing it on.

Follow these guidelines to assess a credit card processor:

Verify the Customer Care Service

A business may need the help of customer care often in the initial days of using the point-of-sale terminals and installed software. It is important that customer care personnel respond without delay, or you may lose the sale. A credit card (CC) processor that has 24×7 customer care services is always preferable since an immediate solution is required when you face CCP problems.

Enquire about the quality of customer care service from current and past customers. This will give you an idea of the agency’s attitude towards customer care service, knowledge level of the personnel, promptness of the response and what they are being charged for the service.

Enquire about the Security Features Offered for Card-Less Transactions

Most internet CCP agency offer security features for card-less payments to reduce the risk of credit card fraud. Security features include encryption of CC information, address verification, IP address blocking, etc. Advanced security options make the credit card transactions safer, but may cost extra.

Understand the Fee Structure

Card processors charge fees other than the discount fee, under various names. Make sure all the fees are included in the contract and that there are no hidden fees or ambiguous terms and conditions. Never sign a contract without having your lawyer go over it.

Verify the Reputation

The market is full of big and small CCP agencies offering cheap and fast services. Some of these may not even be legitimate. Do not deal with an agency without checking its references. If the agency does not have any customer referrals, check out its rating in the Better Business Bureau. Any complaints or disputes against the agency should be listed here. Question the provider on these matters.

Get Contact Names, Numbers and Email Addresses

The merchant must have details such as the name of the credit card processor, physical address, a contact person’s name, phone number and email address. Having the contact details of other company representatives is also a good strategy to assure fast and timely response. There may be occasions when customer care may not meet your requirements.

Contracts with CCP vendors are usually multi-year and you would not want to be tied down with an agency that may not be legitimate. You need to be wary of agencies that offer reasonable rates initially and then start springing the hidden costs. It is important to verify the reputation and processes of a CCP agency before signing it on. A reliable and efficient vendor will not only help you increase sales, but also provide financial protection.

Author Bio: Daljeet Sidhu. Read our third party credit card processors advice. Compare credit card processing and credit card machine quotes.

Category: Business
Keywords: credit card processing, merchant account, merchant account service, credit merchant account