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How Rate Tracker Helps Business Owners
Processing Solutions

How Rate Tracker Helps Business Owners

How Much Time Do You Spend Looking Over Your Credit Card Statements? As a small business owner, you are the backbone of our economy – but how much time do you spend reading over your credit card processing statements each month, only to find that you still have no idea where your money is going? Our guest is zero because you’re confused by it and you wear a lot of hats in your business. The Problem with the Processing Industry… The credit card processing industry is a mystery to most, allowing processors to take advantage of their customers. By sneaking in fees and rate increases, they use your business to line their pockets. Stop wasting time and start tracking your rates with Rate Tracker, a free and secure automated credit card processing fee tracking system that allows small business owners like you to take control of their costs. Monthly Rate Updates Each month, merchants receive an email and a text message with the following data points from the previous month. Credit card processing fees. Credit card sales. Your out-the-door rate. With easy access to this information, you’ll find out immediately when your rates go up instead of months or even years down the line, saving your business thousands of your hard-earned dollars. Learn More About Rate Tracker If you are interested in learning more about your credit card processing rate, contact us today!

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How to Store Customer's Credit Cards
Processing Solutions

How to Store Customer’s Credit Cards

How to Store Customer’s Credit Cards Everyone wants to keep their data secure, no matter if you are a business or an individual, you do not want your information leaked into the wrong hands. So, storing your customer’s credit card information safely is essential, but how? Gateway Storing The way you store your information is going to be based on what type of business you are. If you have a website where you accept payments, we always recommend using a gateway. The gateway connects the merchant account securely to the website or the software or whatever that might be. Some of the most popular gateways are Authorize.Net and Network Merchants International (NMI.) These gateways allow you to securely store information. And so that sensitive data never actually hits your website. Credit Card Processors Can Store Your Data but Be Careful! Credit card processors can offer to store your customer’s information for your securely, but they can also use this as a way to “hold you hostage.” For example, we worked with a landscaping company that wanted to switch from their previous processor, but all of their customer’s CC info was stored with that processor. In order for that business owner to retrieve his customer’s info, he had to pay the processor $5 for each client’s credit card number. He ended up paying $3,000 just to get his customer’s info back from the processor! Long story short, we do not recommend having your processors store your customer’s information! Store them in a gateway that you own so that if you ever do decide to change processors, you can take your data with you. Learn More About Rate Tracker If you are interested in learning more about gateway storing, contact us today!

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What You Need to Know About Cash Discounts vs. Traditional Processing
Processing Solutions

What You Need to Know About Cash Discounts vs. Traditional Processing

What You Need to Know About Cash Discounts vs. Traditional Processing As a business owner, there are many ways that you can accept money from your customers. You could do cash only, you could do plastics only, you could do both. However, it is important to know which type of payment is best for your business and which type of payment is best for your customers. Traditional Processing Traditional processing is when the business owner assumes the credit card processing fees on each of their customers transactions. Cash Payment Discounts Though cash payment discounts have been around for quite some time, they have become exceedingly popular over the last year, mainly due to COVID. Instead of the merchant paying the credit card processing fee, they add an additional fee onto their customer’s total to cover the transaction charge. This incentivizes the customers to pay in cash to reduce their total. This is a completely legal and effective way to reduce your costs are a business owner, but there are certain things you have to do to stay compliant with this type of transaction. For example, you need to advertise on your storefront and at the register that you offer cash payment discounts. Know Your Industry and Know Your Customers There are certain industries where charging your customers a transaction fee is not the best idea. For instance, if you are a fine dining restaurant, your customers will find it odd if you charge them for the transaction fee. Whereas an automotive shop is a better industry to incentivize cash payments. It is all about knowing who your audience is! Learn More About Credit Card Processing If you are interested in learning more about the payment processing industry, contact us today!

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Credit Card Processing Equipment Solutions
Processing Solutions

Credit Card Processing Equipment Solutions

Credit Card Processing Equipment Solutions There are many different methods to accepting credit card payments, and each business has its own individual needs. In today’s education blog, we are going to briefly cover some of the most popular credit card processing equipment solutions! Countertop Solution The countertop equipment is probably one of the most common ways to accept credit cards, especially in retail. This method is familiar, easy to use, and hooks up to your internet. Virtual Terminal Solution The virtual terminal allows you to take payments over the phone, which is perfect for B2B businesses or “card not present” environments. For this solution, it is extremely important to have a secure connection to protect your customers and yourself. Recurring Revenue With virtual terminals, you can also schedule recurring payments. Every credit card processor has this capability, and it is a great benefit to the business owner. It’s predictable revenue for your business so that your business is getting paid month after month. Mobile Solutions Mobile credit card processing solutions are great for the trades like HVAC, Roofers, and Plumbing. It’s great to be able to take a payment from your customer inside of their living room, which just makes the whole process convenient for both you and your customer. It’s also professional looking, and you’ll save money on the cost of each transaction because the card is inserted or swiped instead of keyed in manually. eCommerce Solution With so many people shopping online (especially now), eCommerce is a super easy way to grow your business. There’s a lot of different gateways out there that will allow you to securely connect your online shopping center or your eCommerce business with a merchant account so that everything can happen seamlessly. Invoicing and Billing Solution You can send somebody an invoice, they click a button, they go to a payment screen, and they’re able to run a transaction right then and there. Then the money automatically flows to your bank account. Integrated Solutions If you use a POS (point of sale) system or a software system, pretty much every processor can connect to these systems. Having an integrated solution inside of your CRM, your practice management software, whatever it might be, eliminates headaches and makes things happen in one step. Learn More About Credit Card Processing Solutions If you are curious about exploring a new type of credit card processing solution or want to know which type is best for your business, contact us at Rate Tracker today! We are here to help businesses grow, starting with tracking their CC processing rates!

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How to Store Customer’s Credit Cards

February 11, 2021/

How to Store Customer’s Credit Cards Everyone wants to keep their data secure, no matter if you are a business or an individual, you do not want your information leaked…

Credit Card Processing Equipment Solutions

January 27, 2021/

Credit Card Processing Equipment Solutions There are many different methods to accepting credit card payments, and each business has its own individual needs. In today’s education blog, we are going…

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