Credit Card Processing Again

Hi,

This morning I cancelled my credit card processing service, there
were some problems with new fee’s that tended to pop up from time to
time.

I only use my processing about 3-6 times a year, I own my own
knuckle buster and need something pretty simple. I am fine calling
things in on my cell phone to confirm sales.

Any thoughts other than Cosco from people.

Karen in Chicagoland

I have used Propay (http://propay.com) for the past year and have
been thrilled with their prices and service. They’re probably not
great for high volume or high end because of their processing
limits, but for what I do, they’re perfect. No affiliation; just a
happy customer.

Best,
Lori

Hi Karen,

I use MerchantWarehouse. Their rates are competitive and they don’t
have hidden fees. I found them to be very accomodating with
seasonal/show businesses: they will put your account on hold during
the months you aren’t using it and charge a $5.00 fee instead of the
minimum monthly charge. They have more options, but I went with the
least expensive/old school version: I use my knucklebuster at shows
and then process through their system at night online. They do offer
call in verification as well, but I haven’t used it (I just make
sure to get all the proper . I shopped around and they
were the most upfront with everything. I’ve been impressed so far.

Mariel

Might I suggest you visit www.propay.com? Watch their demo movie…

I can process Mastercard, Visa, Discover and American Express. In
addition, I can do so where ever I have a cell phone signal or access
to the internet. In addition, I can transfer money to other Propay
account holders and more and I received a debit card…

I pay $60 for the whole year which allows me to process $500 per
transaction and up to $3000 per month

More Details upon request

Hi Karen, I’ve run into the same problem. I ended up using my
bank…(Wells Fargo) to process. It’s a little more expensive, but
the money goes straight to the account and I don’t have to worry
about it. I still use a knuckle buster too and call it in on my cell
phone. There is monthly charges and transaction fees, but they all
have that. So…I’d check with your bank and see what happens.

Good luck, Scott
Scott Verson
metalandstonedesign.com

We use Propay, very happy with them

Regards
Tina

FWIW I asked a fellow jewelry designer about ProPay this morning (I
was purchasing a design manual from her) and she said she was very
satisfied with it after using it for a couple of years.

I have no experience with it, but that may change soon.

–RC

I’ve been very happy with TeaMac http://teamacinc.com

Marla Rudnick

I just started with Propay. I understand their fees, no penalty for
being inactive, got my money pretty quickly.

I wonder if anyone has used the Sam’s Club merchant credit card
processing? I have a flyer from them advertising rates as low as
1.64% +.19 cents per transaction. How does this compare with, say,
ProPay that folks have talked about? There is no monthly fee if you
are a Sam’s Club Plus member.

Beth in SC

Hi All,

I thought now might be a good time to join in with my first post.

I spent the better part of last week researching merchant service
providers (before seeing the post on Ganoksin) as I will be doing my
first juried art show on Sept. 6-7th.

After learning from scratch all that was involved with getting an
MSP, I put together an Excel worksheet with the following headings:

Company, Type of account (take charge slips at show, then enter sales
data later on terminal or on computer; wireless terminals; phone
verification…), Rate, Transaction fee, Gate Fee, Statement Fee, Monthly
fee (in some cases, this is the combination of the gate fee and
statement fee), Free equipment provided? (manual imprinter,
terminal…), Contract term, Cancellation fee (if any), Charge back
fees, Monthly minimums, Services (address verification, call in
authorization and their associated fees)

I chose about 15 MSP’s from Internet Searches like: who is the best
rated, names I’ve heard from Ganoksin, and other merchants… There
is a MSP site that is similar to Lending Tree where you enter in
your basic sales like avg. sale amount, avg. monthly
sales total and a few other things. Within an hour or two 5 or 6 MSP
companies call or email you with an offer. Do some comparison
shopping as MSP rates and fees vary considerably!

Compare the MSPs on the worksheet. When you find a few MSP’s that
look good to you, contact them and negotiate fees, minimums, rates,
etc. until one of them is able to meet your needs. Hopefully, the one
you choose will provide good customer service, but if not, many have
only month to month contracts and no cancellation fees so its fairly
easy to switch MSP’s if the service is not there. (Yes, if I pick the
wrong one, I’m stuck with them for my first show, but I guess that is
one of the risks of doing business.)

Hope this helps others that were in the same boat as me a week ago.

Wish me luck at my first art show,

Lynn White
Lynn White Jewelry

I wonder if anyone has used the Sam's Club merchant credit card
processing? I have a flyer from them advertising rates as low as
1.64% +.19 cents per transaction. How does this compare with, say,
ProPay that folks have talked about? There is no monthly fee if
you are a Sam's Club Plus member. 

Beth - When I last investigated the Sams club merchant processing,
they didn’t have a wireless machine and no live weekend support. It
would be ok if you use a knucklebuster and clear your stuff at night.
I’m not willing to take the chance. When someone walks away with one
of my pieces, I need to know that I’ve been paid.

The Sams club membership that was required was the premium
membership and the cost of that membership offset the monthly charge
from others.

FWIW
Judy Hoch

Hi,

I was the one who requested help finding a new CC service. I had
investigated Costco (not really friendly for the 3 shows a year
crowd). Artists CC Service (fees kept rising and weren’t explained to
my satisfaction) and ProPay (not enough room for the occasional high
end piece or a show where I sold $3000). I have decided to go with
Teamac. Many good reccomendations and a phone call made me feel
pretty good about their services.

Karen Seymour-Ells

The site I referred to in my last post was
http://www.proposalportal.com Click on “credit card processing” on
the top of the left list of services. Also, you may want to add
“batch fees” to your comparison spreadsheet. Make sure before you
sign up you read the entire contract.

Another issue I ran into while researching these services was the
store and forward terminal. Some said they were not compliant with
the credit card companies. I finally found a link on the VISA site
that talks about compliance, and it seems it has to do with the
level you are on, i.e. the amount of credit transactions you process
in a year. I am so frustrated with this process, I finally threw in
the towel late Monday afternoon, made supper, had a couple glasses of
wine, and watched mindless tv the rest of the night.

http://tinyurl.com/pdf-file

If this hyperlink doesn’t work, cut and paste into your browser. It’s
there.

http://tinyurl.com/pdf-file1

To complicate things further only the services listed in this PDF are
compliant. A company may be on the list but not all their services
may be compliant.

I suspect that if you only do art shows and have a low number of
transactions, they may not be so fussy particular about this. I sent
an email to VISA today for clarification. They were NO help! They
said to talk to the MSP’s. That’s how I got into this predicament to
start with!

Lynn White
Lynn White Jewelry

Hi all,

There is something called a ‘Virtual Merchant’, it allows you to
process credit card payments over an internet connection. You don’t
need any POS software or terminal just a laptop. Which means you can
process transactions from anywhere in the world. The fees are quite
reasonable and they offer 24 hour help. The link is
www.nxgencanada.com They have a link that directs you to their
American and other Global sites.

Regards,

Jeff Nechka (G.G., G.I.A.)
Premier Gems LTD.
www.premiergems.ca