○ It"s good to switch your credit card processing company
We've found that SMEs who assess and evaluate their expenses do much better. Now this might not come as any surprise to you, but it is surprising just how many businesses fail to examine these things on a frequent basis. Some businesses get larger and workloads become greater, and this can be all really good news, but if you actually stop for a second and examine precisely what your company is paying out you could boost your profits much more.
Check your card processing provider
One area we wish to pay attention to is card processing fees. This is too often a factor in every organisation which simply gets sidestepped as it is often deemed insignificant; as long as the payments are coming in and they are on time with no hassle, most businesses are happy.
Nevertheless, if you stop to inspect what you're really paying in merchant fees and also analyse and evaluate the quality of customer service you receive you might find that there are improvements that could be made. Everybody is paying for goods and services with their debit cards these days and this implies that almost every retailer is using a bank or payment processor to control these payments. It is critical not to get too complacent as card processing becomes a standard component of organisation practice; it is as vital to check this as it is to check anything that maintains the easy running of your business.
Bank rates versus independent company rates
Banks may be the ones that take the highest merchant fees from you simply because they have a tendency to increase their rates more frequently compared to the smaller independent credit card processing companies. These independent companies can provide better rates simply because they specialise in SMEs, maintain a closer working relationship with them, and are able to offer better rates just through supplying the banks with so much business.
These independent companies understand that smaller enterprises can often get lost with the banks, which tend to increase their fees across the board irrespective of the size of organisation; what the larger businesses and corporations can afford in payment processing is not necessarily what the smaller ones can.
Checklist
Here is a handy little checklist designed to provide you with a good indication of what you are able get from a credit card processing company:
If you are getting all of this and a good rate then you have got it all sorted out, but if you are not getting any of the above then you seriously could do with shopping around for a better provider. It is definitely worth the time to make a few phone calls to several providers just to see if they can better the deal you are already getting.
How simple is it to switch?
It is very easy indeed if you get the right card processing company, and in many cases they are able to have you up and running in a matter of days. Most of them will also allow you to keep the same business bank account and send your payments directly there. There is very little to change really. The best course of action is to call an independent payment processor directly and give them an outline of your organisation and what you are paying at the moment. It does not take long to call and you could save a lot of money in the long run.
Check your card processing provider
One area we wish to pay attention to is card processing fees. This is too often a factor in every organisation which simply gets sidestepped as it is often deemed insignificant; as long as the payments are coming in and they are on time with no hassle, most businesses are happy.
Nevertheless, if you stop to inspect what you're really paying in merchant fees and also analyse and evaluate the quality of customer service you receive you might find that there are improvements that could be made. Everybody is paying for goods and services with their debit cards these days and this implies that almost every retailer is using a bank or payment processor to control these payments. It is critical not to get too complacent as card processing becomes a standard component of organisation practice; it is as vital to check this as it is to check anything that maintains the easy running of your business.
Bank rates versus independent company rates
Banks may be the ones that take the highest merchant fees from you simply because they have a tendency to increase their rates more frequently compared to the smaller independent credit card processing companies. These independent companies can provide better rates simply because they specialise in SMEs, maintain a closer working relationship with them, and are able to offer better rates just through supplying the banks with so much business.
These independent companies understand that smaller enterprises can often get lost with the banks, which tend to increase their fees across the board irrespective of the size of organisation; what the larger businesses and corporations can afford in payment processing is not necessarily what the smaller ones can.
Checklist
Here is a handy little checklist designed to provide you with a good indication of what you are able get from a credit card processing company:
- Capped merchant fees for the period of your contract.
- 24hr customer service from UK call centres
- Emergency replacement of faulty or otherwise irreparable card terminals
- Continuously low card processing fees
If you are getting all of this and a good rate then you have got it all sorted out, but if you are not getting any of the above then you seriously could do with shopping around for a better provider. It is definitely worth the time to make a few phone calls to several providers just to see if they can better the deal you are already getting.
How simple is it to switch?
It is very easy indeed if you get the right card processing company, and in many cases they are able to have you up and running in a matter of days. Most of them will also allow you to keep the same business bank account and send your payments directly there. There is very little to change really. The best course of action is to call an independent payment processor directly and give them an outline of your organisation and what you are paying at the moment. It does not take long to call and you could save a lot of money in the long run.
