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June 04, 2006

Offline Credit Card Payments

Any smart business owner knows that accepting credit cards as a payment option will dramatically increase revenues. Not only do credit cards offer customers the convenience and ease of not having to carry around cash or checks, it lends a sense of professionalism to your establishment as well. The process of applying to become a credit card merchant can be a bit confusing and frustrating, so let's take a look at how it all works.

The Credit Card Account

The credit card account that you will use is called a merchant account. These accounts are different from a regular business checking account in that they are accounts that have been secured through a bank that offers credit card processing. This account enables you to process your credit card transactions through their banking establishment. This is a safe and secure process which provides both you and the buyer security and protection from the beginning of the transaction right through to the end.

Since most of the merchant accounts are offered by a third party vendor, you are not obligated to use any specific bank or institution. You are free to choose the one that offers the options that will work best for you and your company.

What you do need to pay attention to are the fees. These fees will come in three different forms. First, the initial setup fee (pretty self-explanatory), moving on to the percentage fee (the provider will take a percentage of each transaction based on amount of sale), and then ending with the monthly service fee. Read the fine print of any contract before signing it. Pay attention to all three fee categories, not just one.

Also, look for contract obligations. Some providers will offer you great deals but will want you to sign on with them for a long period of time. You need to be aware of what, if any, penalties will be charged for getting out of the contract if things don't work out.

How Do I Actually Get Paid

Obviously, this is pretty important. If a customer has used a credit card, no money has actually changed hands. Since more and more customers are now using credit cards, how that money gets into your account and how fast has become vitally important.

Any of the reputable merchant account providers will provide the business owner with payment into their account within the first 24 to 48 hours of the initial transaction. Whether that customer has a balance on that card is not a concern of yours. The bank will pay you anyway.

If the customer disputes the said transaction, the bank is usually under no obligation to pay the business owner, especially if that dispute has been deemed acceptable. If a business owner has a high number of legitimacy claims against them, the provider may just drop them. The majority of the time, though, things go as planned and the money shows up in your account within a day or two.

Posted by creditcardsalon at 11:37 AM | Comments (0)

June 03, 2006

Instant Approval Credit Cards

The days of waiting for weeks for a credit card application are over. Today, anyone can get a credit card approved instantly. It's very easy to apply online for an instant approval credit card. Hundreds of credit card companies claim they can give you the best credit card available for your needs, instantly. An easy way to apply for this type of card is online, at the credit card company's website. No, that doesn't mean you can download a credit card to use immediately. What it does mean is that your credit card application can usually be approved within minutes.

The approval process takes, as stated above, only a few minutes, but it takes time before you actually receive your credit card in the mail. It's usually about a week to ten days before it arrives. Though you can't use your new credit card within that time frame, you do have the advantage of knowing it has been approved.

With instant approval credit cards you have the convenience of receiving your card quickly. In times past, you had to apply for the card and wait weeks while your credit history was run and the approval process took place. On top of that time frame, you had to wait for the credit card company to send out your card. Applying for an instant approval credit card is fast and convenience in today's market.

One advantage of applying for an instant approval credit card online is that you can research a wide range of credit cards to find the one that is best for you. You can compare interest rates and fees freely and also check for other advantages and disadvantages of the cards you are considering.

There are limits on the applicants who are eligible for instant approval credit cards. Originally, these cards were targeted at consumers who had a perfect credit history. If your credit rating is excellent, you won't have any trouble being instantly approved. Today things are a little different. The competition between credit card companies is very high and there are some companies who are willing to take the risk on a less than perfect applicant in order to get their business. What this means is that you may be instantly approved even if your credit rating is less than perfect. If this is the case and you are approved, use extreme caution and make sure you pay all of your payments on time to assure your credit history is protected.

If you wish to apply for an instant approval credit card online, use a search engine to search for 'instant credit card approval', or 'instant approval credit cards'. The results will be more than you wished for. Then, compare the annual and membership fees, interest rates and other advantages and disadvantages of the cards you are considering. Once you find the best card for you, click on 'apply' fill out the online form and click the 'submit' button. You will have your answer within a few minutes.

As with all other credit cards, you have responsibilities with an instant approval card. Be sure to always pay your credit card bill before the due date and, if possible, pay the entire balance each month to save on interest fees. This will assure you keep your instant approval credit card in good standing and in addition it will look great on your credit rating.


Posted by creditcardsalon at 04:06 PM | Comments (0)

June 02, 2006

How Credit Card Charges Are Processed

It's a fact that businesses offering credit cards as a payment option are more likely to have higher revenues than businesses that don't. So, if you're a business owner and you are thinking of jumping on this bandwagon to higher profits, understanding the process before you make any decisions would be beneficial. Knowing just how your customer's charges go from point A, your store or business, to point B, your bank account can give you tips as to what to look for in a processing company.

The Process...

This process is basically a series of steps: initiating, authorizing, completing the transaction, and lastly, receiving your funds. Let's start at the beginning. The process begins when you accept the card from the consumer. The next step is to verify that the card is active and the amount of the purchase is within the cardholder's available credit limit. How that verification is done depends upon the equipment that is available to you, and how you interact with your customer.

If you own a business in which the customer can present you with the actual card, like stores and restaurants, then you can physically take the card and swipe it through your card terminal. If you own a business that is online, your customer enters their own information into your form. Mail order and call center-based businesses usually have computer-based terminals for entering charge card data.

The second step is authorization. The key for reducing any problems during the initial phase is to make sure you are using technology that allows for real-time authorizations. This software will immediately send the card number and amount to the card processor and the processor immediately approves or denies the sale. This is critical for cutting back on charge-backs and card errors.

Third, you will need to complete the transaction. At the end of the business day, any credit card charges will need to be processed. This procedure is called batching and can be done either by hand or on your credit card terminal. Once this is done, the credit card processor will send each credit card company represented in the batch the transaction that took place. Once this is done, each credit card company will debit the cardholder's account. This ends this part of the transaction and all that is left is for the monies to be transferred into your account. This usually takes place pretty quickly, often within two to four business days.

Safety Issues

Since the process can take a few days to complete, knowing that your money is safe and will actually be credited to your account is a key concern. Many credit card processing companies have protection policies in place that will absolve you of any responsibility should you be a victim of credit card fraud as long as you followed their authorization procedures 100%. Before you decide on which processing company to go with, check out their safety policies, particularly if you are an Internet company. You will want as much protection as you can get.

Posted by creditcardsalon at 03:03 PM | Comments (0)