Electronic payments make your accounting process much more efficient. But in ord
er to accept electronic payments such as credit cards, you have to have a merchant processor. There are so many merchant processors in the marketplace that choosing one can be incredibly intimidating. In today’s episode of MissionBusinessPodcast.com, Bernard Roesch explains the most important factors for choosing a merchant processor.
If you have any questions about this podcast episode, please feel free to contact us.
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Merchant Processing Costs And Fees
The main factor you’ve probably considered with merchant processors is the cost. Well, this is definitely important and you should consider your payment processing needs before making the final decision because cost is the most important factor.
- For example, if you have a very high volume business then a fraction of a percent in the merchant processing fees can add up to a lot of money.
- However, if you only process a small amount of money each month on credit cards then the merchant processing percentage fee will not have as much of an impact on your business and you should probably focus on some of the other factors below.
- The challenge with comparing the costs between different providers is that they don’t provide the cost in the same way. It’s difficult to compare them to each other. However, you should be able to run some projections based on the information they provide to determine the cost difference between them.
Processing Payments
The second thing to consider is how payments are actually processed.
- Different merchant processing companies allow for different types of processing.
- For example, if you need hardware to process payments directly at a terminal in your store such as a retail shop then you might be limited to only certain types of merchant processing providers.
- Also if you want to process payments directly from your mobile device that may also limit you.
- Consider your specific payment processing needs to understand which providers meet those needs best.
QuickBooks Integration
Integrating your payment processor directly with QuickBooks can save you time even if the cost of that merchant processor is more expensive than other options.
- By integrating directly within QuickBooks you can process payments faster, be confident that they are applied to the correct clients and eliminate room for error.
- While merchant processors that integrate directly within QuickBooks may be more expensive than others that do not, the time savings for managing your accounting and payment processes could make up the difference.
Customer Service
Finally it’s important to consider the customer service provided by your merchant processor.
- While there are many options that will be the lowest possible price they may not offer the customer service that you need when there are issues. For example, if you are unable to process payments this could slow down your business.
- Also if there is an issue processing a specific payment or receiving the funds for that payment it could cause cash-flow problems for you.
By choosing a provider based on their level of customer service you can rest assured you will be taken care of if there are any issues.
Have Questions? Ask Us
If you have questions, contact Bernard today. You can also visit MissionBusinessPodcast.com for more insights that Bernard has been sharing with us in the previous episodes.
Still looking for the right QuickBooks software for your business? MISSION Accounting can help.
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