What credit card company do you use?

[bhram]

My Propay account is up for renewal next month and I am considering switching to try and save some money on transaction fees...I just have the basic account right now and it's 3.5% of the sale plus 35 cents per transfer. I just spoke with a merchant company (I think it was Term Net or something) and their basic account is 3.25% of the sale, plus 27 cents per transaction and $12/month, but they have another account with a card machine (she said I could get one used for around $200) and it's $6/month plus 1.49% of the sale and 25 cents each transaction.

My busiest month was December when I sold $1000 in GC and package sales, but in a normal month, it is under $300. Should I just keep the propay account? I don't have a phone line in my office and would just get a manual imprinter.

 

[forgetful]

I also have ProPay, but their premium account. I bought a manual cc imprinter on Ebay for about $25.

If you go with the $12 a month deal, you will be paying $144 in fees no matter what. I am assuming that the charge is monthy even if you don't have any transactions. That is how most companies seem to work.

I can see where ProPay is not ideal for businesses that process high volumes of credit cards, but I do like that aside from the yearly fee, (which is reasonable) you are not billed anything if you don't charge cards.

I would say if $300 is your average, stick with them until you start charging more. Maybe consider the premium account? http://propay.com/account/

Your transaction fees will go down a bit and you will be able to charge cards via the phone and accept Discover and AMEX. Your processing limit would also increase.

Good luck.

 

[jcab20055]

hey rebecca, you shouldn't being paying more than about 1.7 - 1.9% if you're using a cc company other than propay. usually it's about 1.79%, 25 cents transaction, 25 cents batch out and between $5 & $10 a month. i'll look at mine and see what company i use. by the way, do not lease a machine through any company. it's so cheaper to buy. they try to get you to lease 'cause that's where they'll make their money. ps. talk to your bank. they usually have someone they work with who can maybe get you a better deal.

 

[visual_lace]

Actually the company I talked to yesterday was through my bank! I was hoping for some better rates from them, which is why I opened up a business account in the first place!

 

[SJC]

Quickbooks Merchant Services.

You never have to reconcile the service charges and deductions - that alone is worth the higher %

 

[dark bubble]

Quickbooks Merchant Services.

You never have to reconcile the service charges and deductions - that alone is worth the higher %

quickbooks services look a little too expensive to me. a $60 set-up fee, $17.95 a month and a monthly minimum? and equipment starts at almost $300. i wouldn't use this company.

hey rebecca, i went through a guy from someone's bni group. he was really wonderful. i felt bad because he really didn't make any money from me but he was so helpful. i remember his name was mike. i'm going to go to my bank tomorrow and get his number from the girl there. maybe he can help you too. he has a choice of different companies to go through. he picks the best for you and your needs. i think i use bancard but can't remember. i should remember 'cause i just looked at it today for you!

if you're a member at costco they have merchant processing too. in fact, i'm considering switching to them. they have better deals if you're an executive member. it's easy to upgrade and in the end, doesn't really cost you any extra money (to upgrade that is-). and it's a write-off!

here are their features -
Program Features
Accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, debit cards and corporate purchasing cards.**
$4.95 monthly statement fee - waived for Executive Members
One time $25 application fee - waived for Executive Members
Live customer service 24-hours a day / 7-days a week
Free basic online merchant account access
No batch fees

here is a link to their site... http://www.novainfo.com/costco/index.asp

 

[Chase]

http://merchantwarehouse.com/

I use these folks. 1.69% plus .25 per transaction, and $9.95 per month. No contract to sign up for, I have been on a month to month with them from day one. I bought a refurbished CC machine from them (cost me about $120.00) I have had NO problems. Whichever route you take, dont rent a machine. Find a used one,, get one from ebay....will save you $$.

 

[Sporty]

I suppose it depends on the volume.

We do 80 - 100 transactions a month, and it is all integrated into the QB software. Repeat clients are entered once then we just charge them every appt.

Reconciling the deposits - when the fees are deducted - with the gross charges registered was such a headache

 

[April]

Not fond of Merchant Warehouse myself. Once I was using their system it became impossible to get any customer service from them.

Also, their lowest rate is 1.69%, but most cards charge at a much higher rate, (mine was at 3.something% for all "rewards" or mileage type cards.) And the way they had the paperwork it was impossibly to figure out what the charge was for each transaction. It all felt a little bait and switch to me.

Plus, it was a huge chore to get them to terminate my account. They charged me for several months after I switched. I called several times over a period of 6-7 weeks before they would even fax me the termination papers, then I had to pay an additional month on top of that. Plus they charged me the statement fee one more month beyond that. When I called to correct that problem, it took forever for them to sort it out. They did reimburse that last month extra fee, but it took about 60 days to get the check.

Not impressed with them beyond their effectiveness in getting you signed up.

I now use Nova through Costco. Yes, there is a contract. But it's a good program, easy to decipher and the mid-level cards process at 1.8%, so not much of a hit. I have a $20 minimum processing fee, but no statement fee and no batch fees. I did about $700 in credit card sales for January, and expect my total bill to be less than half what it was costing me for MW.

 

[loser_hot_sexy]

Breathe,

What happens if you don't make the $20 minimum? Say you had no charges one month?

 

[andrei v]

I just got in contact w/ my bank. They said they could either beat my current rate, OR give me $50.00. Either way, its worth finding out!
Thanks for the heads up about Merchate Warehouse when trying to terminate an account. When the time comes, I will make darn sure to let my bank know they no longer have authorization do take out their monthy fee! I have never had problems with them, but if I want to terminate the account, i dont want all that stress! THANKS! :}

 

[latenotnever]

Still costs $20, but it would have cost me $8 anyways for the statement fee from MW. Since switching to Nova about 5 months ago, I've saved about $125, AND I know exactly where my charges are. Plus bookkeeping is much easier since they deposit the entire transaction amount, then charge all the fees in one lump sum at the beginning of the next month.

I usually do between $600- $900 in credit card sales, so it's usually between $20-24 total charge, since the fees are low. When I was with MW, I'd pay about $18 in the immediate fees that they'd take off the top of every transaction, then I'd have another $18-23 in fees that would be on the statement, plus the $7.95 statement fee.

If you look back in my poster history, you can see I was pretty rah-rah about MW in the beginning, since they were so responsive in getting me set up, low cost of entry, and all of that. The longer I was with them, though, the more I realized I was getting gouged. My officemate has pro-pay or cellcharge, not sure which, but we compared costs, and she was paying about the same amount in fees as I was per month, but averaging about $300-400 more in sales.

For instance, in the month of June last year, (which is about the sales average I currently have,) my fees with MW were $53.93. By August I had switched to Nova, had an even higher volume of CC sales, and my fee (single charge bill, one transaction,) was $21.50. This has been typical.

Of course, having this account means you have a Costco membership, I have the exec membership, which costs $100 instead of $45. Exec membership means they waive the statement fees of $4.95 a month. Between the cash rebate, and the statement fees being waived, I figure the actual cost of my membership is around $22/year. I would have had the $45 membership anyways, so I come out ahead.

Whew. That was alot of numbers. hehe.

 

[Pompal 09.]

Nova does sound like a great deal!

You do have to have electronic equipment to use their service though right?

I am using ProPay now and while you don't need any equipment, I bought a manual swiper just for my own peace of mind and record keeping.

I currently process a pretty small amount each month.

 

[engramagility]

Yes, you need to have equipment, and since this is the single largest expense, you need to figure where your break-even point is. I had a terminal from MW, but it was not security ready for NOVA, their software is more current. I had to swap mine out, and it cost $80.

If you had to purchase equipment, count on spending a minimum of $250 for a terminal equipped to work with their system. Also, be absolutely sure that if you buy from a 3rd party vendor, the machine you buy is compatible.

 

[Qatie]

i'll add a little something about costco's executive membership. it does cost extra but you earn money back. if you don't earn back the difference it costs to upgrade, they'll give you a refund of the difference. did i say that so it makes sense? so a regular membership will cost you $45. you upgrade paying an extra $55 for a total of $100. if you don't earn at least $55 in rewards, they'll give you a check for the difference (so that you aren't really paying extra for the exec. membership). it's such a smart thing to do. especially if you purchase lots of stuff there! you get all the perks of the exec. membership and you earn money back. couldn't ask for more!

 

[AnteSavant]

If anyone needs a CC machine, we have two of them. $150 for either, delivered.

Verifone Tranz 330 - two years old. Hooks up to any number of printers

Hypercon with the built in printer (not thermal, a ribbon printer) - about 5 years old

 

[yewknowit]

I use our bank.

 

[Flyer_lower]

Thanks for all of the responses everyone! I got a call from someone the other day from an online quote I filled out and he said that for as little volume as I do right now, I'm better off sticking with propay, so I'll probably just do that for now until I'm swimming in CC sales