Frequently Asked Questions

Credit Card processing and the costs for most people can be confusing. To be honest, I still see statements after 14 years that confuse me! But it shouldn’t be that hard and you should feel comfortable with what your costs are.

Your transactional costs typically come in THREE different ways

• Interchange plus is a pricing model most would argue is the most efficient way to price. Visa/MC/Discover set this fee and that amount goes to the member banks issuing the credit card. On top of this cost is the Card Brand Assessments as well as the fees we charge to make the transaction go.
• Tiered Pricing makes reporting and understanding Interchange easier – Standard, NonQualified, Corporate, MidQual, Reward, Qualified and Debit may sound familiar if you’re on this pricing model. If it is done correctly, the costs should be close to the efficient Interchange plus model.
• Fixed flat rate pricing is the easiest to understand – there is one flat cost percentage and authorization. Typically this is a percentage plus authorization costs.

There is a lot more that can go in to the pricing and cost reduction opportunities when it comes to credit card processing. SOOOO How do you know if you’re getting priced correctly for your business? that is when you reach out to us and let us run an analysis to find out if your paying more than you should be.

I’m often asked by clients – is there a way to not pay the credit card fees? YES! There is software for your website, office invoicing and even your retail machine that can help YOU surcharge compliantly. What does that mean, compliant??? You can cover all of the costs of a credit transaction by charging 3.50% BUT you cannot surcharge on a debit card transaction and must pay 1% and 25 cents for those transactions.

To learn more about the rules and compliant options we can offer, send us an email, click the button – help us, help you! (off screen – say it?) no I’m not doing it (say it!) I will not say show me the money….

In the last 2 years you may have heard more using the term – Level 2 and level 3 processing. This is a program run by Visa and MasterCard requiring, you the merchant, to enter more data per transaction. For providing that data, that must be entered correctly, Visa and MasterCard will give you back 0.20% to 0.75% on your processing costs.

This is a great program but it ISN’T easy and not everyone sees a big return. To learn more about this savings and how we can help you, please click on the button to get a quote. Reach out, you know you want to – only thing between you and some savings….

Do I need a gateway integration? Maybe! If you’ve chosen an accounting, billing or other software solution that requires a credit card processor you may need a secure way to run those transactions. Think of the payment gateway as that secure handshake or tunnel that keeps the data secure from entry to acceptance.

When choosing a solution that has payment gateways, your goal should be to find one that gives you options for processors. No one likes to be left with either bad or worse pricing choices?

We work with a number of gateways and can offer below market pricing! That might sound crazy – it’s not…only one way to find out more – click on our email? Request a quote? We can even zoom chat about gateways or maybe the worst handshake you’ve ever received!

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You cannot sell Cannabis and accept a credit or debit card. BUT we do offer a wallet solution. IF you’re a cannabis business and need help taking payments, reach out and learn more about our cashless text to pay option. You’ll be glad you did.

PCI DSS is required and you need  to do it annually – oh ya, Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards. Every business must self-assess and some have to run SAQ scans to show compliance that their processing standards are secure based on the industry standard rules. These standards aren’t just on merchants, but also issuing banks and processors.

PCI compliance is important to us and we offer ways for your business to get compliant with industry leading security solutions. If you want to learn more about how easy it is to get PCI compliant – you know what to do – email, call or request a quote.

What am I doing when I tokenize a credit card? You’re taking this important data from the card – number, expiration, name – and taking this important data and turning it in to a random string of characters, a token that has no meaningful value if you’re ever breached.

The token is used a reference for the original data but no hacker can take that token and guess the value.

We can use this security tool to help you lower your risk value with your customers data. To learn more about tokenization and our software as well as the costs of this – you can email, call or request a quote.

We’ve already discussed how the pricing works. But what other fees might you encounter besides Authorization and Percentage?

These are the Fees GMS charges.

• GMS bundles monthly support and PCI fees into a single monthly charge based on the type of account you have. You might pay for these separately on your current statements. And sometimes PCI is billed annually so keep your eyes open.
• Per Occurrence Fees – Bank account change, DBA change for your business
• POS monthly license fees – based on the POS and number of units this fee varies but we pass it along at our cost
• Annual Fee – this is a pass along from any card brand or debit association that they charge based on your use.
• Chargeback and Retrieval fees – these fees are charged when a chargeback comes to your business from a customer dispute. These fees can vary but for more detail – call us!
• Gateway fees – we covered this in what is a gateway but these are specific fees for that gateways usage. If you don’t know if you have a gateway and you’re getting charged this fee – you might want to ask a few questions to your current processor.

These are the fees we don’t charge but you may see on your

• Account Setup or Application Fee – these fees are charged to open the account and should only be charged one time.
• Minimum Fees – Some processors will charge if you don’t process enough volume and meet their minimum revenue expectations for your account. Imagine going on vacation from your business and having to still pay processing fees to make sure the company you work with gets their money.
• Statement fees – are charged so you can get your monthly statement – UM shouldn’t that be free?
• batch fees – are typically charged daily so you can get your money that you just processed. So you give them more to get the money you just earned – that doesn’t sound right.
• Closure or termination fees – you retire, sell your business, close your business or change processors – you may be getting a fee to end your account with whomever you’re currently processing with. This can vary from a flat amount to a calculation based on contract time left and expected revenue – that sounds confusing and predatory because it kinda is. We never have and never will charge these fees. In fact our contract is month to month.
• Shenanigan fees – THESE fees look very legit and almost like a card brand assessment but they’re super fake! They are the hardest fees to spot.

There are probably other fees and if anything on your statement looks weird, confusing or expensive you should call your current processor and ask WHAT IS THIS? If you don’t get a clear confident answer – you should start looking for a new partner. We’re happy to walk you through what your current fees are and how you can do better.

Many customers come to us saying why is American Express so expensive? American Express has a new program called Opt Blue that helps small business take their card brand at a lower cost. PLUS you can bundle these Amex transactions with your Visa/MC/Discover transactions. No second deposit, no second statement and cheaper rates – OH yeah and you can work with someone like me if you have questions since we can service these accounts unlike direct Amex ones you may have now or in the past.

To learn more about Amex Opt Blue and how your industry qualifies – give us a call, send an email – click on the get a quote button.

Many clients don’t consider when making looking at their customers transactions that they can still get a debit card rate even if they’re not physically chipping ro swiping the card. You’re entitled to a debit card rate if your business works through an online website, gateway or in your office through an invoicing or virtual terminal.

To learn how much you can save by having a debit card rate – email, call or click on the button. You just have to reach out and ask for some help.