CC Processing Resources

CREDIT CARD PROCESSING RESOURCES

24/7 CUSTOMER SUPPORT

SAME DAY FUNDING

Did you know that most processors hold your money for 48-72 hours (sometimes even longer) before funding your credit card transactions? In fact, Square can hold your funds as long as TWO WEEKS before injecting the funds into your account.

At CPS, we are committed to making sure your money arrives RIGHT AWAY.

All Visa, Master Card, Discover and AMEX transactions that are settled out by the merchant before 7 pm eastern time, are injected into your account that evening at 12:00.

We can even set up your system to “auto-batch” to ensure timely arrival of your funds.

Chargeback Prevention

How do you protect yourself against fraudulent customers who order items and do not intend to pay for them? How do you protect yourself from unauthorized credit card users?

The issuing bankcard companies use a variety of fraud checks against their customer accounts to ensure proper use. For this reason, merchants are required to maintain accurate and complete records of customer bankcard transactions. Length of time varies, but it is advisable for merchants to have transactions readily available for 180 days before storing these away permanently.

A chargeback means that the amount of the original charge that was deposited into your business checking account is taken back out. The best way for merchants to protect themselves is to obtain "card present", swiped transactions with electronic authorizations and cardholder verified matching signatures. If the card swipe is unreadable due to a damaged card or terminal, then an imprint of the card proving it was present is required.

Credit card transactions are divided into two categories: "Card present" (face-to-face transaction with card and cardholder present) and "card not present" (neither card or cardholder are present) transactions. Because many fraud detection and prevention devices built into the cards are not utilized in "card not present" environments, merchants need to exercise good risk control when accepting these cards.

How to Reduce Charge-Backs

Chargebacks happen for a variety of reasons and can cost merchants a lot of time, money and even their merchant account. Here are a few simple tips to help you reduce the amount chargebacks you receive.

  • Be clear about refund and return policies. Make sure that the conditions of the sale are written on the receipt near the customer’s signature and that they receive a copy of that receipt. Also display your refund and return policy near the register in a place that all your customers will be able to read.
  • Respond to inquiry letters as soon as possible. If you wish to dispute a customers claim all materials needed to resolve the issue should be sent by the date displayed on the enquiry letter. Even if the customer is wrong, if the merchant doesn’t reply to a dispute on time they are usually liable for the funds.
  • Let customers know what name will appear on statements. Many merchants who use 3rd Party Processing companies have run into problems because the company name that appears on cardholder's monthly statements is usually the name of the 3rd party processing company and not the company name of the site the cardholder made their purchase from. This isn't always the case, but it is common.

  • Take an imprint of the credit card. In instances where a cards magnetic stripe is unreadable or for delivery orders, making an imprint of a card is proof that the card was present and should be kept with your records of the transaction.
  • Collect signatures upon delivery. You can use carriers that require signatures for delivery and allow you to also have a copy. Always retain these in your records.
  • Request a copy of identification and credit card. Always see identification for face to face transactions, but you can also request to have a copy of an I.D. and credit card faxed to you. This works best when it is a business to business transaction.

Call us today to discuss further how you can best protect your business from charge-backs.

What Are Merchant Services?

Merchant services are essentially any services your business uses to accept and process payments from your customers. Historically speaking, the merchant services definition only encompassed the services required to accept credit cards.

However, as payment technology has evolved, so too have business practices and customer preferences. As a result, the payment processing features that have come to fall under the umbrella term “merchant services” have become a bit hazy and hard to nail down in precise terms.

Merchant Services Are Primarily Card Processing

For the most part, merchant services still primarily adhere to the traditional definition—the services and gear necessary for processing card payments.

As a result, no matter who you ask, the answer to what are merchant services will almost certainly include both a card processing terminal and the technology that will be necessary to run debit or credit card payments through it.

And you might be surprised that the moment when your customer runs their card through a card terminal only marks the beginning of a merchant services provider’s job. After that transaction, there will be a web of intricate communications between your customer’s bank and your business’s bank, all of which will be handled by the provider.

At the end of the day, your merchant services provider’s first job is ensuring that your customers can pay with a secure and efficient card transaction.

What Else Can the Merchant Services Definition Encompass?

So, what is a definition that’s indicative of what merchant services really are these days?

Though it isn’t quite possible to provide a categorical answer to this question, it is possible to explore all of the possible answers out there.

Many merchant services providers group various facets under their merchant services definition, so let’s lay all of these facets out to figure out what could play into any one of your given merchant services options:

What Else Can the Merchant Services Definition Encompass?

Here are a few of the most notable additions that are often encompassed within a broader merchant services definition:

Merchant Services Online Payment Gateways
Beyond the card processing essentials, merchant services providers might also offer online payment gateways. This product will encrypt and run customer card information online, allowing your business to run secure card transactions from its own website.

If you’re running an ecommerce business, then accessing an online payment gateway with your merchant services bundle will be a crucial step toward a secure, easy checkout process for your customers.

Merchant Services Point of Sale Systems
The merchant services that your business opts for might end up being a full-fledged point of sale system.

In fact, point of sale systems and merchant services have nearly become synonymous. That’s because both have grown over time, encompassing virtually the same realm within small business finances—they both aim to ease the transaction process.

Point of sale systems, however, will generally go far beyond the transaction. In fact, many point of sale systems will allow you to run reports, track inventory, manage employees, reconcile tips and commissions, and even accept contactless payment methods like Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Because the strict merchant services definition doesn’t encompass these capabilities, many merchant services providers have begun to provide point of sale systems in conjunction with their merchant services.

As a result, a broader merchant services definition has swallowed up these point of sale capabilities. So, when you shop for merchant services for your business, you might very well find a few point of sale system perks thrown in there.

Merchant Services Gift Cards and Loyalty Programs
Gift card and loyalty programs also tend to fall under a broad merchant services definition. As such, many providers will offer the technology and supplies that make both gift cards and loyalty programs possible for your business.

Common Merchant Services Pricing Structures

Merchant services will typically come with one of the three following pricing structures:

Flat Rate
One of the most common types of price tag you’ll see on merchant services is flat-rate pricing. Typically, a flat-rate pricing model will be a small percentage of the transaction value, plus a small flat fee per transaction. However, some merchant services will simply charge your business the small percentage of the transaction value, without the per-transaction flat fee.

Interchange Plus
Another typical pricing structure that you’ll come across is the interchange-plus model. This pricing structure is a bit less straightforward than flat-rate pricing, but your monthly bill will delineate why each charge costs you exactly what it does.
In fact, interchange-plus pricing gets its name from its transparency. “Interchange” denotes the amount your merchant services provider will pay a card distributor—like Visa or Mastercard—for each transaction. “Plus” denotes the markup your provider will charge your business.

Tiered Pricing
Finally, the last of the most common pricing styles you’ll find is tiered pricing. With tiered pricing, providers bundle their services into pricing tiers. Based on your business’s transaction volume, your provider will assign you a pricing tier.
While tiered pricing will be easy for you to wrap your head around, it will ultimately end up being one of the more costly pricing models.
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