So, you’ve decided to take a leap of faith and are starting your own business. No matter how large or small your company is—whether you’re a cafe, yoga studio, sell everyday goods or high-end luxury items, your customers will expect to be able to pay for their purchases electronically with their preferred credit or debit card. In today’s high tech world, the ability to accept credit cards as a form of payment is no longer optional. Setting up POS credit card processing will give your consumers the flexibility on how [and where] they pay for your goods or services.
Researching, selecting, and setting up POS credit card processing may seem like an overwhelming task for any merchant, especially if you are the new kid on the block. The following guide will give you some insight into what you should know about POS credit card processing.
You will need to:
- Open a merchant service account
- Determine credit card processing
- Decide what payment methods to accept
- Select a solution that can grow with your business
- Leverage the power of your POS system
- Firstly, you will need a merchant services account to help manage the entire transaction process. Credit card payment processing companies will typically include merchant services as part of their offering. They will help you (the merchant) with setting up a payment gateway to accept customer payment information, manage the transaction with your bank and communicate with the credit card companies and your customers’ issuing bank for approval. But most importantly, they make sure you get paid for the credit card transaction.
- When looking at credit card processing companies and merchant services companies, you will need to consider if you will accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover as well as debit cards? What accepting checks and digital wallet payments such as Apple Pay, Android Pay, and Samsung Pay? Will you be taking payments instore or online or a combination of both? Do you want to be able to accept payments offsite?
- It’s vital to do due diligence on finding the right credit card terminal or POS system that will work for your needs as they are not one-size-fits-all. Don’t rush this process, even if you feel under pressure to get your product launched, or your storefront open. Your credit card processing solution should be easy to use and include any specific features that will augment your business, helping you to better serve your customers. For many merchants, working with a company like CardConnect who offers a combination of all of these features is the best solution.
- Avoid buying individual products unless you want your small business to remain small. Understandably, you don’t have a crystal ball to know what you’ll need in the future, so find a solution that can grow with you. Ensure any tools you do buy are compatible with your merchant processing account. Find out what fees are charged for each part of the process – setting up a merchant account, payment processing (if not included with your merchant service account) and if you’ll have upfront costs for equipment.
- Once you have your POS terminal, get to know all its capabilities. It can make a significant difference in how useful it can be for your business. POS credit card processing is designed to improve your operations, giving you flexibility for growth, but these tools can be worthless if you don’t have a solid knowledge of their functions. Take advantage of any direct reporting, inventory tracking, and employee scheduling features to give you valuable insights and help you run your business more efficiently.
CardConnect offers a comprehensive range of payment processing and merchant services, making it easy to securely accept virtually all forms of payment from anywhere, at any time. Their goal is to provide merchants with the best payment processing rates supported by top world-class customer service. Whether you run your business across multiple storefront locations, out of your home or out on the road, CardConnect can help with all your transaction processing.
