New Goals for Your Credit Card Processing Service

As we embark on another year, New Year’s resolutions are in full swing for consumers, as well as companies, everywhere. Now is a better time than ever to evaluate your previous successes and areas for improvement within your credit card processing service.

When re-evaluating your business in preparation for a new year, it’s important to stay completely focused. Coming up with a generic statement or goal won’t be of much use to you. Try to think of specific areas that need improvement and come up with a few very specific and realistic goals for the future. Both large and small business credit card processing companies can only improve if objectives are set in place.

This is especially true in the world of payments. In order to identify true success and failure, it takes a detailed analysis of those factors that will directly impact your income. It’s best to think specifically in terms of ROI. Ask yourself if you made the returns you expected to make from your merchants.

When returns are less than you expected, it boils down to two main reasons: The actions taken by your credit card processing company and your own actions. Here are a few areas to evaluate so you can get your credit card processing service back on the path to success.

First review your profitability by merchant and identify those who are adding modest profits to your bottom line. Now think about why you priced those merchants they way you did. There may be an obvious reason why they’re underpriced. For example, perhaps you anticipated the merchant processing a lot more volume, and that’s unfortunately not the case. If so, take steps toward success by adjusting the merchant’s pricing.

Next analyze your credit card processing company and keep in mind the actions of your credit card processor as they may be impacting your returns. Examine these items with your current small business credit card processing partner.

1.    Review your pricing specifics

Your pricing may not actually be as good as you thought at the beginning. Fees may be starting to stack-up, there might be higher monthly costs than you imagined or lower splits. It’s good to get a firm grip on the financials as you move forward into a new year.

2.    Make sure you’re getting the support you need

Your credit card processor is your partner and they should be acting like one. They should be available to provide support and guidance that sufficiently meets your needs.

Remember, it’s never too late to dig into these areas. After all, you just might find that you’ll be on your way to a more profitable 2012.

About The Author

Nick Karcher is a Relationship Manager who supports both current bank partners as well as those institutions that want to know what makes Clearent a different kind of payment processor. Offering some of the best credit card processing services, Clearent provides the kind of passionate service that others can’t. With an abundance of technology at our disposal, we offer small business credit card processing solutions that can provide clients with the necessary tools to really make a difference.

 

Merchant Credit Card Processing: Business & Profits Explained

After recently visiting a trade show and speaking with a number of people who were in some way professionally involved with a medium-sized bank’s credit card processing business, I learned an interesting piece of information that was a common factor among attendees. When I questioned the amount of money they were making from their merchant services program, the majority agreed that they weren’t profiting as much as they’d like.

After hearing this, I realized that others might be in a similar situation. I’ve outlined 3 reasons why you may not be making as much money as you would like, and how to grow your merchant credit card processing profits.

1.    Program growth is at a stand still

Think about the goals you originally set out at the start of the year. Are you reaching your portfolio objectives? The number of merchants you have may be influenced by your current sales efforts as well as how much effort you’re putting into your customer service or customer satisfaction program. Because you are trying to gain customers’ credit card processing business, be sure to have employees trained in customer service and are comfortable talking with future clients.

When it comes to growing your portfolio, it’s also important to think about yourself and whether you are getting the proper amount of attention from your merchant services provider. Do they call or visit you frequently and do they help you think of new ways to grow your portfolio? This is an important part of your merchant credit card processing partner’s job.

2.    Bottom line confusion

Your merchant sales volume ultimately affects the bottom line of your merchant services program. Your profitability can be directly related to each merchant and the branch level. Be sure to closely assess each merchant as a way to discover which customers are profitable, and which are not. Verify that each merchant is getting a satisfactory level of support.

It may be helpful to learn more about merchant service software to help with merchant credit card processing. Some merchant services providers offer software tools that include charts that can easily calculate the net profitability of each individual merchant within your portfolio.

3.    Market price regulation issues

Go through your portfolio and look at how you are pricing your merchants. Be sure that you are neither pricing too high, or too low. Both can have an impact on your financial wellbeing.

Remember, your pricing is dependent on what you are receiving from your merchant services provider. Your partner’s price could be too high, or perhaps you’re just not pricing your merchants high enough. To assure you are making the most of your profits, sit down with your financial partner and refresh your pricing plan.

Try implementing these three important tips and see if your credit card processing business begins to develop its profits.

About The Author:
As Vice President of Business Development, Kate Root is focused on helping Clearent expand its strategic ISO partnerships, as well as growing financial institutions’ merchant services programs. Kate’s 25 years in merchant services spans senior management roles in both issuing and acquiring, supporting financial institutions and ISOs. The right merchant service provider can help you increase your profits and reach your portfolio goals. Contact us for more merchant credit card processing needs.

 

A Mobile Future for Merchant Service Providers

This year marked the first Mobile Commerce Summit hosted by the ETA and held in Chicago. It educated attendees on the current use of mobile technology for small business merchant processing as well as its promising future in this market. It is predicted that mobile will have a strong impact on the industry. Because this is such an innovative endeavor, you may not feel quite up to par. However, there is no need to worry if you feel that your company is falling behind. This will be an ongoing learning process for everyone in the industry. Let’s take a look at the evidence that supports the future of mobile credit card processing service.

Many companies have already started to develop a more mobile approach to merchant processing. For example, Lowes is planning to implement iPhones as POS devices for customer service. Another store investing in a more mobile credit card processing service is Nordstrom. This retailer has already ordered a plethora of iPads for in-store use. Finally, Sparkbase has seen positive results and is quickly growing due to the use of the PayCloud mobile wallet.

After looking at these few success stories, it may seem like everyone is getting involved with some kind of mobile solution. However, it’s important to remember that these previously mentioned companies should be seen as early adopters. This is still a young and constantly evolving market. To help prepare your company for the future, it would be best to start educating yourself now on what is to come.

To help you begin the learning process, here are two crucial insights from panelists at the Mobile Commerce Summit.

Think Beyond Payments

As merchant service providers, you may be used to focusing all efforts on your credit card processing service, and this may have worked well previously when the job consisted of selling a credit card terminal to newly identified credit card acceptors. For existing clients, you may have helped lower their merchant processing costs. However, with the evolving market, your client relationship cannot be solely focused on the payment.

Mobile wallets, such as the Google Wallet, have more capabilities including the addition of coupons and other marketing strategies. You may also have heard of Square, which offers credit card processing along with a POS solution. The mobile future is beginning to develop beyond payments.

Focus on Merchants

Once you’ve broadened your idea of merchant processing and the future of mobile payments, you may discover even more ways to stray from offering only the typical payment solutions. To find new and innovative ways to help your merchants, try focusing on their current problems, needs and what specific ways you can help them with their business. This will position your company as a reliable merchant service provider.

About The Author:
Jeff Zimmerman serves as Clearent’s Vice President of Product Management and Marketing. Having held senior product management roles at Network Solutions and Intuit – maker of Quicken, QuickBooks and TurboTax, Jeff brings 15 years of product management, finance and marketing experience in the financial services and software industries. Among our solutions, we offer a mobile credit card processing service for our merchants’ convenience. Learn more about our merchant processing products and services and how they can help your business.

Find Answers to Common Questions with Merchant Services Software

Merchants have a busy day-to-day schedule, constantly dealing with the typical operations of their business. Sometimes they have to take time from their busy schedules to ask their merchant account service provider questions about their statement or a particular transaction. Instead of answering the same questions over and over again, it may be more efficient to teach your merchants how to find those answers online through the use of merchant services software. Helping merchants answer their own questions can help you provide the best credit card processing service possible. Here are a few typical situations that can be confusing.

1. I don’t know why my costs are increasing. What’s driving up my costs?

   When it comes to a merchant’s credit card processing service, there are several factors that can impact the cost. The main reason depends on the various credit card types being used by the merchant’s customers. This is why merchants should to figure out which of these cards are being used the most by reviewing their monthly statements or using merchant services software.



2. I don’t understand my merchant statements.

   Merchant statements vary greatly between merchant account service providers and can be difficult to understand. Once they’ve had a more thorough explanation, they’ll be more able to trust you as the best credit card processing company and they’ll feel better knowing where costs are coming from.



3. Locating my old merchant statements is difficult. Is there an easier way?

   Often times, merchants need to locate their old statements, whether for themselves or for an accountant, and it can become a recurring question that providers are asked. To reduce the time spent answering this question often, make sure merchants understand how to use their merchant services software to download their statements.

By spending time reviewing key components of merchant services and teaching merchants how to find and analyze information on their own, you will be saving yourself more time in the long run – creating a more efficient working environment.

About The Author:
Nick Karcher is a Relationship Manager with Clearent. He began his career in merchant services as an Account Executive and later started his own Independent Sales Office, growing an impressive portfolio before joining the Clearent team. Nick currently manages Account Executives and Relationship Managers who service both referral and agent banks.

Clearent is a different kind of merchant account services provider, offering a flexible proprietary acquiring platform and best-in-class service for not only your organization, but your merchants as well. Learn why you should choose Clearent. Our online merchant services software can help you maximize profitability and stay on top of your business.

Using Regulatory Changes to Grow Your Merchant Services Program

In an industry that’s always changing, it’s important to find ways to leverage the recent regulatory changes surrounding the Durbin Amendment and debit card processing interchange. While the interchange caps have reduced income for larger issuers with assets in excess of $10 billion, some merchant services programs have been able to use their lower rates to their advantage.

Add to that recent marketing campaigns such as Bank Transfer Day and Better Name for Banking and it’s easy to see how small community banks and credit unions are able to benefit from the larger banks indecision about how they plan to make up the revenue lost as a result of the Durbin Amendment.

This new cap on debit interchange is beneficial to merchants and can help you grow your merchant services program, providing you take the right approach. This is a time to embark on a new opportunity. For example, if you haven’t marketed to your commercial consumers yet, now is the time to sell your merchant services program by informing possible clients about the chance to reduce costs. Because of this change in the merchant services industry, it’s a great time to create interest around your business. You can also ride the growing wave of negative sentiment towards the big banks and their miscellaneous fees by promoting your services to new customers.

Although this is a great time for new customer acquisition, don’t forget the importance of retaining strong relationships with your current customers. If you have not already done so, let your current clients on interchange pass through pricing they will automatically reap the benefits of the new debit card processing changes. Enjoy this opportunity to better your customer service by utilizing good communication, making the client happy, and protecting your business from competitors.

Additionally, be aware of certain companies taking advantage of the Durbin Amendment be granting false information to consumers. Because of these difficulties and because Durbin is such a new change, you need to be prepared to answer any questions your consumers may have. Be sure to educate yourself over the topic.

About The Author
Nick Karcher is a Relationship Manager with Clearent. He began his career in merchant services as an Account Executive and later started his own Independent Sales Office, growing an impressive portfolio before joining the Clearent team. Nick currently manages Account Executives and Relationship Managers who service both referral and agent banks.

Clearent is a different kind of merchant account services provider, offering a flexible proprietary acquiring platform and best-in-class service for not only your organization, but your merchants as well. Learn why you should choose Clearent.

Durbin Amendment Brings Risk of Debit Credit Card Processing Scams

As you probably know by now, the Federal Reserve Board came to an agreement on how to regulate debit card interchange. As of October 1, every merchant with Interchange Plus pricing received a cut in their debit card processing fees, which means they will start seeing significant savings for their business.

More savings means more profits for your merchants. Because of this, many less informed merchants will become the target of debit credit card processing scam artists. In the weeks to come there may be “specialists” who come to your merchants door stating that they will be able to save them loads of money. All they would have to do is allow the specialist to examine their statement and the specialist would pass along this information to his payment processor and the card associations, with whom he had previously worked out a deal which would save the merchant an exceptional amount of money.

A knowledgeable merchant service provider knows that these “savings” the “specialist” is talking about are a direct result of the Federal Reserve Board’s decision. However, to the uninformed merchant this looks like an excellent business opportunity. Ensuring that your merchants do not waste money, and that you do not loose business, starts with education.

Many merchants are aware that the new Durbin amendment will affect the way their business handles debit credit card processing. However, many are not aware of the con artists out there who are stalking them, especially those with larger profits. As they see it, the more the merchant has to loose the more they have to gain.

Explaining the risk of debit credit card processing scams to these merchants is a good place to start, and then you can advise the rest of your merchants. When speaking with your merchants about such risks, it is important not to preach to them. Rather than telling them what not to do, share with them some actual stories of businesses that have been taken advantage of, as a cautionary tale. They can then reach their own conclusions, which will hopefully be that you are a trusted merchant service provider whom they can stay with for a long time.

Providing the Best Merchant Credit Card Processing Service

The word routine is most common in the part of our lives that encompasses the time we spend away from work. Be it making your breakfast, brushing your teeth or tying your shoes, a routine is something you do without even thinking. When it comes to the world of business, however, the word routine is less ubiquitous. Somehow the idea of doing something so many times that you don’t even have to think while completing it, rubs people the wrong way.

A routine does not have to be a mindless activity. On the contrary, it could be a very well thought out and executed task, the only portion that needs to be second nature is the initiation of the task.

In every industry there is a standard for success, and achieving this success is built upon growth – whether personal, financial or for your business as a whole. This is especially true in the highly competitive field of merchant services.

If a merchant services sales person developed a list of mandatory task he or she had to complete each and every day, these tasks would eventually become a routine. Not in the execution of these tasks, but in the initiation of them. Below is a list of tasks that, if committed to a daily routine, will set you on the right path becoming the best merchant credit card processing service.

1. Merchant Management
   Knowing the sales volume of each of your merchants will help you understand which of them are satisfied with your services and which are at risk of leaving. Addressing the high-risk merchants before they have left will build strong CRM as well as save you profits. Your merchant services partner should be able to provide you with reporting on you merchants.

2. Merchant Acquisition
   Growing your merchant services program rarely happens on its own. Bringing in new merchants takes time and effort. Dedicating a portion of every day to calling new merchants is the most reliable was to improve your current portfolio.

3. Merchant CRM
   Acquiring new business is only half of the equation. Following up with them is equally important. Customer relationship management should be added to your schedule each and every day.

4. Staying Relevant
   The merchant services industry is one that is always changing. This means that in order to be the best merchant credit card processing service and to stay relevant to your merchants, you must stay informed. Setting aside a few minutes of your day to look up industry terms, new technologies and what your competitors are doing is a great way to stay on top.

The common belief is that is takes 21 days of repetition to turn something into a routine. When thinking about next month’s schedule, it may be ideal for you to add each of the listed items above to your daily checklist. What may start as being something time consuming and tedious will turn into something that is simple and the driving force that is turning you into the best merchant credit card processing service in your industry.