Accepting
Credit Cards: What You Need To Know
by
iMerchantNetwork.com
Any business will cringe at the thought of
what the banks put them through to use credit cards. If you
do not know what I mean, then this article is for you!
The fact is that everyone online wants to use a credit card
or debit card to process their order. It is very true in our
society that the credit card is a way of life, and if you do
not offer that ability to accommodate them, customers will
move on to another website that does allow them to use their
cards. This society has become driven by instant gratification
and expects to receive their products immediately, either by
a download or a short shipping duration. Taking credit
cards as a form of payment on the internet or offline should
be thoroughly
understood. Read on to see what I mean and how to protect yourself.
The fact is that any merchant taking in payments
is immediately at risk for whatever amount is charged and
MORE. The banks
will take the charge disputed along with a "charge back" fee
right from your merchant account, and you better have enough
in there that has cleared to pay your own bills or you will
be charged more for "overdraft charges". Some banks
are waking up to the fact that it is not always the merchant
at fault and most merchants are more than honest in their dealings.
There is so much credit card fraud out there and since the
merchants are ALWAYS liable, you need to realize this and take
action to prevent as much disaster for your business as possible.
First, if you have your own merchant account, then you have
a lot of work to do when you receive a credit card order. You
must verify as best you can that the card, the name on the
card, the address, the cvv number verification, and the quantities
are all in order. You need to verify the IP address of every
order and see if it is within the location of the card holder.
A person living in Toronto, Canada, probably would not be in
Las Cruces, New Mexico, charging products. This is a red flag
but not a deal breaker, some people DO travel. Caution needs
to be taken to protect your cash flow. As a merchant you must
get money safely into your account for any goods or service
you provide, so that you can become a larger or more substantial
independent business.
Do not just take in cards and believe that everything is going
to be just fine now that you have the money in your account,
because it can come out just as fast, or faster, than it went
in. There is a real need for you to understand a lot more than
can be mentioned in this article.
The best way to receive all the tools and services you need
to protect yourself and to make your voice heard is to check
this website: http://www.merchant911.org This is a group of
dedicated individuals who have been working for years to try
to change banking and processing company rules and regulations
as relative to merchants, both large and small. If you need
any more proof of their dedication, just read some of the press
releases and look at the tools they have assembled for merchants
to use.
Right now is the time to start to protect yourself from credit
card fraud. If you have read any of the newspapers or listened
to any of the news reports, then you already know you are at
risk. There are reports of over 40 million cards in the hands
of criminals and thieves and they will sell these cards or
will use them in various illegal methods. It's not hard to
imagine that some day soon you will be approached and asked
to spend your time and money to ship a product or provide a
service with these fraudulent cards.
Do your part to keep America strong and allow your business
to grow and prosper, not be destroyed by thieves and credit
card sharks. 2006
: iMerchantNetwork.com |
