Business today is as competitive as it's ever been and, especially since the emergence of the Internet, customers are looking for merchants they can trust and that can offer them the best in service and convenience. It's simply indispensable to accept credit cards to gain the confidence of your customers, and studies show that sales often increase 10-50% for businesses that begin using credit card equipment to process secure transactions.

Exactly what kind of credit card equipment do you need? There is a large gamut of credit card equipment products on the market today. These include: terminals, terminal and printer combinations, pin pads, card processing printers, wireless credit card processing terminals, credit and debit card processing software.

Credit card equipment is not as expensive as you may think. Terminals have prices that range from $99 to $760. Terminals with printers can cost twice as much. Pin pads are also about $100 to $300, and will allow you to accept debit card purchases as well. Don't penny pinch when it comes to this relatively inexpensive business expense, since a one-time savings of $30 could negatively affect your business in the long run. You want credit card equipment that is quick, light, and above all reliable. Some dependable credit card equipment manufacturers include Verifone, Nurit, and Hypercom.

It's usually a good idea to purchase your credit card equipment directly instead of leasing. The most important consideration, however, will be choosing a merchant account provider. A reliable provider can pre-program your credit card equipment for you, and since they expect to work with you for several years, they are less likely to try and get a "quick sale" from you. Service and honesty goes a long way when choosing a merchant account provider and credit card equipment.

As you might guess, wireless terminals are especially useful for mobile merchants, taxi drivers for instance, as well as merchants who sell at trade shows or other traveling venues where credit card equipment is needed on the go. When purchasing wireless credit card equipment, make sure that it offers secure, reliable processing and includes payment software that you can use with your portable computer, PDA, or other mobile device.

Credit card equipment is used in conjunction with credit card processing software. Do a little bit of research before choosing which software you are comfortable with, and identify which software is supported by your transaction provider. Some of the most known brand names in credit card equipment software include industry standards like PC Charge Express and Pro, IC Verify, and Authorize.net.

You've got your business off the ground. Now all you need to do is obtain quality credit card equipment in order to accept and process your customers' credit card transactions.