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[A154]Accept Credit Cards By Phone

by Shane Penrod, Sha

If your business is poised for growth, don't be held back by a fear of technology if you don't know how to accept credit cards by phone. E-commerce is the way to go if you want to stay ahead of the competition and grow your customer base. Even if your company does not own a piece of technical equipment, now is the time to jump on the bandwagon to take advantage of easy ways to increase your profits.

To accept credit cards by phone, you will first need to get a merchant account. This is a special account offered by various financial lenders and institutions to reliable merchants that are looking to grow their business. A merchant account provides linkages between your business and customers' credit payments via a bank processing system that ensures timely receipts and secure transmissions. These can be handled in many different ways, such as through a credit card processor sitting on a cashier's counter, a Website credit processor, a wireless unit, or as discussed here, a telephone credit processing program. When you get approved for a merchant account, you will be able to choose the most appropriate service for your business, and many companies are opting telephone ordering services that provide a secure means of paying by credit card during a toll-free phone call that is often automated.

You will need to get the best deal on a merchant account before you can accept credit cards by phone. Shop for fees, terms, and products, since these accounts can be very competitive and some are laced with seemingly hidden costs, such as an application fee, gateway fee, and annual membership fee, among others. Once you find out what you will have to pay for a set-up and how much it will cost to put in a phone ordering and payment system, you will be able to negotiate a deal that will optimize your assets without jeopardizing your investment. You may want to use a toll-free number or even more than one number. It may be automated or you might choose to staff the phone line with a friendly customer service representative. It is important to make sure the line is secure so customers can feel safe about ordering and paying by credit card while on the phone with your company.

To accept credit cards by phone, ask your merchant account representative about the various options that you can choose from. Find out how much each one costs both in terms of direct and indirect expenses. Some may be billed at a certain rate per transaction, while others are charged an overall low percentage fee. It might even be a good idea to find out if your customers will want to order and pay be phone, because if not, your investment could dry up quickly. Be sure not to purchase more equipment or support than you need to get started. You can always add more features later as the business grows.

When you install a digital credit processing system, get ready to accept credit cards by phone.

Convenience

Accepting credit cards by phone adds a powerful convenience factor to your business. If you don't have a formal office or place of business for your customers to come in and pay, Dial Pay service is an excellent and essential tool. Or, maybe you do have a shop or store but would simply like the ability to close the deal with your customer no matter where you are. Either way, you will likely see your profits and customer satisfaction increase. Just think of the advantages of being able to accept payments by phone, on a job site, in a restaurant or even while at the grocery store. And nowadays, it is very important to accept credit card payment on the go and without delay.

A Call to Action

Another advantage to having a dialpay account is that it allows you as the business owner to finalize the transaction. In other words, your customer may verbally commit to you on the sale or service you are providing but unless you can finalize that agreement with payment, you may risk losing the customer to other day to day distractions or worse yet, to another competitor. Having a merchant account that can work on any phone, including a cell phone gives you this powerful advantage and again will only increase your profitability as a business.

Cost Effective

Keeping costs down is vital for any small or new business. Your standard merchant account requires you to have a credit card machine which can cost you hundreds of dollars, not so great for the little guy or the new business owner who would rather be spending his money on advertising or more important things. Extra fees are another area of high cost that you can expect to have with a typical merchant account. Many times these accounts have $25.00 to $35.00 monthly minimums as well as annual fees. Oh, I almost forgot to mention a nasty $250.00 to $450.00 account cancellation fee if you close your account within the first 2 years? Fees, fees, fees. On the other hand, if you accept credit cards by phone, you usually only pay one rate, a low monthly statement fee and a minimal application fee.

Fewer Headaches

Because there is no equipment needed to set up or use a pay by phone merchant account, you don't have to worry about technical equipment issues such as malfunctioning terminals or programming errors that inevitably happen with merchants that have credit card machines. If you ever had to deal with such a problem you understand the significance and value of having a simple credit card processing by phone solution.

If you are a small business owner on the go, accepting credit cards by phone can be a complement to your business and a boost to your bottom line.

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About Author

Both Shane Penrod & Philip Ritchie are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Shane Penrod has sinced written about articles on various topics from Credit Cards, Finances and Tools and Resources. . Shane Penrod's top article generates over 90500 views. to your Favourites.

Philip Ritchie has sinced written about articles on various topics from Credit Cards, Computers and The Internet and Credit Cards. Philip Ritchie is a National Sales Director for a major credit card processor. He specializes in setting up businesses to accept credit cards by phone. To learn more about this unique service visit. Philip Ritchie's top article generates over 2400 views. to your Favourites.