February 24th, 2016 by Elma Jane
Merchants can bring in new customers and encourage repeat business by using their point-of-sale terminal as a marketing tool. A point-of-sale terminal allows you to process payment and accept debit and credit cards, and generate more business by using the right tools.
Customize Receipts – a customized receipt becomes an advertisement. The customer knows where that receipt is from should they want to contact you.
Gift Cards Program – Gift card recipient are likely to spend over the face value of the card. Customers will appreciate simplified gift shopping.
Loyalty Program – Loyalty program makes customers think of your business first and encourages them to come back often to earn a reward.
Referral Rewards – Print an offer to reward referrals, so they can send people to you.
A merchant account is not just an expense by finding the right tool you can generate more income for your business!
visit www.nationaltransaction.com today, or call 888-996-2273 Extension 1
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit Card Reader Terminal, Point of Sale Tagged with: credit cards, customers, debit, gift Card, loyalty program, merchant account, merchants, payment, point of sale, terminal
December 1st, 2015 by Elma Jane
Merchant account Aggregators has one merchant account that they let people use. You get quick setup, and get shut down quickly. A post approval risk management technique!
What’s the problem with Aggregators? If anything unusual happens their only recourse is to freeze your account entirely or hold your money. Most Aggregators are hard to get hold of because they don’t have human customer support.
Visa and MasterCard monitor Aggregators very closely. Once an individual or business sells more than $100,000, they force the Aggregator to issue individual, traditional Merchant Accounts for the business.
Aggregator is not intended as a long term, scalable solution to accepting payments.
While Aggregators have a One to Many structure, Traditional Merchant Accounts like National Transaction have a One to One structure. Traditional Merchant Accounts are not balancing the risk of your account against others, they want details on your specific situation before they give you a Merchant Account.
Traditional Merchant Account look at three things:
Your personal history “credit”, your business history if you have one and your business model. If you are working with the Right Merchant Account provider, they will know your business and understand the risk before you accept cards. They have other options to mitigate the risk than simply freezing funds or closing your account.
Why you may want to consider National Transaction over Aggregators, of the thousands of Merchant Account providers out there, only about 1% of them consider themselves High Risk Providers like National Transaction, which despite the abrasive term, are the ones who do effective underwriting.
Give us a call now at 888-996-2273 https://www.nationaltransaction.com/
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants Tagged with: aggregators, High Risk Providers, MasterCard, merchant account, payments, visa
October 30th, 2015 by Elma Jane
National Transaction Corporation is the preferred Credit Card Processing Agent for many National Travel Agencies & Associations. We are the preferred merchant account service provider for ASTA, OSSN, ARTA, HBTA,Vacation.com, Travel Leaders, Trams and many more. We are also affiliated with JaxFax, Travel weekly, TRO / Travel Research Online and other travel agency associations in the travel agent industry.
Benefits of our Merchant Account Services for Travel Agencies.
Competitive credit card processing rates & fees for travel agents
Faster deposits (as quick as 24 hrs from transaction)
No holds on funding
Trams Credit Card Merchant Account Integration
Sabre Red Merchant Account Integration
Booking Software Processing Integration
Lower Processing Rates & Fees
Swiped Rates for face to face credit card processing
ecommerce for shopping cart credit card processing
National Transaction Corporation has a proven track record with many of the Largest Travel Agency Associations in the U.S. and Canada. In fact for several of those, we are the preferred credit card processing merchant account services provider for their members. We can take your business to the next level with integration into Trams, Sabre, Sabre Red or off the shelf accounting programs like QuickBooks and Peachtree Accounting.
We are more than happy to provide you with a free merchant account rate review and go over your current credit card processing details and show you how we can save you money and get deposits even faster. We also offer industry leading technical support around the clock, you call, we answer. Simple as that. We can assist errant transactions, chargebacks, terminal messages and much more. Find out why National Transaction Corporation is the preferred merchant account services provider for travel agents & agencies.
Call us now and put us to the test. 888-472-7112
American Society of Travel Agents, Vacation.com, ASTA, Trams, Virtuoso, Travel Leaders, Association of Retail Travel Agents, Specialty Travel Agent Association, Cruise Holidays Credit Card Processing.
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Travel Agency Agents Tagged with: chargebacks, credit card, credit card processing, ecommerce, merchant account, Merchant Account Services, National Travel Agencies, shopping cart, travel agencies, travel agency, travel agent
October 30th, 2015 by Elma Jane
This is a question we encounter on a daily basis. Travel environments are unique in that your transactions are usually keyed, there is almost always a delayed delivery period, large ticket transactions are not uncommon since one cardholder may be paying for multiple tickets, they tend to be seasonal, with peak season months generating an unusual spike in their “average” monthly volume, and chargeback’s pose a potential threat by travelers who are unable to complete their trip. Combine even a few of these factors together and you have cause for a reserve, or even account termination.
Being a part of a MO/TO (Mail Order/Telephone Order) or Keyed environment carries an increased risk of potential fraud or unauthorized use of a credit card. Since the credit card and cardholder are not present at the time of the transaction, the merchant has a limited ability to ensure the card is not being misused or that the proper AVS (address Verification Service) information is provided. NTC stresses the use of Credit Card authorization forms in order to obtain the correct credit card number, expiration date, billing address, and signature of the cardholder.
Travel merchants tend to have periods of increased volume based on peak travel seasons, whereas most other industries tend to have the same average monthly volume every month. This can generate spikes in volume on the merchant account that can trigger security concerns with the processor. Helping the merchant to analyze their volume trends and reporting the trends to the underwriters helps eliminate the security concerns when these spikes occur.
Large transactions which exceed the average sale amount for the merchant account can also trigger security concerns. Merchants who do not inform their merchant processor of large transactions prior to charging the credit cards can trigger security concerns and cause funding delays and reserve holds. Educating and clearly communicating with the merchant how to handle large tickets, volume spikes, and group bookings, prevents reserves, funding delays and/or other merchant account issues.
Another concern from the underwriters is the delayed delivery time frame. Delayed Delivery refers to the amount of time between accepting a credit card payment (whether a deposit or full purchase) and the time the cardholder travels. The client’s credit card is billed and the travel agent is paid however, the trip the travel agent was paid for doesn’t generally take place for 2 to 3 months. This leaves a lot of time for things to change, and should the client not travel for some reason, the first thing they do if the travel agent does not issue a refund, is claim a chargeback. NTC offers quite a few tips that can help protect the travel agent from chargeback situations.
Most merchants do not realize that merchant processors carry a financial risk on merchant accounts, and normally fund merchants prior to receiving payment from the client’s bank. Essentially, a merchant account is an unsecured loan. The merchant runs a transaction and at the end of the day they settle their batch. Generally the merchant will receive the funds for that batch in their bank account within 2 business days even though the travel arrangements the client paid for do not take place right away.
Here at National Transaction Corp, we specialize in understanding what makes your transactions, as a travel agent, unique in how they affect your merchant account. Educating the merchant and ensuring they have a good understanding of what makes travel merchant account high risk, is one of our specialties. We have established a special relationship with our underwriting department which facilitates our ability to approve your high risk travel merchant account.
Contact your travel merchant account specialist at NTC today.
Mark Fravel
National Transaction Corp
Founder and President
888-996-2273
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Travel Agency Agents Tagged with: address verification service, avs, card holder, card payment, chargeback, credit card, Mail Order/Telephone Order, merchant, merchant account, merchant processor, moto, transactions, travel agent, Travel environments, travel merchants
October 13th, 2015 by Elma Jane
It is difficult to believe that many businesses still do not accept credit or debit cards for payments, while most customers preferred using cards for the following reasons.
- Doesn’t want to carry cash.
- Security and Protection offered by card issuers.
- Desire to earn reward points.
Some of the many advantages for businesses that accept credit card payments include:
Easy and cost efficient – credit card processing has become a highly competitive industry. NTC offers the latest in EMV and NFC technologies that allows businesses to accept contactless payment like Apple and Android Pay. NTC integrates with most POS systems.
Essential for online sales – internet selling is growing. The Internet makes it possible for a small business in a remote location to offer its products to potential customers throughout the nation and even across the world, almost all of those transactions require a credit or debit card.
Increases revenue – people like the convenience and security of paying with a credit or debit card. In fact, 66 percent of point-of-sale transactions use credit, debit or gift cards.
Merchant services accelerate cash flow – credit card transactions process quickly, with proceeds generally available in a bank account within two days or less. That eliminates the time it normally takes checks to clear. It also reduces or eliminates billing and the time spent waiting to receive payment checks from customers.
Reduce transaction risks – Check fraud remains a major problem for U.S. businesses, 77% of businesses were victims of check fraud, only 34% experienced credit card fraud and 92% said they believe new EMV chip and pin, credit cards will significantly reduce fraud at the point of sale.
Setting up a merchant account for your business is as simple as contacting a merchant service provider. A merchant service provider process payments and make sure the money is appropriately withdrawn from a credit card account and placed into the business’s merchant account.
For more details about setting up an account give us a call now! at 888-996-2273.
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants Tagged with: (POS) systems, Android Pay, Apple, Chip and PIN, contactless payment, credit card, debit cards, EMV, Gift Cards, merchant, merchant account, merchant service provider, merchant services, NFC technologies, payments, point of sale
October 12th, 2015 by Elma Jane
Setting up a merchant account.
- First find a Merchant Service Provider.
- Then setup your Business Profile.
Put together your business profile so you can start applying for a merchant account. There are questions that you’ll need to answer, that way merchant account providers have an idea of how they should setup your account.
Some of the questions are:
- Is your business seasonal? For Travel Company it is seasonal, there will be high and low volume. NTC works with seasonal downtime.
- How do you intend to accept payments? Different business models require different methods of accepting payments. If you’re doing face to face transaction and have physical location then you need a credit card terminal. If you process checks, then you need Electronic Check and ACH Transfers. For e-Commerce shopping carts, wireless/mobile, you can check out our Converge Virtual Merchant and NTC e-Pay.
- How much volume do you plan on processing? Merchant account providers are going to want to know how much sales volume you plan on processing per month. New in the business – give just an estimate average of how much you’ll be processing (per month), within the first 6-months of operation. Been in the business – you’ll already have this number ready.
- What will be your average ticket price?
Example:
Total Sales Revenue = $150,000
Total Number of Sales = 500 150,000/500 = $300 (Average Ticket Price)
If you need to setup an account give us a call now at 888-996-2273 or go to www.nationaltransaction.com to know more about our services.
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, e-commerce & m-commerce Tagged with: ach, Converge, credit card terminal, e-commerce, Electronic Check, merchant account, merchant service provider, NTC e-Pay, payments, Travel Company, virtual merchant
August 27th, 2015 by Elma Jane
Merchant processing fees is one expense you should look at as an investment. If you try to avoid merchant processing fees, you risk antagonizing prospective buyers and losing opportunities.
If you limit payment options for customers, you run a real risk of losing customers.
In addition to losing customers, you can run the risk of not being able to close deals. If you don’t provide your customers with easy, hassle free ways to pay they will likely seek out other vendors that do offer more convenient ways to pay for the services they need.
Do yourself and your business a favor, offer prospective customers and existing customers easy ways to pay you. Your customers will appreciate it and in return, are more likely to become repeat customers.
We live in a nearly cashless society. Accepting credit cards is a requirement in today’s business trend.
For Merchant Account Setup give us a call at 888-996-2273 or visit our website www.nationaltransaction.com
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants Tagged with: cards, credit cards, merchant, merchant account, processing fees
August 20th, 2015 by Elma Jane
We live in a nearly cashless society. Accepting credit cards is a requirement in today’s business trend.
What are the benefits of accepting both credit and debit at your business? Check out NTC’s List.
Convey a sense of trust.
When launching a business, you won’t have the credibility of a well-established company, so gaining instant credibility by promoting that you’re able to accept credit cards will help your business evolve.
You’ll be able to acquire respectability and strong customer relationships, compared to companies that don’t accept credit cards.
The more payment options, the better the sales.
Why limit your customers to just cash? The number of people carrying cash decreases every day, accepting credit cards will open the door to more opportunities.
Credit Cards drive e-commerce.
Nearly every transaction made on the Internet is paid for by some sort of payment card, be it credit, debit or gift cards, so having a successful online presence and creating an excellent revenue stream is crucial for the growth of your business.
Plastic is better than a check.
Because of the high level of diligence done by Credit Card Processors, it’s less likely that you’ll be a victim of fraud when compared to accepting checks. Accepting one bad check can make a business susceptible to spending valuable time dealing with banks and trying to find the customer to get reimbursed.
National Transaction can help you with your Merchant account set up, making the application process as seamless as possible.
Our goal is to create a smooth, fast and secured transaction process, leading to a better relationship with your customers.
Customers tend not to hesitate with convenient, nice to have purchases when they use a credit card compared to harder-to-part-with cash.
For Merchant Account Setup give us a call at 888-996-2273 or visit our website www.nationaltransaction.com
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants Tagged with: checks, credit cards, debit, e-commerce, Gift Cards, merchant, merchant account, payment card, processors
July 14th, 2015 by Elma Jane
If you own a business, you should consider opening a merchant account. If you accept credit cards for transactions, you will take your business to a higher level, increase your revenue, and gain new customers. Most people nowadays use credit cards and debit cards to pay for their purchases, so no business should go without processing card payments. Electronic, Credit card processing payments are a must-have for any kind of business including Internet businesses.
If you accept several forms of payments, you will provide your customers with multiple options and you will enhance their experiences. If you do not accept credit cards, the people who prefer to pay for their purchases with credit cards and debit cards will go somewhere else, and you will lose the transaction. So many benefits are attached with merchant accounts and millions of small business owners have found success with them. If you have a merchant account, you will be able to accept Discover, MasterCard, Visa, and American Express from your customers.
With National Transaction, securing Electronic, Credit card payment processing service instore, online and on the go are easy to acquire. It will boost your income, so it is worth the investment. You can apply online for a merchant account, the applications will only take you a few minutes to complete, and you will find out if you have been approved for a merchant account in a day or so.
A credit card processing service will also protect your business and valued customers against fraud. Customers feel safe using credit cards because they know that if their cards get stolen, they can cancel them, dispute the purchases, and get their money back. Your customers will feel safe when they make purchases. Some consumers will not purchase from a company that does not accept credit/debit card.
National Transaction offers advanced payment processing solutions like Currency Conversion, EBT and Debit Cards Processing, E-commerce Gateways, Electronic Check and ACH Transfers, Gift Loyalty Card Programs, Loans and Advances, Mobile Processing and MediPaid, you will definitely benefit from opening a merchant account. National Transaction offers Free CRM and we can even help promote your business through Social Media Sites. We offer a very competitive rate and Customer/Technical Support to our Partners because we answer our phone.
Merchant accounts are a necessity for any kind of business, so don’t wait. Sign up for a merchant account right now and discover what your business can gain from accepting credit cards! With 73 percent of American households owning a credit card, it’s easy to think that everyday credit card usage is a way of life.
Give us a call 888-996-2273 or check our website www.nationaltransaction.com
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants Tagged with: ACH Transfers, Advances, card payments, credit card processing, credit cards, crm, Currency Conversion, debit cards, Debit Cards Processing, e-commerce, EBT, Electronic Check, gateways, Gift Loyalty Card, loans, MediPaid, merchant account, Mobile Processing, payments, transactions
June 16th, 2015 by Elma Jane
When you own a travel agency, a merchant account can take the worry out of the financial side of your business. Since many people prefer to pay for their vacation services with a credit card, your Merchant Account will ensure that you’re able to process those payments as easily and efficiently as possible.
Merchant accounts generally work in real time. Payment processing occurs immediately, with quick authorization, you and your customer will know right away that the payment has gone through. These types of accounts allow your business to accept almost every major brand of credit card. This further benefits your customers by allowing them to pay through the cards that they have.
You can also offer your customers advanced payment processing solutions that include more than simple credit card payments. That’s important in this economic climate, when many people are turning from credit cards to other methods of payment.
Debit cards, checks, pre-paid cards, and electronic transfers are all available through Merchant Accounts.
Debit cards are somewhat treated like credit cards when you have a Merchant Account, ensuring that you’ll receive the promised funds before your client sets foot on their cruise ship or the airplane.
New business should lead to repeat business, and with a loyalty program set up through your Merchant Account, it will! Your merchant account provider can customize a loyalty program for you.
Creating a loyalty program will bring repeat business, increase the amount of money that customers spend with you, attract new customers to your business and, most importantly, keep them coming back.
Online payments are another benefit you’ll enjoy when you set up a Merchant Account. With online payments, your customers can click on your website, set up their own vacation itineraries, and pay for their trips simply by entering their payment data into a secure online form. The payments will be validated instantly, so your customers will know that their vacation has been authorized within seconds, and you will have access to those funds by the following day.
Finally, one of the best things about a merchant account is that the funds will be available to you the next day. Your customer pays you today and you can access the funds tomorrow. This improves your cash flow and makes it possible for you to take care of your business expenses in a timely manner. And, as you know, paying for things on time usually means those things cost you less money.
You’ll save money and time by setting up a merchant account, and you can do it today with National Transaction! (888)-996-2273 www.nationaltransaction.com
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Merchant Account Services News Articles, Travel Agency Agents Tagged with: checks, credit card, credit card payments, debit cards, electronic transfers, loyalty program, merchant account, merchant account provider, online payments, payment data, payment processing, payments, pre-paid cards
