Re: [spiers] Accepting credit cards
***Regarding Being Able to Accept Credit Cards***
on 6/20/03 6:10 PM, wileyccc@aol.com at wileyccc@aol.com wrote:
> Although I argue against and ecommerce site, if you are intent on getting one,
> I'd recommend that you first find out if you can get a merchant account
> (simply apply thru your bank) and then try out www.store.yahoo.com where you
> can get a ecommerce site equal to amazon.com in functionality and power for
> $49.00/month complete. In fact, you can get on free for 30 days to play with
> if you like. check it out.
I agree with John on "simply apply thru your bank." My experience has been
that banks are a better and cheaper source for setting up merchant credit
card services than ecommerce sites.
My bank, and many banks, outsource credit card processing. My bank uses:
Merchant Services
7300 Chapman Hwy
Knoxville, TN 37920
They have a web site at: www.merchantconnect.com
If you end up looking on the web, you may also want to try www.charge.com
> try out www.store.yahoo.com where you can get a ecommerce site equal to
> amazon.com in functionality and power for $49.00/month complete.
The $49.00 a month, I should think, is a web site hosting fee. You'll be
paying a lot more than that in the fee called a "merchant discount fee"
(misnomers are alive and well) that Yahoo will charge you for processing
your credit card payments. :0
I've seen merchant discount fees - both at brick-and-mortar banks and on the
net - from 1.25% to 5.00%. That would be 5% of your revenue paid by credit
card. However, the larger your volume, the cheaper the "merchant discount
fee" you can negotiate. And don't be afraid to negotiate. These people don't
care about you or me. Rather, they're just trying to make money, like you
and me.
And here's a horror story for you. A colleague of mine sells furniture over
the internet. His site is (soon to be "was," I think) hosted by Yahoo, and
they process his company's credit card transactions. A competitor complained
to Yahoo that my colleague's company stole a design from the competitor's
web site. Yahoo FROZE my colleague's merchant card account - with some
$40,000 plus in the pipeline - until the matter was resolved.
Here's a tip from the "live and learn" department. Don't ever allow a third
party to hold that kind of power over your cash flow. Depending on the type
and size of your business, it could kill you.
My colleague's situation resolved in about 72 hours. I may use Yahoo's web
hosting services one day, but they will never do my credit card processing.
Lastly, I wouldn't worry about accepting credit cards until your underway.
You don't need them to get started. I wouldn't be concerned with it until
you are asked several times if you accept credit cards. Then go obtain the
ability.
That's it, and it's just my opinion.
Dave
Saturday, June 21, 2003
Trade in Services Database
Friday, June 20, 2003
Accepting Credit Cards
Re: [spiers] Accepting credit cards
Long ago I was teaching a class, with a part on payments in int'l trade, and
after my long involved discourse on letters of credit, a young woman said, "why
not just pay with a credit card?" I was offended, but I wasn't sure why.
Credit card? In international transactions?
Well, that is why I teach... someone will say something completely off the wall,
which turns out to be right on the money. And I learn.
Paying by credit card is not odd at all when int'l transactions at the small biz
int'l trade level may only be in the $5000 price range, and credit cards
commonly come with $10, $20K and even 50K credit lines. I've declined offers of
$100,000 credit cards.
And with frequent flier miles on a credit card, make a few payments and visit
the supplier for free.
I am sure in retrospect part of my displeasure with credit card int'l payments
had to do with the fact that I had invested so much time and effort in learning
about letters of credit. If credit cards become common in int'l trade, then all
I know about that topic is obsolete. I hate it when that happen!
Not too long ago Forbes had an article where VISA is working on the means to
handle commerce transactions up to $10 million (or more...don't quite recall).
Letters of credit are a nice profit center for banks...traders expect to pay a
hefty premium for the service... if VISA can get some of that biz, it can offer
it at a lower cost yet pick up some nice margins.
Of course, selling to retailers who pay by credit card is common now, and the
possibility of selling directly to the public is a possibility with a merchant
account.
Now, as to Costco vs. Wells Fargo vs. First Intestate Bank, a few things you
should understand. A credit card merchant account is like a loan to you. Your
ability to claim you've had sales on a merchant account means you can claim to
have that much money in the bank. A merchant account is like a loan to you,
from the bankers point of view. And it takes time to find out if you are being
fraudulent.
So, not everyone will qualify for a merchant account (ability to accept visa
mc).
Those who do qualify range from very risky to no risk. Venues where the card can
be accepted range from risky to not risky. Internet sites are considered risky.
Museum gift stores are not risky. The very risky will give up a substantial part
of their sales to the bank for the service.
Major banks tolerate the least risk. Costco is actually brokering merchant card
services for various banks, who compete for your biz, like a mortgage broker
selling a loan.
If Wells Fargo turns you down, they may recommend you try Providian (?) or some
other bank that takes risky clients but charges massive fees.
(If Costco offers you a Providian merchant account, it is because Wells Fargo
told them NO on your account.)
If one of these people turn you down, you should quit trying, because there are
more credit card providers out there, but they are a kind of bottom-fisher thats
prey on the weak.
These bottom-fishers cannot really get you a merchant account, they simply run
your sales through THEIR OWN merchant account, and take so much in fees that you
go out of business.
Yes, costco offers a good price, but I have mine with a major bank because the
money moves into my accounts instantly, simplifying accounting, processing is
more reliable and certain.
Although I argue against and ecommerce site, if you are intent on getting one,
I'd recommend that you first find out if you can get a merchant account (simply
apply thru your bank) and then try out www.store.yahoo.com where you can get a
ecommerce site equal to amazon.com in functionality and power for $49.00/month
complete. In fact, you can get on free for 30 days to play with if you like.
check it out.
John
Thursday, June 19, 2003
Trade in Services Database
Accepting credit cards
Hi all,
Any advice on how to get started on accepting credit
card payments?
My partner and I are comparing services provided by
Costco and banks. Will appreciate any pointers,
recommendation, or which one not to go for kind of
advices.
Thanks,
Linda
Wednesday, June 18, 2003
Trade in Services Database
Paul,
Let me start by saying I think this project would be a lifetime job, to get
going and pursued, what with the main market and ancillary services...
***
.
I see that the supply-side of the business would be to buy data from ICC,
then provide the "collection and distribution" function (computer back-end
work to import the data and web pages to allow customers to query/report it).
***Yes...***
Since the trade associations would be contacted to ask the "does it exist?"
question, are you suggesting that they would be the marketers and retailers
of the data? I extrapolate, then, that the paying customer is the importer
who would learn about the service through the trade association?
***I would think so.... when I wante the info i went to commerce dept USA, who
I'd expect to have it...no budget, no dice. I already knew industry
associations did not have it...so I quit.***
I have a proposal for you. If you, as a typical customer, can assist me in
identifying specific features of this service that would be useful to you
(so I know what to ask the ICC),
***No problem...***
and identify the retailers where you would
go to find this service (so I can determine if anyone will buy it),
*** Industry associations, articles to trade mags... that si to say, an article
for $1000 on "trends in import export of T-Valve design services for T-Valve
Weekly...***
then I
will take it from there. If I can get paying customers and turn it into a
business, then I'll give you free access to the service.
***Sure..***
(I hope I am not handicapped by the fact that one of the things I get paid
to do, is import data from companies into a database, reformat it, and
create web pages to access the data.
**You mean, as in beiing careful to avoid organizing around resources? I would
think the passion is the data mining, the oppty is usa data consumers... it is
clear you are not connected to the resources, that is the ICC.... so ... I dont
see the problem there...
***
John
Monday, June 16, 2003
Palm Pilot - Builder.com
Palm Pilot - Builder.com
Here is a website for developers, perhaps you can get in touch with
someone??? Glen
Sunday, June 15, 2003
Palm Pilot Developers
Re: [spiers] Palm Pilot Develoers
John-
Your proposal of a business to provide data on int'l trade in services,
intrigues me. You have given a clue as to the source for this data (ICC).
I see that the supply-side of the business would be to buy data from ICC,
then provide the "collection and distribution" function (computer back-end
work to import the data and web pages to allow customers to query/report it).
Since the trade associations would be contacted to ask the "does it exist?"
question, are you suggesting that they would be the marketers and retailers
of the data? I extrapolate, then, that the paying customer is the importer
who would learn about the service through the trade association?
I have a proposal for you. If you, as a typical customer, can assist me in
identifying specific features of this service that would be useful to you
(so I know what to ask the ICC), and identify the retailers where you would
go to find this service (so I can determine if anyone will buy it), then I
will take it from there. If I can get paying customers and turn it into a
business, then I'll give you free access to the service.
(I hope I am not handicapped by the fact that one of the things I get paid
to do, is import data from companies into a database, reformat it, and
create web pages to access the data. Having said that, I would probably
outsource some of these tasks. Now, if I could only use an int'l trade in
services database to find the outsource providers... )
Regards,
Paul
At 01:38 PM 6/14/2003 -0400, you wrote:
>Folks,
>
>here is one of those "why don't they just..." moments. the problem here
is although imports and exports of goods are declared and tabulated, and
availble to consult by oone and all, in part at least to get a bead on what
country is the best supplier of a given item; or what country is the prime
buyer of a given item... there is no such corresponding list of int'l trade
in services.
>
>Law work, architectural designs, education, research, investigations,
software coding... all sorts of services are traded import and export, and
all are required to be declared, but almost none are.
>
>I've contacted the various government agencies and they all tend to shrug
their shoulders and say "what can we do?" of course, there is not much
they can do without the budget to do so.
>
>Now one common thread almost all of these transactions have is they do
involve a bank transaction, money going from buyer to seller.
>
>So, if someone could convince the banks to sell the information on who is
exporting what services worldwide, that info could be collated and resold
to buyers of services.
>
>When someone desperately ants Palm Pilot software written, one might be
willing to pay $500 to know that there are eight active providers of palm
pilot software applications in the Soviet union, charging and average
of...etc...
>
>The crucial parts of int'l trade, that is info and logistics and payment
mechanisms (letters of credit) are all in private hands, and developed by
private entities. Governments need not apply for this kind of work. The
ICC in Paris, essentially an association of banks, would be an excellent
clearing house source for the info..., and of course you could ask all
sorts of trade associations if they think it is a good idea and if it exists.
>
>Of course, who is trading what services for what money where in the world
is being tracked, but as deep secret intelligence work as part of the "war
on terror," so we won't get access to that.
>
>So if someone loves this kind of work, compiling data on trade in servcies
worldwide and selling it, I would be customer #1 for this service.
>
>John