All posts by Abtek

Abtek is a state-of-the-art Credit Card Processing and Merchant Account Solutions provider. As credit card experts, we enable businesses big and small to accept and process credit cards, as well as delivering customized processing solutions to fit your evolving business needs.

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Breaking News

10 Things You Need to Know About CurrentC–Major Retailers’ Apple Pay Alternative

October 28, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

The internet is currently abuzz about CurrentC. So what do you need to know about it, besides the fact that it’s clearly a play on words (“currency”)? Here are simply 10 facts.

• CurrentC is a proprietary QR code-based system developed by the Merchant Customer Exchange consortium–which includes these retailers.

• Some retailers include Dunkin’ Donuts, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, CVS, and 7-11.

• In this system, the QR code is referred to as a Paycode and it plays a pivotal role in how payments are scanned and processed.

• As a result, CurrentC does not feature NFC technolgy.

• Actually, not having NFC technology–in addition to requiring information such as a user’s social security number and driver’s license number–does not bode well for the payments system.

• From Business Insider also comes a description of how CurrentC. vs. Apple Pay vs. a traditional swipe:

Here’s how it works: When it’s time to pay for something, you get a QR code served to you on a payment terminal. You then open your phone, open the CurrentC app, then scan the QR code to pay. It can also work in reverse, where you open your phone, and you have a QR code, and the retailer scans the code.

Compare that with Apple Pay, which works like this: When it’s time to pay, take out your phone, hold it to the payment terminal, then use the phone’s fingerprint scanner to pay, and you’re done.

Or, compare both with credit cards: When it’s time to pay, take out your credit card, swipe it, sign, and be on your way.

• Even though Apple Pay can seem a little convoluted when it comes to user experience–it is integrated into an existing customer payment flow–whereas CurrentC complicates it.

• Many iPhone and Android fans from Reddit have converged on Twitter under the #PayItSafe hashtag to spread awareness about the dangers of mobile payments technology that lacks NFC.

• Which is all to say that if you’re a business that wants to minimize the hassles and headaches of being an early adopter with payments processing technology that you may not have the resources to develop and scale throughout your business, go with someone like Abtek.

• Meanwhile, the Electronic Transactions Association, has blasted the CurrentC technology as being anti-consumer and anti-competitive.

Want to learn more? Stay up-to-date with breaking news by following us on Facebook and Twitter.

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History of Credit Cards, Merchant Service Providers

Apple Pay Lands on Monday and Here’s What You Need to Know

October 16, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

Natalie Gagliordi reports for ZDNet a few of the details made public about Apple Pay–the tech company’s foray into payment processing. What you need to know:

– Apple Pay will roll out Monday, October 20

– Apple has signed 500 banks to support the platform

– Banks have not been named yet

– Apple Pay utilizes NFC for contactless payments.

– Apple Pay also features a dedicated chip called the Secure Element

– This allows it to integrate with Apple’s Passbook app, which launched with iOS7

– Users will be able to set up and control their wallets via their iTunes accounts

So how will it work? Last month for CNet, Sharon Profis summarized that Apple Pay would be contactless and featured a degree of tokenization:

At the register, you’ll tap the top edge of your phone to the credit card terminal, which is where the NFC chip is located. Your iPhone will then prompt you to scan your finger on the Touch ID button. The phone will then access the secure element to generate a random, 16-digit number that mimics your “real” card number. That information gets sent back to the NFC chip, which sends it to the POS. From there, the payment finishes processing as usual.

When it launches Monday, Apple Pay will accepted everywhere from Panera Bread to Foot Locker.

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PCI Compliance

Aggregators vs. Merchant Banks, Part 3: Control Over Funds

October 15, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

We’ve been exploring what makes merchant banks a better solution for merchants than aggregators.
Previously: Part 1 – PCI Compliance | Part 2 – The Costs of Payment Aggregators Adds Up

One of the greatest risks to your business when using a payment aggregator such as PayPal or Stripe may be the structure of the payment system itself. Unlike traditional banks and credit card processing systems, these merchant services providers are not deemed to be banks, are not required to follow banking regulations or be PCI compliant. The last issue may create liability and risk for the merchant because aggregators are not legally mandated to follow strict fraud prevention regulations. These issues can all affect how much control over your funds.

The Aggregator Controls the Money

In practice, a merchant services provider for online payments through handy POS systems is not required to disburse funds until they determine whether the transaction meets the terms of service and is not a fraud risk. Without PCI compliant procedures, this process can take days. Thus, the aggregator continues to control the money.

Moreover, you may have very little recourse other than to take the aggregator to court, and that takes time and money. Some of the aggregators will enforce their terms of service strictly, which adds more risk of the funds being held back. Any slight violation can result in funds being frozen indefinitely with no recourse. With a traditional merchant bank account, the customer’s payment goes directly into your business account, and you keep control.

Using the Processor’s Merchant Account

To gain an understanding of how this method works, your business uses the aggregator’s merchant account through the POS systems rather than opening and using your own with a bank. You deposit funds into the service provider’s bank account, and then you may transfer funds to pay for goods or into your own bank account. Moreover, some providers, PayPal in particular, offer debit cards to spend the money online with other businesses that accept those payments. This offers a relatively safe way to make payments online with most ecommerce sites, and most aggregators offer protections for both the customer and the business in credit card processing.

Thus, as a third party payment solution, the merchant services provider receives the money for the goods and services you provide. The money does not come directly from the customer. Until they disburse the funds, the money is the property of the aggregator. While these facts may be embedded in the terms of service agreements, many business owners fail to fully grasp the meaning and potential detriment to their cash flow, accounting and profitability. The credit card processing goes through an intermediary who controls the outcome.

Additional Risks

According to an FDIC advisory, accounts with payment aggregators require “careful due diligence, close monitoring and prudent underwriting.” In addition, there may be a greater risk of “potentially unfair or deceptive acts or practices under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act. This greater risk adds to the potential that your funds could be frozen as the payment processor makes its determination about possible fraud. Moreover, statistics such as higher than average chargebacks may be considered evidence of fraud, adding other reasons that the aggregator may freeze your money.

The POS systems of aggregators offer simple, easy set up and access to the online ecommerce world. However, considering that nearly all of these transactions happen automatically without review or recourse, the risk to your business of a disruption in cash flow or the loss of a payment may be too great. While traditional merchant bank accounts require extra time, paperwork and verification, having complete control of the money once deposited into your account may be well worth the effort.

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History of Credit Cards

Decoding Credit Card Numbers: What Do Those 16 Digits Mean?

October 8, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

If you’ve ever had to manually key a credit card number into an automated phone system, you’ve probably wondered why the number is so long. Actually, each digit in a credit card number is important for validation, security and identification during credit card processing. Take a moment to learn what each of these digits means.

The Origin of the 16 Digits on Credit Card Numbers

Card numbers have been standardized according to ISO/IEC 7812-1:2006 since 1989. This document is from the International Organization for Standardization, and it is this standardization that allows consumers to use some credit cards anywhere on the planet.

Digits 1 – 6: Issue Identifier Number

First digit: This identifies the major industry that produced the credit card. For example, a 4, 5, or 6 in the first digit identifies banks and financial institutions
Digits 2 – 6: Along with the first digit that identifies the industry, the first six digits provide a unique identifier for a particular institution. Some institutions may have more than one unique identifier for different lines of business. For example, you might notice that your debit card begins with a different digit than your credit card from the same bank.

Taken together, the first six digits are called the issue identifier number, or IIN. In the past, these numbers were called the bank identification number, or BIN. Since not all issuers are banks, this name changed, but you might still see references to a BIN or bank identification number in some references. In any case, credit card issues register their unique IIN numbers with the American National Standards Institute.

Digits 7 – 15: Unique Personal Identifier

These numbers uniquely identify the person holding the account. The card issuer allocates them, and they are unique for the issuer that generates them. You could have a different identifier for different cards from the same issuer.

Digit 16: Check Digit

The last digit is called a check digit, and it is used to verify card numbers for accuracy. Because it is calculated according to a public domain formula called the Luhn algorithm, it is not intended to protect against malicious attacks against merchant services of POS systems. In fact, the patent for the Luhn algorithm dates back to 1960, and examples of computer code to calculate the final digit are freely available online.

Rather, this last digit is only intended to verify that a credit card number was not accidentally typed in wrong when making phone or online payments, and that is how it is used in credit card processing today.

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Fees

Aggregators vs. Merchant Banks, Part 2: The Costs of Payment Aggregators Adds Up

September 29, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

We’ve been exploring what makes merchant banks a better solution for merchants than aggregators.
Previously: Part 1 – PCI Compliance

You may have considered a payment aggregator for credit card processing of transactions from customers. Yet, you may wonder about the difference in costs between merchant services providers such as PayPal and Square when compared to a traditional bank merchant account. A critical difference for many businesses comes down to costs associated with credit card processing.

Pricing

Many aggregators such as PayPal and Stripe charge a flat rate price, and this method has become increasingly popular for their merchant services. Simplicity attracts business, and their POS systems offer quick and trouble free set up. The flat rate price structure is easy to understand and saves time for the merchant who can avoid reading through complex and lengthy processing statements. The method appears to improve transparency between the aggregator and merchant. However, despite the straightforward POS systems, the costs of using an online payments servicer can mount quickly.

The Illusion of Flat Rate Pricing

While flat rate pricing is attractive in its simplicity, it is a marketing strategy designed to appeal to business owners who wish to focus on sales rather than accounting. Because of the complexities involved in credit card processing, it makes charging a competitive flat fee nearly impossible. Each transaction processed through a merchant incurs three charges:

A fee to the card brand, such as Visa or Mastercard.
A fee to the issuing bank.
A fee to the credit card processor.

The interchange rate is not fixed cost, and it can range from 0.05 percent to higher than 3 percent. Aggregators must account for all potential interchange rates, thus the flat rate must be high enough to cover the highest interchange rates. This can cost a merchant up to 20 percent more in processing costs.

PayPal and Stripe charge a fixed percentage of 2.9 percent plus $0.30 per transaction. For businesses that rely on lower price point merchandise and transactions, that additional $0.30 can cut into profits quickly. Mobile merchant accounts to facilitate ecommerce have become increasingly popular. Yet, they remain expensive alternatives.

Funding

Additional processing costs associated with flat rate aggregators include the funding timeline. It is not cost effective for payment aggregators to maintain an appropriate reserve to pay their customers in a timely way. PayPal can take up to 48 hours, and Stripe may take a week. This can cause significant burdens to cash flow and create complex accounting problems.

Moreover, aggregators process payments through the umbrella merchant account instead of individual accounts for each merchant. Because of this, the money is technically the property of the aggregator. This arrangement alters the risk and liability arrangements between merchant services providers and businesses, and it may cost more to the business long term.

Another crucial limitation that directly affects costs is that networks have a $100,000 yearly limit for individual businesses using a payment service provider. Businesses that do more may have to consider additional options.

Additional Costs

In general, an aggregator will have an easy process to set up an account, although your business must have a link to an online bank account. The online merchant bank account will most likely have the following fees:

Annual and monthly fees
Merchant service fees
Minimum monthly balance fees

These charges will be in addition to the aggregator’s fees. Thus, while using an aggregator may be quick and easy, the additional capital fees will add up when compared to a traditional merchant bank account. The bank will make money from the merchant service fee; however, a provider such as PayPal will make a sizeable percentage plus a flat fee on every transaction.

Choosing between a merchant account and an aggregator will depend upon current business requirements and budgets. The POS systems are attractive, yet many businesses that take a little time to compare will find a merchant account is less expensive in the long term.

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Chargebacks

5 Tips for Reducing and Preventing Chargebacks

September 23, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

When credit card transactions get reversed, it’s called a chargeback. Typically, chargebacks get initiated by the credit issuer at the request of the credit card holder. As a merchant, your first problem will be losing the funds from the transaction. You may or may not get the product or service back that you sold in the first place. However, getting credit card processing transactions reversed might cause other problems that could generate more headaches than just losing a sale:

You might not get your original transaction fee refunded.
Some merchant services charge an even larger additional fee for each chargeback.
Frequent reversals might result in even higher penalties or even getting your account terminated.

Most Chargebacks are Preventable

Visa, one of the largest credit card companies in the world, says that most reversal situations could be prevented with proper training and processing systems. It’s important to learn how you or your POS systems can catch risky transactions before they occur.

Do not accept or repeat a transaction after the initial request gets declined.
Respond to CALL requests from your authorizer, follow the instructions and document the authorization code.
Track and confirm delivery of physical products.
Publish clear refund and cancelation policies.
Respond to direct customer requests for cancelation of recurring services or refunds.

Your Customer Service and Refund Policies Prevent Chargeback Problems

With mobile merchant accounts and online payments, you have to reply upon your credit card processing system to properly validate transactions. However, you still need a clearly documented process for handling cancelations and returns. That way, your customers can call your own customer service number if they have questions or problems with a transaction. Typically, handling customer disputes internally is much better than waiting for reversals from credit card companies.

In some cases, your customer service representatives may be able to help your customer with an issue and prevent any request for a refund or cancelation at all. If not, it is still better to handle a refund or cancelation internally than it is to create a frustrated consumer who is likely to call his or her own credit card company to request a reversal. You might still lose a sale, but you will not risk chargeback fees, penalties or possibly even getting your merchant account terminated.

Finally, your clear refund and cancelation policies will direct customers to your business in the first place. In general, only frustrated customers end up calling their own credit card companies for help.

Abtek Helps Win the War Against Chargeback Issues

At Abtek, our professional compliance experts help new customers set systems up correctly to reduce the risk of reversals. If our clients run into problems, we are also there to support them. With over 17 years of experience in the banking industry, our compliance officer deals directly with clients and credit card companies to help fight reversals and educate clients about ways to prevent them in the future. Contact us today for more information.

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PCI Compliance

Aggregators vs. Merchant Banks, Part 1: PCI Compliance

September 16, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

Payment aggregators or merchant aggregators provide services through which ecommerce businesses can process payment transactions. These service providers allow businesses to accept bank transfers and credit card payments without opening and maintaining a merchant account with a card association or bank. The aggregator facilitates the payment from a consumer via bank transfers, credit cards or stored value accounts to the merchant. Thus, the aggregator pays the merchant, not the consumer. These services have become increasingly popular, although they have downsides when compared to a traditional merchant services provider such as a bank. These include:

Limitations to transaction size.
Lack of PCI Compliance.
Fewer filters to prevent fraud.

In general, payment aggregators hold consumer credit card data for quicker purchases, or they hold money for making future purchases. Companies such as Google Checkout, PayPal and Amazon Payments differ in their POS systems, credit card processing, services and costs for their merchant services. While these alternative merchant services have aggressively worked to establish themselves as market leaders, each business must assess the risks and analyze the costs in relation to traditional credit card processing to obtain the appropriate payment solution.

Transaction Limitations

For instance, a business that sells high-end goods, may suffer from lost sales because the credit card brands place an $8,000 limit per business per month. This limits online payments to lower priced goods. Moreover, as the service providers accept liability and risk for each transaction through the master account, individual transactions face maximum limits as well. Currently, the increasingly popular POS systems such as Square use an aggregator model that limits transactions to no more than $400. If a business exceeds those maximums, the automated system places holds on transactions up to 30 days, and those transactions may be subject to higher processing charges. Thus, two major drawbacks include:

The money is not yours. Your business receives payment from the aggregator. The money collected from bank transfers or payment card transactions are property of the aggregator. If you violate the terms of agreement, the money may be held indefinitely.
Higher fees for higher volume. After monthly volume exceeds certain levels, the fees can increase.

PCI Compliance

Another way that traditional merchant bank accounts provide safer credit card processing involves PCI compliance. Currently, all bank credit cards must follow PCI procedures to reduce liability and risk for the merchants for all account types. Most payment aggregators include that critical information only in the ultra-fine print. The merchants remain obligated to maintain PCI compliance despite using a payment aggregator that lacks the ability to screen for potential fraud. This applies to mobile merchant accounts as well.

If you do not maintain PCI compliance, you put your business at greater risk for the increasing threat of debit and credit card theft and data breaches, which could result in large fines from regulatory agencies, banks or card organizations, as well as lost customers and legal expenses.

Thus, a small to medium sized entrepreneur faces higher risks when using POS systems like Square or aggregators such as Groupon for processing debit and credit card transactions. Traditional merchant accounts do not vary the liability and risks assumed based on processing volume, whereas many aggregators do. Smaller volume translates to higher risk ratios, which can lead to frozen funds and transactions in an automated system without regard for your cash flow needs. Moreover, without appropriate fraud screening methods to prevent risky transactions, the aggregators play catch up to the schemers at your expense.

Additional Costs

Lastly, it pays to investigate all of the potential costs for the alternative payment methods. Many can be significantly higher than direct card payments. Further, costs may increase from fewer fraud guarantees and clearly defined processes for disputes. Fraudulent chargebacks may increase without any restitution from the service provider. Thus, while it may be tempting to take the easier, shorter route to accepting payments, a traditional merchant bank account offers better safety, lower risks and potentially higher profits.

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Merchant Service Providers

Merchant Services Companies Can Protect Merchants and Consumers from Identity Theft

September 11, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

Before consumers will take any risks on making purchases with a merchant service, they need assurances that their privacy is intact, their financial information is secure during credit card processing and that they are being protected from the invasive efforts of identity thieves through merchant service compliance initiatives.

Leading providers of merchant services offer credit card processing and POS systems management to most level 4 merchants such as debit card and credit cards from Visa, MasterCard and others.

Merchants understand, for the most part, that PCI compliance is not just a requirement, but a business responsibility for covering their consumers. Small business merchants believe that complying with PCI standards improves their business security. In fact since 2012, businesses that have stepped up their security PCI compliance have seen up to 50% growth in customer based sales, and even more recently.

Identity Theft Can Happen to Companies and Individuals

Business identity theft protection is as vital to thriving businesses as it is to consumers. When hackers compromise the security of business merchant records, they can get a hold of personal financial records of thousands of customers. With the continuing global growth of ecommerce trade, new innovative controls have been developed over the years to keep ahead of business hacker’s efforts.

Digital Solutions to Credit Card and Identity Theft Threats

Consumers are readily adopting the concept of mobile commerce technologies. Many find it easier to trust mega-corporations to secure customer online payments using business intelligence security using their smartphones and other digital devices than to trust the security of small businesses in brick and mortar shops.

One way financial institutions are protecting consumer security from identity thieves is by using geo-location within their payment and purchasing eco-systems. In fact, mega corporations like Google, Apple, PayPal and Square are investing big time in new geo-based technology. Processes for secure transactions using smartphone apps will soon become recognized as the safer and more secure transaction method, our digital wallets, over physical credit and debit cards.

Retailers have the capacity to provide security in a seamless, secure market with direct service transactions for their customers who elect to use mobile payment technologies. The built in securities in smartphones and payment apps will deter identity theft and wall out hackers, making mobile merchant accounts and their ecommerce companies highly regarded by consumers for their digital protective powers.

Efficiency in Chargeback Procedures and Compliance

An integrated online payment duty of merchant service accounts is to guarantee coverage for following through with customer chargebacks. The financial service industry is more versatile in administering certain guidelines and maintaining reserve funds for chargebacks for dissatisfied credit card holders. There have been many instances with banks denying valid claims because of their restricting regulations.

Pro-Active Protection Methods Used by Merchant Services Companies

Many merchant service companies provide their customers with software that can notify them if fraudulent activities are suspected on their accounts. Some banks will put a temporary hold on credit card activities until the customer makes a call to confirm unusual charges, before anything really serious can happen. If too many password attempts hit a merchant website page, their merchant account will be temporarily blocked until they call in to change the password.

Some merchant services websites outline the steps to take if a suspected fraudulent incident happens to a merchant account; these steps are designed to stop identity thieves in their tracks. Some financial services act as interceders between the seller and purchaser so they never have a printout or stamp of your account, and the information they receive on any transaction is limited. This can be as effective as using encoded passwords and account numbers.

Internet specialists, programmers and software designers are working around the clock to stay ahead with innovative features for safety in the online financial and marketing industry. Many trusted avenues for transferring money are being tasked to ensure that clients have a safe mode of completing business and sales without the danger of identity theft. Users who are observant, make good decisions and follow protection warnings when online can safely avoid identity theft.

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History of Credit Cards

The History of Credit Cards, Part 3: The Evolution of True Digital Credit Card Systems

September 2, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

Today’s ecommerce depends heavily on digital credit card processing solutions and efficient, reliable, secure merchant services. While business is booming with brick-and-mortar companies relying upon digital POS systems, these digital systems have actually been evolving for over 30 years.

The First Online Shopping Cart

According to ”Internet – Technical Development and Applications,” the first online shopping cart system was demonstrated by a British entrepreneur named Michael Aldrich in 1979. Because of this, Aldrich is actually credited with the invention of online shopping. In other words, he developed the first system that made it possible to conduct online transactions between customers and businesses.

Even though this was the first true “ecommerce” system, that word had not yet been coined. Most people did not really even know that online shopping was possible way back in the late 1970s and even the 80s. In fact, the first internet browser, simply called the WorldWideWeb, was not invented until 1990.

One might also imagine that today’s internet security experts would be horrified by how vulnerable and transparent these first online payment systems actually were. But basic technology has to be developed and demonstrated before it can evolve into the truly useful and secure systems we rely upon today.

In 1992, two years before Amazon emerged, an article called Visionary in Obscurity reported that a bookstore moved their old dial-up BBS system to the internet as Books.com, and it attracted half a million visitors a month at its peak. The owner of the bookstore, Charles Stack, reported feeling very moved because his first online customer told him that he was a blind person who was able to make his own purchases with computer aids for visually impaired people.

Even then, true POS systems had not been developed, and the process of taking credit card information from the online system was partially manual and usually relied up a traditional store’s merchant account. This is similar to the fact that the first mobile merchant accounts actually relied upon sending text messages that needed intervention in order to get processed as transactions.

Early Mobile Payments

You might be surprised to learn that Coca-Cola innovated mobile payments in 1997. They introduced a few vending machines that allowed thirsty customers to send a text message to the machine with payment information. In that same year, Merita Bank introduced a similar system that accepted text messages with payment information for purchases.

No-Contact Payments

Radio frequency identification, called RFID, describes systems that are able to help customers make purchases with a chip and antennae embedded into electronic devices. Most commonly, these devices are smartphones. The customer just needs to wave their phone over a payment terminal in order to make a purchase. In some cases, the system might request a PIN number, but this is usually only for very large purchases or in cases where the automated system detects unusual payment activity for a specific customer.

The first example of this was Speedpass, a product from Mobil that allowed gas station customers to wave a small key ring fob over a payment panel in order to pay for gasoline. Today, ExxonMobil still accepts a Speedpass, and other companies have also adopted this technology.

The Future of Digital Merchant Services

At Abtek, we have provided secure, innovative and reliable ways for consumers to make online payments since 1986, and we continue to keep up with advances in digital technology and security. We thrive in this competitive business with a combination of futuristic solutions and a timeless commitment to customer service.

Besides providing basic credit card processing, we offer mobile merchant accounts, POS terminals and other aspects of today’s digital commerce. Our main commitment is to make certain that our services make our merchant affiliate’s businesses more productive and profitable. Contact us to learn why Abtek can provide the right solutions for your business.

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Merchant Service Providers

Expert Tips for Growing Your Business

August 27, 2014 Abtek Leave a comment

We understand that a common challenge of all businesses, especially smaller ones, is that of cash flow. No matter how profitable a business, it requires increasing levels of working capital to support ongoing growth. The successful entrepreneur understands this need for cash and capital and takes steps to ensure it is available when needed.

Increasing Cash Flow with the Right Merchant Services

Many people think the only way to fund a small business is through incurring debt or selling equity. While both of these methods are common, we work with many creative entrepreneurs who find additional ways to help manage their cash flow. For those companies involved with ecommerce especially, efficient credit card processing services is just one of those tools.

The use of our modern POS systems helps business owners generate accelerated cash flow. We provide merchant services that facilitate all types of large and small business transactions, from retail to online payments. We also offer mobile merchant accounts that fit the needs of a wide range of businesses. Importantly, our systems help our clients minimize the common problem of chargebacks.

Low cost and dependable credit card processing are only part of what we provide to business owners who want to maximize cash flow. As a part of our package of progressive merchant services, we also offer different forms of advances and business loans for those who serve their customers with our state-of-the-art POS systems.

The advantages of these financing options are numerous. Instead of trying to get a loan from a bank and committing to a rigorous payment schedule, we accommodate our clients with convenient terms that automatically reduce the balance they owe based on the volume of business they do.

Other Tips for Financing Your Business

In addition to debt, equity and the correct use of credit card processing services, the savvy business owner will focus on these key areas of managing working capital needs:

Working with vendors. The longer you work with certain vendors, the better terms you can expect. It is important to set up your company’s financial accounting system to ensure you pay your accounts on time, building a strong credit history. Setting up a D&B account is part of this process. Depending on your industry, you can also work with vendors to smooth out seasonal peaks in buying and payment terms.

Managing inventory. Today, there are many inexpensive inventory control systems to help keep inventory levels at the lowest level possible while meeting customer expectations. Many companies reduce their working capital needs by as much as 20 percent when they pay attention to inventory levels. This is especially important for companies with seasonal business or products that may go out of date. Clearing out excess inventory at cost is far better than letting it sit on shelves.

Consider invoice factoring. Many companies today are turning to the concept of selling their invoices to a factor to improve cash flow. The great thing about factoring for a small company is that the factor looks at the credit worthiness of the company buying the products or services. These are often larger companies with established credit, allowing even a new business to sell their invoices quickly. While this can be an expensive route, it may be the right way to support growth for some companies. Over the long-term, factoring is preferable to some businesses wishing to avoid debt or selling shares in the company.

Taking Care of the Basics

Companies must generate profits and have sufficient cash flow to survive and grow. Meeting customer expectations with quality service and professional credit card processing services are one of the basics for businesses today, especially those involved with ecommerce.

Delivering what customers expect will ultimately improve sales, reduce chargebacks and increase your ability to attract the type of financing you need for growth. Abtek’s POS systems are designed to help you provide that level of service and build the revenue you want and deserve. We also work with you to provide part of the financing you need as your growing base of charges shows you are taking care of business.