"Reduce Your eCommerce Sales Risks and Increase Your Profits. Guaranteed!"

If you think you are doing everything right and will never have problems with your eBusiness credit card processing merchant account, you have two options...

1. Keep your head in the sand while you lose money from fraudulent sales and chargebacks, and worse, your account is locked and you have no cash flow.
2. Learn the truth about merchant accounts so you can sleep soundly at night knowing that your e-business cash flow and profit will grow.

Dear eBusiness Owner,

Four Myths About Merchant Accounts

• Myth #1: All merchant account providers understand and want eCommerce clients.
  Reality:
  
  • Many merchant account providers have little experience with eCommerce and downloadable products and consider it too risky.
    
    
• Myth #2: All merchant account providers offer great customer support.
  Reality:
  
  • Many sales agents and providers are only interested in the initial sale, and not in giving you ongoing support.
    
    
  • When looking at companies and banks offering merchant services, you can rarely find information about the CEO and other employees.
    
    
  • You call customer support and are put on hold. Eventually, minutes, even hours later (see section below), you may get to talk with someone, but still may not get help.
    
    
  • Small banks do not have the infrastructure for merchant accounts, but don't want to lose their business clients, so they sub-contract with merchant account providers. When you call or visit the bank for support, they refer you to the contracted merchant account providers that don’t work with eCommerce merchants (see Myth #1).
    
    
  • Large banks offer merchant services, but since it's not their primary business, they don't have the specialists necessary to help with your personal business needs. You might think, "How can I go wrong with a large bank with so many branches?" These banks focus on retail store merchants, don’t understand eCommerce (see Myth #1).
    
    
• Myth #3: Choose a merchant account provider based on low fees.
  Reality:
  
  • With a merchant account as a low price commodity, you will receive minimal initial and even less ongoing service. Also, the merchant and the merchant account provider don’t have much incentive to build a successful business relationship because when the merchant finds an apparently cheaper rate, he will switch.
    
    
• Myth #4: Your merchant account provider wants you to have an explosion in sales.
  Reality:
  
  • When you have a large increase in sales, your account can be suspended without warning. Huh?
    
    
  • When you exceed your monthly sales limit specified in your agreement, your merchant account provider sees a major risk. Why? Because they have to make good on thousands of dollars when a merchant goes out of business or doesn’t have enough cash to cover returns or chargebacks.

The Real World of eCommerce Payment Processing - Blam, Crash, Yikes!

The reality of payment processing can differ from the ease-of-use marketing pronouncements. I have gathered examples how payment processing really works when things go wrong...a'la Murphy's Law. I'm sure that if I asked for contributions, I would receive dozens more. You probably have at least one from personal experience or know somebody that has one. (Note: the names are changed for confidentiality.)

• Maria's Gift Baskets "This is customer support?" - Ouch! Maria was pretty upset when she told me her story about her online Gift Basket-of-the-Month Club business. Every month she manually entered her client’s credit card information and charges. She heard that she could automate the monthly charges so she tried to contact her merchant account provider.
  
  For over a month she tried, but the line was busy or she was always put on hold. Maria had a business to run and didn't have the time to stay on hold, so she would always hang up after 10 or 20 minutes. One time she was determined to get an answer so she stayed on hold for over two hours. After finally reaching somebody, Maria was told that they didn't have monthly recurring billing.
  
  
• Richard’s eBusiness Marketing Mania “Doubled sales, but couldn’t accept credit card anymore” – Ouch! Richard’s blew his stack when one Friday night he discovered that credit card sales on his marketing website were declined. He called his merchant account provider but was told that the risk department wasn’t open on the weekends…call back Monday morning.
  
  Here he was having a phenomenal sales volume for the month, well on the way to doubling his profits, and then suddenly, without warning, no sales.
  
  After losing sales all weekend, he called the risk department on Monday morning. To his astonishment, Richard learned that because he was so successful, future sales would be declined. It turns out that his sales exceeded his monthly sales volume limit written in his merchant account contract. Richard admitted that he didn’t remember that his contract had a monthly limit.
  
  
  
• Guess What An Internet Millionaire Told Me About Merchant Accounts? At an eCommerce seminar in Las Vegas, I was talking with Internet marketing millionaire Kevin Wilkie of NitroMarketing.com about merchant accounts.
  
  Kevin was so concerned with the sorry state of payment processing that he suggested that I should focus exclusively on helping eCommerce companies manage their merchant accounts. I was shocked to hear horror stories about payment processing.

Here's what Kevin Wilkie, NitroMarketing.com, has to say...

During my 7 years of processing credit card orders online, I have unfortunately seen it all and have been burned 3 times (to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars). The last company we were with prior to working with Paul, although they were good, charged us an arm, leg and held in reserve my other arm and leg for 6 months but they at least treated us right. Ever since working with Paul and switching to his recommended merchant account in 2006, we have the peace of mind of being treated right, receive great customer service, AND are paying considerably less in fees (an average savings of about $2,500 a month) and no longer have a 6 month reserve that needless tied up our money. For the first time in my 7 years I am completely happy and can 100% recommend this merchant account company. If you spend a second longer staying with a less than perfect merchant account company than it is like sky diving without a parachute... it might be fun for awhile but it will always end badly. Kevin Wilkie NitroMarketing.com

For 9 Months, I Interviewed Over Two Dozen Merchant Account Providers

Yes, I spent over nine months talking with the CEOs and support staff of over two dozen merchant account providers. Over two dozen!

I’ve been accused of being overly analytical --- ‘analysis – paralysis.’ However, before I could recommend a provider to a merchant like you, I needed to have a good intuitive feeling and practical reasons.

• Nearly every one said that eCommerce businesses with downloadable products and affiliate programs were much too risky and would not approve them.
  
  
• Most only had an affiliate program that paid a one-time $50 referral fee with no residuals.

I found one provider that...

• Understands and welcomes eCommerce, with it's own friendly, helpful and available customer support department.
  
  
• Has its own in-house underwriting department to personally review and quickly respond to new accounts and ongoing processing issues.
  
  
• Is small enough to offer personal support, but big enough to handle million dollar accounts.
  
  
• Has an affiliate program that pays up to 55% residual two-tier commissions.

I’ve spoken to CEO David Solomon many times and exchanged dozens of emails with him. He’s easy to talk to and has a vast knowledge of payment processing. David worked personally with me as we setup the NitroMarketing account.

In addition, when I call, people like Heather and Jeff answer the phone and help me right away. I love that!

It’s kinda of funny, here we are involved with eCommerce and computer automation and auto-responders, and yet, I really like and need to have personal contact with businesses.

10-Step Ongoing Merchant Support Program -- Here’s What You Get When You Arrange Your Merchant Account Through Me…

1. An honest independent consultant as your own ongoing liaison between you and your merchant account provider to make sure that you have no major merchant account problems and to recommend ways to increase your profits.
   
   
2. Provide free, no obligation rate analysis. Probably beat your current processing costs.
   
   
3. Recommend a merchant account provider that understands eCommerce and sees a merchant as part of the team, not as an adversary.
   
   
4. Provide you with personal 24/7 technical support.
   
   
5. Review risk management strategies with you and make recommendations to prevent risky sales, fraud and chargebacks. Remind you to review your product plans and monthly sales volume and if necessary, make changes to your merchant account agreement limits before you exceed your limits.
   
   
6. Provide you with convenient 24/7 online access to your transactions and account information.
   
   
7. Provide you with resources to increase your business efficiency, so you increase profits.
   
   
8. Provide you with an affiliate referral system with up to 55% residual two-tier commissions when you refer other merchants.
   
   
9. Contribute to the American Red Cross from my own pocket.
   
   
10. Guaranteed peace-of-mind. You want to have problem-free payment processing and to increase your profits. If at anytime you have a concern, please send me an email or call me ASAP so that we can work out a solution. Remember, I want us to have a business relationship for many years.

Determining Fees

Fees are based on merchant support, type of purchaser's credit card, and risk of product or service.

There are many fees associated with merchant account payment processing and you can read about them in my no cost report Are you Paying More Fees Than You Think You Are for Your eCommerce Merchant Account?

If you want the added value of ongoing personal service, then we can work together.
However, if you want limited service and are only concerned about the lowest fees, then I'm not the right match for you.

Risky business!
Banks and processors take a risk when they sign up a merchant and the higher the risk, the higher the fees. For example, when you buy an e-book about improving your tennis game online with your credit card, you download the book.

However, you don't pay your credit card bill for another 30 days or so. The merchant gets paid by the bank within a few days. So basically, the bank is providing a 30 day loan.

Let's say that you thought the e-book was useless and asked for a refund. What happens if the merchant doesn't have enough cash for the refund or goes out of business? The bank and the processor must provide the refund to the customer.

Over the years, VISA and MasterCard have rated product/services for risk. So, e-books that are downloadable or on CD-ROM along with other software have been labeled as more risky than a hard-cover book and have higher processing fees. In fact, VISA categorizes e-books as computer software.

Have an Existing Merchant Account?

• Free, no obligation analysis of your existing merchant account statement. After reviewing your statement, I'm confident that I will find ways to increase your profit. You can email or fax three months of statements to me.
  
  
• You'll get ongoing personal support.
  
  
• Plus, you'll have access to profit making resources, including an affiliate program with up to 55% residual commission.
  
  
• There's a 99% chance that your shopping cart will be easily and quickly re-configured.
  
  
• You can keep your current payment gateway, but the VeloCT Gateway has great anti-fraud standard and optional features, as well as an easy to use realtime transaction viewer.

Don't Have an Existing Merchant Account?

Now here’s the not-so-fine print…

• All fees are shown in your application - no secrets.
  
  
• Fees change because the card associations VISA and MasterCard raise their rates one to two times a year.
  
  
• Your mileage may differ…After evaluating your application package, the underwriter may require additional documentation or a different fee structure based upon potential risks.
  
  
• As the Romans said in Latin 2000 years ago, caveat emptor, buyer beware. Some merchant account providers offer a low base price, however, when you contact them, they tell you that this rate does not apply to eCommerce merchants with downloadable products or other risky products or services.
  
  
• In addition, check the gateway monthly fees and transaction fees, since the gateway may be with a third party and not show on your merchant account contract.
  
  
• I reserve the right to refuse merchants that offer hurtful, hateful, untruthful, or illegal items.

Let's Talk –
Free 15 Minute Merchant Account Consultation

Fill out the form for a no cost, no obligation, 15 minute consultation, and I will contact you shortly.

Cheers,

Paul Nisenbaum, the ePaymentGuru

How I Get Paid

As an independent merchant account agent consultant, I receive a commission from the merchant account provider. The more you make, the more I make, so I have an incentive to help you reduce your risks and increase your profits. And just so you know, the card associations and banks receive most of the fees, not me.

Who the Heck Am I, and Why Should You Trust Me?

First, in order for you to trust me and what I recommend, you should get to know me a bit because successful businesses are built on truthful and trusting relationships.

Prior to arranging merchant accounts, I was a high school principal and special education teacher (19 years), as well as a corporate computer systems analyst and trainer (18 years).

In addition, as an eCommerce entrepreneur for the last several years, the more I learned about credit card and check payment processing, the more outraged I became with the problems businesses encounter. My principal instincts kicked in (I wanted to give someone detention!).

Then my teacher instincts kicked in, and now I'm on a mission...!

A mission as your personal ePaymentGuru to help you learn how to proactively prevent payment processing problems so that you can focus on marketing your business, increasing profits, and gaining peace-of-mind. I want us to have a business relationship based upon honesty, communication, knowledge, and trust.

FYI, here are my wife Lida, daughter Galya, and me visiting a waterfall in northern Isreal.

Copyright Paul Nisenbaum, www.ePaymentGuru.com
"Reduce Your eCommerce Risks and Increase Your Cash Flow.  Guraranteed!"