No one likes to hear that their baby is ugly. But, unfortunately, we get that a lot in the payment processing industry. When a slick salesman walks in to your business giving you all the great reasons why you should sign up for their services, it’s easy to succumb to their enticing offer. Then, later down the road, you find out you’re spending more than you thought you had bargained for. Unfortunately those people set the industry-standard for the rest of us. But, what if EDPS could change that? What if you knew the basic ins and outs of payment processing so that you could make the best decision for your business?
Well, that’s where EDPS comes in. We want to be your number-one educational resource so your business can benefit from payment processing. Since 2003, when our company was founded, we’ve focused on being a member-benefit provider for many different associations [including the IDA since 2005]. Part of our value is that we attend the association trade shows in order to teach the members about what we do.
A few weeks ago, we were at an association’s trade show and a previous customer visited our booth. Suffice it to say, this customer encountered one of those slick salesmen who got her in to a contract that’s costing her thousands of extra money per year.
Seeing our past and current clients constantly being bombarded with these situations is what has driven us to be your tool for any questions you seek answers to. We’ll get you started with some common questions many people ask when signing up for payment processing.
Do rates matter?
This answer may surprise you. A lot of processing companies will use a low-rate sales pitch to draw you in – even if it’s not true. Sure, up front, the rates are low. But they don’t tell you all the additional fees they’ll tack on [in areas you wouldn’t think to look] to make more money off of your business. You may be thinking “How would I not notice extra charges?” It’s easy – they’re hidden from you! Each processor’s statement is laid out differently so it can’t easily be deciphered. That’s why it’s best to approach a company you trust to walk you through a statement analysis.
How about that Customer Service?
Our marketing department has done its fair share of competitor analyses and when it came to reviewing customer complaints, the number one complaint we saw was that the customer service is horrible. Unfortunately, this is true for many processing companies. That is because, in this industry, it is uncommon to have in-house customer service representatives. Some companies outsource those calls and others simply don’t have a customer service department. One way we’ve differentiated ourselves is to have an in-house team dedicated to helping our customers. So, when you call, we have a live person [who really does work here] answering your questions.
What about Data Security & EMV?
Ah, yes, that old chestnut. In recent wake of last year’s department store breaches, this topic became a huge area for discussion. Adding to that is the releasing of EMV cards in October of this year. Your business has probably been getting a lot of calls telling you that you need to upgrade your terminal to be EMV-compliant, otherwise you’ll face penalties. Here’s the real deal: If you upgrade your terminal, your business’ and your customer’s data will simply be better-protected. EMV cards contain a microprocessor chip that dynamically encodes cardholder information. With a typical magnetic stripe card, all of the cardholder information [including card number, cardholder name, CVV code and expiration date] is stored in plain sight.
There’s also an underlying incentive to be EMV-compliant. Right now, if your business is presented with a stolen card, you will be liable for the cost and that stolen product/service. But, if you’re compliant with EMV and a stolen card is presented, that cardholder’s bank will be responsible for the fraudulent charges.