Recently I went looking for an online merchant account, with disastrous results. I made the mistake of taking information at face value and relying on the ecommerce merchant account provider’s good reputation in other areas.

Fortunately, you can avoid the same experience I had by asking the right questions of a potential ecommerce ecommerce merchant account provider.

Merchant Account Provider Questions

Understanding the answers to these questions before signing an application or agreement will help make for a solid partnership between you and your merchant account vendor:

1. As a merchant, can I accept credit cards both online and offline?

Do I need to get separate authorizations or permissions when setting up my ecommerce merchant account for different kinds of transaction (Internet, retail, phone orders, etc.)?

What other merchant fees are involved if I accept both online and offline credit card charges?

2. Can I accept ecommerce payments using methods other than Mastercard and Visa (Discover, American Express, Diner’s Club, online checks, debit cards, etc.)?

If so, what are the fees and do I need to do anything to “activate” those ecommerce payment methods?

3. What are the different discount rates and fees for different types of ecommerce and other charges through the merchant account (Internet, in person, telephone, mail, etc.)?

4. What are the other fees related to this ecommerce merchant account – yearly, set-up, application, monthly minimum, statement, support, cancellation, discount, per-transaction, entry access fees, card reject fee?

Are these subject to change?

Are there any other fees involved in order to get my ecommerce merchant account useful?

5. Do I process ecommerce charges manually or automatically?

If by hand, is it possible to get automatic merchant account processing?

If so, do you provide a secure online payment gateway for my ecommerce merchant account?

You can definitely learn from my experience and by following these guidelines you will definitely be well informed in your decision making.

How do I get my merchant account up and running and what extra charges will I pay to do so?