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Credit Cards and Your Business
The fact is that everyone online wants to use a credit card or
debit card to process their order. It is very true in our
society that the credit card is a way of life, and if you do not
offer that ability to accommodate them, customers will move on
to another website that does allow them to use their cards. This
society has become driven by instant gratification and expects
to receive their products immediately, either by a download or a
short shipping duration. Taking credit cards as a form of
payment on the internet or offline should be thoroughly
understood. Read on to see what I mean and how to protect
yourself.
The fact is that any merchant taking in payments is immediately
at risk for whatever amount is charged and MORE. The banks will
take the charge disputed along with a "charge back" fee right
from your merchant account, and you better have enough in there
that has cleared to pay your own bills or you will be charged
more for "overdraft charges". Some banks are waking up to the
fact that it is not always the merchant at fault and most
merchants are more than honest in their dealings. There is so
much credit card fraud out there and since the merchants are
ALWAYS liable, you need to realize this and take action to
prevent as much disaster for your business as possible.
First, if you have your own merchant account, then you have a
lot of work to do when you receive a credit card order. You must
verify as best you can that the card, the name on the card, the
address, the cvv number verification, and the quantities are all
in order. You need to verify the IP address of every order and
see if it is within the location of the card holder. A person
living in Toronto, Canada, probably would not be in Las Cruces,
New Mexico, charging products. This is a red flag but not a deal
breaker, some people DO travel. Caution needs to be taken to
protect your cash flow. As a merchant you must get money safely
into your account for any goods or service you provide, so that
you can become a larger or more substantial independent
business.
Do not just take in cards and believe that everything is going
to be just fine now that you have the money in your account,
because it can come out just as fast, or faster, than it went
in. There is a real need for you to understand a lot more than
can be mentioned in this article.
The best way to receive all the tools and services you need to
protect yourself and to make your voice heard is to check this
website: http://www.merchant911.org This is a group of dedicated
individuals who have been working for years to try to change
banking and processing company rules and regulations as relative
to merchants, both large and small. If you need any more proof
of their dedication, just read some of the press releases and
look at the tools they have assembled for merchants to use.
Right now is the time to start to protect yourself from credit
card fraud. If you have read any of the newspapers or listened
to any of the news reports, then you already know you are at
risk. There are reports of over 40 million cards in the hands of
criminals and thieves and they will sell these cards or will use
them in various illegal methods. It's not hard to imagine that
some day soon you will be approached and asked to spend your
time and money to ship a product or provide a service with these
fraudulent cards.
Do your part to keep America strong and allow your business to
grow and prosper, not be destroyed by thieves and credit card
sharks.
About the author:
Michele Meyer provides EMF emitting devices for the whole
family. You may contact her at bioharmonichealth@gmail.com Or
visit her website at www.bioharmonichealth.com