Merchant account terminology</h1> <article> <h1>Merchant account terminology</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:37 GMT</p> <p> </p> <div> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="left"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="padding: 0in 2.25pt;" align="left" valign="top"> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Merchant Account</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - An account setup by a bank that allows you to accept credit cards. Your <a href="http://merchantaccounts.networksolutions.com/"><strong>merchant account</strong></a> will deposit collected funds into your business's checking account on a daily basis. </span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Discount Rate</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - A percentage that is paid to the credit card company on each transaction. If a customer makes a credit card purchase worth $20.00 and your discount rate is 2.4%, you pay $0.48 for the $20 sale. A competitive discount rate is roughly 2.40%. Discount rates made on the web are generally higher than that of brick and mortar stores. </span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Gateway Processor</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - A gateway processor charges your customers' credit cards via the web and sends the funds to your merchant account electronically. </span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Monthly Processing Minimum</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - The monthly processing minimum is the minimum monthly fee you must pay to the credit card company regardless of your total sales. A competitive monthly minimum is approximately $30. </span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Real-Time Processing</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - This method of credit card processing authorizes and charges the customer's credit card at the time of purchase. </span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Offline Processing</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - This method of credit card processing allows you to capture your customer's credit card information for charging at a later time. If you have an existing offline merchant account, this may be a good option for you. </span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Secure Socket Layer (SSL)</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - SSL is a secure web protocol that uses 128 bit or higher encryption to keep your customer's card number and personal information secure. </span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Statement Fee</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - This charge is exactly as it sounds. The fee you pay for the bank to generate and mail you a statement outlining your transactions. Statement fees usually cost between $10.00 - $15.00 a month.</span></p> <p> </p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </div> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;">Transaction Fee</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; font-family: Arial; color: black;"> - The amount charged per transaction. Most companies charge around $0.30. If you make 100 sales per month… the total transaction fee would equal (0.30 x 100 = $30.00). </span></p> </article> </main></body></html>