FREE merchant account?

[Frosty]

Okay, does this sound like a bull@#$% offer?

I`ve been looking for a merchant acount for a while now. And someone gave me a phone number to call. This company says they will give me a FREE merchant account, free order form software (shopping cart for $10/month if someones selling products). There`s a $20 dollar per month statement fee/gate way fee or whatever and 2.29% per transaction fee plus 20 cents.

Everything makes sense except for the free merchant account part. I was told that if someone has a webhosting site they can offer free merchant accounts to their customers. Jeez, if this isn`t BS then thats a really great deal isn`t it? I was also told, that i don`t even need to use their shopping cart, but that if it`s compatable i could use a free shopping cart.

so who wants a free merchant account?
or do you think there`s something funny about this offer?

[Martie]

And dont forget about the "minimum fee" that MOST charge...its usually 25.00...be awful careful because there is always a charge here and there, that you werent aware of.
Also no signup fees? Make sure they dont "tie you in" for a minimum contract..such as 24mo.,36mo., etc.
You dont say what company it is....I will just pass on a useful guide to merchant accounts...TONS of info, including an index of providers
http://www.onlineorders.net/

[Frosty]

the minimun is only $25 dollars per month. And the contract length is one year i think. So that`s not bad is it?

I asked a million times "is there any other fee other than the $20 dollar per month gateway/statement fee and the per transaction fee" and they said no. That was it. The ordering form software is free.

But if this isn`t BS then don`t you think it`s a great deal? Especially if for a webhosting provider who wants to offer ecommerce solutions? Then a webhost could offer free merchant accounts. I`ve seen at least two different hosting providers who offered free merchant accounts for a limited time.

[Jaiem]

Also look out for a "support fee". On processor I know charges a $10/month"support fee" meaning any month you have any charges, even just one, you get hit with $10 charge.

[Frosty]

you mean they charge you $10 per month just because someone ordered something on your site?
Do you mean technical support?

But wouldn`t that be a good deal to be able to offer your customers free merchant accounts on your hosting site? I`ve seen a couple of hosts do that before.

Isn`t there any kind of merchant account where you only pay a one time set-up fee for it, and then only pay per transaction fees there after without there being any statement/gateway ($20/month) fee?

I think i`ve seen something like that before, but then i have to pay monthly for my shopping cart software or online order form right?

How do all those webhosts do it? You know, i see them offering free shopping carts which is included in their hosting plans? And it`s always that blasted Miva this Miva that.

[Martie]

Originally posted by frosty
the minimun is only $25 dollars per month. And the contract length is one year i think. So that`s not bad is it?




Do you know how the minimum is figured? You are probably thinking "minimum order of $25" Its not quite like that.
It is called a "minimum discount fee of $25"...how this is figured is all tickets calculated, at 2.4%....Say a ticket is 50.00...at 2.4%...that would be 1.20. "minimum discount" is figuring the percent totals....THEN, you may have a 30cent charge, on each one,thats called the authorization fee. Most of the time you will be charged a
1.statement fee
2.Gateway fee
3.total discount charges from sales (2.4%,etc)
4.those 30 cent Auth. fees
and thats going to be what your monthly bill will run.
Also....alot of places, you can "lease" or "purchase"
If you choose to lease....you are usually charged a monthly fee, for several months....on a purchase...you would pay more upfront, and all that really does is save you that lease fee which is usually around 15-$25mo.
You save that amount, but read the contracts, because most likely you will STILL be in a binding contract, for 12-24 months, etc.
:eek: :eek:

[akashik]

By definition it's not really 'free'. They still get money out of you for transactions, statement fees and all the rest. At a glance it appears they are waiving any sort of set up fee. The account itself is still costing money every time it's used for anything (pretty much like any other merchant account).

Setup is always what people assume is the cost of the account. Rather it's what you pay someone for a few minutes typing and button poking. Free things are nice, but only when they don't have things like asterix's next to them :)

Greg Moore

[Jaiem]

With this specific processor I'm speaking about they call it a "technical support" fee. I thought it meant if you call for support then they charge you $10 for the month.

But no. They mean "technical support" as in running your monthly statement, processing your transactions etc. So yes, any time you put through a charge that month you pay a flat $10 "support fee" (inaddition to per trans and discount fees). OTOH, if you have no sales that month there's no fee either.

Let's face it. The processor is in business to make a buck too. One way or another they're going to extract thier pound of flesh. It's just a matter of the details.

If your business is very "ify", some months great and some poor, I'd rather have a high fee/no min processor. OTOH, if you have a steady stream of charges each month then you probably need a low fee/ flat rate processor.

[akashik]

Originally posted by Jaiem
One way or another they're going to extract thier pound of flesh.

When it comes to payment processors and merchant accounts that's actually quite a good analogy I think :D

Greg Moore

[vanguard]

If you don't mind 3rd party merchant, paypal or 2checkout are better choices. They do not charge monthly fee nor Statement fee. If you consider that free merchant account. Well, of couse they charge transaction fees, usually a little higher than the private merchant accounts.

vanguard