My Personal Merchant Services Blog

I have been in the industry for over 15 years so I have learned in that time a fiar amount about the industry. Currently I am working on a website upgrade that will include a new blog so there have not been many recent updates to this one. The blog itself has useful information on the credit card processing industry that is geared towards merchants but could be useful for a new merchant services representative. Some things that are covered include the programs that we offer, interchange explained, how to calculate an overall effective rate, and our agent programs. If you have any questions about anything do not hesitate to reach out to me at 800.51.TOTAL / 800.518.6825.

Aldelo Full Feature POS

In some cases when you run in to a merchant who has a restaurant or a larger retail operation you will need more features than a tablet based point of sale can offer. I use Aldelo when I run in to this situation. They offer many advantages that lower level systems do not including kitchen displays, fingerprint login, and liquor liquor accountability. If your client needs the extras included with this system it is easy to see how Aldelo can help their business. I have not partnered direct with Aldelo since onsite implementation is required and some technical knowledge. They have representatives all across the country so if you refer your client to them a local Aldelo rep can get them all set. All you need to do is provide them with the VAR sheet and they will implement the processing in to the system.

Aldelo Point of Sale Website: https://www.aldelo.com

Magtek Credit Card Readers

Magtek is in industry leader in magnetic strip readers. They offer products that are compatible with many of the accounts that we offer at Total Merchant Services and other processors. You will find everything from readers for smart phones to USB readers for on computers. Some of the smartphone and tablet readers that are offered can process via Bluetooth and can do EMV cards. They also work in the bio-metric payment industry that has not quite gained a foothold here in the United States but in the future likely will. Not only are they involved in the acquiring side of the business they also work in the issuing side where they offer an instant card kiosk, boasting a 2 minute card ready time.

Magtek Webite: https://www.magtek.com

NCR Silver iPad Based POS

Our Groovv POS is an Android based systems so some merchants are looking for an iOS based solution. NCR Silver is just that. It also has some additional features above our first release Groovv unit as it will allow for multiple registers at one location and back office centralization of a multi MID merchant. The website provides more details on the system that they offer along with resources on the operation for merchants who have a unit. They also work with a wide variety of different processors while offering concierge services for easy and fast implementation. As a field agent they offer a lucrative partnership program that offers bonuses on each account along with an ongoing residual stream once a threshold of total accounts is surpassed.

NCR Silver Website: https://www.ncrsilver.com
Merchant Resources: https://www.ncrsilver.com/small-business-smarts/

Authorize.net

Authorize.net is not the only online gateway out there but it is one of the easiest to set up and use. Their site offers merchants information on the gateway that they offer along with their mobile application. You can also access the gateway to process transactions or review the vast amount of developer information for advanced API integration. Authorize.net is supported by many shopping carts, gateways, and Ebay with a simple API integration using the transaction key and API. Agents can use the resources offered to educated themselves on the many possibilities of Authorize.net so that they have more resources to offer the best merchant solution for the client. If your processor does not offer Authorize.net you can partner direct to earn commissions off of the gateway fees. Total Merchant Services has been with Authorize.net for a very long time so we have a very low buy-rate with the ability to earn off of the gateway fee and gateway per item if you choose to charge one.

Main Site: http://www.authorize.net/
Re-Sellers: http://www.authorize.net/partners/affiliate/
Developers: http://developer.authorize.net/

Certified Payment Professional

The Electronic Transaction Association offers a Certified Payment Professional program. This is a program that is designed to educate payment professionals in the payment industry. They offer a study guide so that you can brush up on your skills before going to a testing site to pass the exam. The exam cost $350 for ETA members and $450 for non-members. This certification can help set you apart from the many low level representatives in the industry leading to more deals and more commissions. The ETA, for those who do not know, is an association committed to advocacy and professional development in the credit card processing industry. They hold an annual conference in Las Vegas that is also a great idea to attend to expand you knowledge and meet others in the industry.

http://www.electran.org/certification/

American Express Merchant Resources

American Express offers a vast amount of information geared towards merchants. Some items that they include are specifics on accepting American Express cards, federal regulations, and much more. You could use this page to educate yourself on American Express acceptance along with other more diverse items like fraud prevention. American Express has 3 types of processing services. They offer processing direct along with through a processor at the same cost. Total Merchant Services can get special American Express pricing since they are a full Amex acquirer. This allow us to save merchants who process less than 1 million a year in American Express to lower the costs on the processing.

https://www.americanexpress.com/us/content/merchant/support-services.html