The e-commerce boom is ongoing: Online sales are expected to reach well over $500 billion by 2020, says e-commerce think-tank Internet Retailer. Online businesses and startups sprout like weeds in midsummer, and all of them need payment processing solutions. But what should an e-commerce entrepreneur look for when searching for the best credit card processors?…
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A Case of Merchant Account Fraud We Could Barely Believe
Recently we read a news piece on Pymnts.com how imposter scams are on the rise, so much so that instances of such have surged ahead of identity theft, according to the Federal Trade Commission. It was mindful of a case of merchant account fraud we experienced a few weeks ago. Being a provider of merchant…
High Risk Merchant: What’s Behind the Label?
Merchants so often are consumed with the many details of their business, that they don’t realize they are considered high risk when applying for payment processing solutions. In fact, among the hundreds of calls and inquiries we receive each week about our merchant services, the majority of merchants are surprised to learn they are classified…
Need a Merchant Account? Heed These 7 Signs of Caution
High risk merchants who need a merchant account often fall for empty promises like ludicrously low rates and fees, approvals on the spot or free use of a payment gateway. Sometimes shopping for a merchant account can eerily resemble the seven deadly sins: Pride (The merchant thinks he can get lower rates and fees) Greed…
A Near Billing Descriptor Nightmare That Can Prevent Chargebacks
To prevent chargebacks, half the battle lies in a clear billing descriptor. I’m going to guess that the payment processor that handles transactions for our local school food service program has a bit of trouble with chargebacks. They’re a big name in the payment processing industry, which left me puzzled after checking my bank statement.…
The Best Third Party Merchant Account Providers Have One Thing in Common
When choosing among third party merchant account providers, there is one simple quality merchants need to keep in mind: Experience. We’ve built a legacy at Instabill. And it is our network of merchants and partners who benefit from that legacy. Being a third party merchant services provider of high risk industries since 2001, we know…
E-Commerce Complaints: The 5 We Most Hear About
Recently we came across a news item revealing that the level of e-commerce complaints has risen 300 percent in the last three years. Whether that figure is accurate or inaccurate, 300 percent in three years is a massive jump. It’s not that bad online shopping experiences have suddenly become an epidemic. Simply, more and more…
Stories From High Risk Merchant Services: 5 Lessons for Merchants
Providing high risk merchant services is never boring, never without its characters and certainly never without its challenges. Sometimes the boarding process goes smoothly and other times we face hurdles and roadblocks. We’ll often receive inquiries from merchants who could use a bit of educating in the process — which we do not mind a…
Instabill Among Best High Risk Merchant Account Providers
For the fourth straight year, Instabill received a grade of ‘A’ and was listed among the Best High Risk Merchant Account providers category by credit card processing industry website CardPaymentOptions.com. Instabill received plaudits in four categories, including Sales & Marketing, Costs & Contracts and Better Business Bureau (BBB) rating, for which it received a grade…