In order to accept credit cards either online or through your physical storefront, one of the things you are going to need is an account with a credit card processing provider. A Credit Card Processing Provider is a company that manages the interface between your credit card terminal or shopping cart software and the Visa/Master network.
Since you are paying a portion of each credit card transaction to your credit card processing provider, it is important that you fully understand the services that your provider offers and how much you are going to pay for these services.
The rate that you will be charged depends upon many factors including the type of product or service you sell and the amount of the average sales transaction. Using this information you can shop around to find a credit card processing provider that offers you the best value for the least money.
For example, if you sell mostly high-ticket items you may be better off finding a provider that will offer you a higher flat-rate transaction fee and a lower discount rate. It may be better for you to pay as much as a $1.00 per-transaction fee when combined with a lower discount if your profit...