Merchant account for online retail business?

I have several small companies that I run. In our research to set up a merchant account we found many web sites that had various kinds of bells and wistles. We spent some time asking around at variaous locations (small stores in our area, flee markets, farmer markets, etc) and looked at a number of web sites (however mechantexpress.com was not one of them).

We found that many states have at least one none-profit organization that speciallizes in helping merchants succeed in that state. Some of these groups are tie in to you local state or community governments. So contacting some of your state legislatures might also help you find a group that will work best for you.

My primary advice is to watch out for all of the hidden fees. Only deal with groups that you hear a lot about and seem to be the most popular in your area.

I’m one of those guys that sets up the merchant accounts. I don’t know much about merchantexpress.com except that they dominate when it comes to search engine optimization.

Look for a company that does the “bait and switch”. They’ll typically advertise unbelievable low rates to get you to sign, then increase the rates within the first 6 months.

Get a good feel for who you’ll be working with by calling them on the phone and meeting them. You can go through a local bank, but typically they outsource their merchant services anyway, so your best bet is with a reliable trustworthy independent sales rep.

Good luck with your search