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Message: #203317, S/1 News & General Info
I want to thank you for the tips re getting a merchant account for a home based business. Starting a couple of months ago, I planned a strategy to get merchant status for my 5 year old marketing consulting practice. I run this show in my condo, using IBM clones with MSW4W2, MS publisher, an EPL600 laser printer, etc... and I wanted to share this with you in case someone else might find the story useful.

Here's what I did: First, I suspected strongly that American Express would be easier to get that the others, so I started there. It only took 3 weeks to get set up! Next, after a few weeks of being set up with Amex I went to my bank (Bank of America) and met with the branch manager. I told her I was already a merchant with Amex, and wanted to explore getting set up with the bank. I presented the idea that (a) I had an established business (5 years) that depended on incoming telephone orders, with no outboundtelemarketing (important!); (b) I had good credit and a good reputation in the field, and (c) I have my office at home so I can work more efficiently and be available longer hours.

She indicated that although the bank usually would not set up a home office based merchant, they WOULD "look at it" since I was a customer of the bank. She gave me an application. I said that I assumed she wanted financials with the ap, she said no that wasn't necessary. I took the application home, filled it out, and then generated a number of items for a presentation package: Complete, up to date financial statements from Quicken, copies of our marketing materials (flyers, brochures), copies of our ads in AutoWeek, On Track and Home Office Computing, a copy of a Fortune 1000 marketing presentation, and a cover letter explaining how we do business and thanking her for her time and effort in considering us for merchant status.

I packaged all this in a neat presentation folder with my business card, and dropped it off the next day. After being approved, the manager came out to "inspect my home office" and get the papers signed. While I was giving her a quick tour of our PC equipment, she said that one of the main reasons the bank had okayed us for merchant status was that we use computers effectively, to make our materials and financials "very professional looking". I guess the main point I would like to share is, we need to market ourselves to vendors and suppliers, to banks and other services, just as professionally and just as rigorously as we market to potential clients or buyers. I hope that this account helps others in their quest for Visa/MC merchant status! Message: #203423, S/1 News & General Info

We, too, are B of A customers and find that longevity with them is a big plus whenever we ask for anything. I don't know if this is as important at other banks; I suspect there may be differences -like "you have both your business and personal account with us" but the point is if one finds out what the bank values and uses that, that may be what one needs.

Message: #203504, S/1 News & General Info
Having all accounts at the same bank, carrying fairly large balances in at least some of them, and having them there for a long period of time may have meaning to some of the large banks with many branches, but it definitely carries significant weight when the bank is a small one -- large enough to be stable, but not so large that it has many different branches. I deal with such a bank, and I did not have ANY of the problems that others report on getting visa/master card merchant status. I filled out the forms, and in just a couple of weeks had my imprinter and merchant card used for making deposits. No pressure to buy or lease an online terminal. They did not even make a site visit (althought they said they might when I filled out the forms.

When I learned that a computer program existed to turn my PC into an online terminal, I just called the bank, told them I knew for sure that such a program existed, although they were going to have to push their contact at the processing service to check into it, since most of them did not know about it, and only were familar with the dedicated terminals, and a week or two later the bank called to have me come by to pick up the manual and disk. I am completely convinced that the size of the bank and the size and long term nature of my account is what caused all of the problems others are having to be non-issues.

Message: #203522, S/1 News & General Info
I wish I could say our experiences were as good. We did finally get a merchant account. Trying to get our money deposited in our account is something else. We're now at Day 11 waiting on our money to arrive in our bank account(2 days supposedly is what it takes). We've bounced up several levels of management so far without alot of questions being answered. They've got 1 more hour to return my call and we go another level higher. I think a senior VP will be the next person to speak with. Maybe he/she can explain why they can't transfer the funds when they had a voided check to go by. I wish we had have waited on doing alot of transactions till the money started arriving in our account. We'd had customers on hold waiting to use Visa/Mastercard for a while and they ran up the charges quickly. Now we're looking at paying our suppliers for items already shipped to customers.

The terminal/printer was a required purchase of course. It was more then slightly annoying to be lied to about the value of the items(we can buy the terminal/printer for 1/8 the price we paid). We're also now looking at a 150% increase in the transaction rate due to phone order sales (another lie that was made to us even though we understood we'd have a higher rate...instead they quoted a low rate and had the bank be the bad guys and raise it).

It's been a real pain but it's a requirement to do mail order business for the items we sell. We've also got to deal with folks trying to defraud us. We had our first one recently on CIS. Responded to our ad wanting a 2000.00 notebook computer yet unwilling to give a last name, voice phone, tried to use a "cousin's card" and ship to a friend's address. Uh huh. Didn't even want to know the model # of the notebook I was selling.

Message: #203547, S/1 News & General Info
The fact that you have bounced up three levels of management and are next scheduled to talk with a senior-vp is what I was talking about regarding large bank vs small bank. The guy I deal with at my bank, if I escallate above the teller, is an executive-vp of the bank, immediately below the president (small banks just don't have the multi-layers of VPs).

I am amazed at the guy trying to get you to ship him a computer to a friends address, using a cousin's card, and not being willing to give you a last name and phone number. Why didn't he just sign his messages Thief? Did you drop Feedback a note about the situation? They might like to know. The only problem I have had is when one customer did not recognize my business name, Singleton & Associates, on his Visa Statement and made an inquiry requesting a copy of the ticket. Before the bank had time to contact me he remembered and sent me an email saying he remembered and was contacting the bank to tell them to drop the issue. When they contacted me I sent them a copy of the guy's message and the ticket, but they seemed confused and just asked again for the ticket.

Message: #203714, S/1 News & General Info
For Amex we're depositing paper tickets to our bank just like a check. Works well. We get paid in 2-3 days(AMEX said should be immediate but you know how that goes) and have had zero problems. Amex is easy to deal with.

Visa, Mastercard(CB and diners club as if we'd have anyone use them for a computer) has been another matter entirely. We use a terminal and printer so we don't have to deposit anything. All done by ACH transfers(or supposedly they are) within 2 business days. It's a neat system if it would only work. The explaination I got was that they mistyped the account # from the voided check we gave them. Our sales rep lied to us about most items of the system. He told us unlimited phone orders at a low rate and that the bank wouldn't know if the card was swiped or typed in. The later I knew wasn't true from asking a person here on CIS who does POS work.

The unlimited phone orders at a low rate was something else that didn't fly. At least the bank said they wouldn't cancel our merchant account (just increase the transaction rate 150%) for the extra phone orders. I wondered if didn't consider that canceling our account would prompt us into a lawsuit claiming fraud by their rep's. They might as well have because that would have been the outcome. I wish our local banks were easy to deal with. The small ones really don't do their own merchant accounts. The bank we use for our checking accounts is now Nation's Bank(#4 largest) so.....When I first got an account there I dealt with the #2 guy north of atlanta.He left and it's been downhill ever since(3-4 mergers later).

Just out of curiosity what rate did they initially quote you, and what are they now hitting you with? I will have to check my records to be sure, but I believe I am getting something like 2.87%