Tips to avoid being labeled as a High Risk Merchant

Payment processing is a vital part of any business.  If you cannot collect payments, then your business is destined to not last very long.  If your business is traditionally labeled as a High Risk business type, there are some things you can do to change the way processors view your account, thereby saving you money and opening additional options to you.

Keep Your Credit Card Processing Company Informed

Merchant accounts can easily be flagged when changes occur without notice. This could be an increase in the volume of sales or an increase to the average sales ticket. By keeping your merchant provider informed, you can ward off anything that could be viewed as suspicious activity.

Practice Security Measures to Prevent Fraudulent Charges

The more security measures you take to prevent fraudulent charges on credit cards the less charge backs you will have on your account. For in-store purchases, train your employees to always verify the signature on the card. Online merchants will want to take extra measures, including address verification and security code verification. This will ensure that the card is not being used fraudulently.

Provide Quality Customer Service

Your first step in providing quality customer service is to make sure every customer can reach you. Make certain that it is your customer service number after your company name on the customer’s billing statement. Should a customer be dissatisfied with a product, provide them with complete return instructions. It is also important to provide thorough follow-up with each customer complaint you receive. These measures will also help to keep your charge backs to a minimum.

Secure Your Business Online

It is also vital that your customers feel safe using their credit card. If you fail to block hackers from getting your business information, you could lose everything. Encrypting your site and keeping your operating systems up-to-date is an important aspect of keeping your credit card processing safe.

The downfall to being labelled as a high risk merchant is that you will pay higher fees for your processing. Higher fees will take away from your profit and, once labelled, it will take a lot of time to repair your business’ reputation.

Have questions on processing for your High Risk Merchant account, give us a call today and see what ACHQ can do for your business.

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