Third Party Merchant: To be or not to be?

That is the question...

To be or not to be a third party merchant? Well, first of all have you a choice
of choosing? It's sometimes frustrating to get a merchant account due
to some problems involved. As a rule, credit card processor service providers
refuse to service high-risk, immature, unaccredited, or some specific types
of business industries, like pharmaceuticals, tobacco and alcohol. So the only
way out would be to get a third party merchant account. But, if you have the
choice of getting a third part credit card processor or the usual credit card
processing service provided by merchant accounts, what will your choice be?

Let's dwell on the advantages first, and then we'll get down to
the choosing:

• Versatility. Third party merchant accounts, as a rule,
  process more kinds of brands of credit and debit cards. The amount of clients
  supported worldwide might be up to three times higher than the amount of clients
  supported by a merchant account credit card processing.
• Less number of fees. Yes, in fact, third party merchant
  accounts involve no setup fees, as a rule. Third party merchant accounts have
  (as a rule again) a monthly (gateway) fee, and transaction fee (usually including
  third party merchant commission). Don't forget taxes though.
• Instant statistics. Third party merchant accounts provide
  statistical information, such as number of transactions (filtered by date,
  time, country, and so on), which is provided instantly online, and is updated
  in real-time. This makes the possibility to process statistical information,
  which may improve your business strategies if made correct use of, at any
  time, any day, in just a few clicks.

Of course third party credit card processing has a few disadvantages too,
like higher transaction, commission and gateway fees. But, we must not forget
that usual merchant accounts involve other fees such as membership, insurance
and other extra fees. So on the whole you may be eligible for saving using
a third party merchant account.

Now to the choice between being a having a third party merchant account and
a merchant account. The choice, if there is one, depends on the type of your
business, funds involved, clients involved, and other services involved. You
shall need to do a bit of subtraction, multiplication, division, and addition,
nothing really tough though. After reviewing and getting the full picture of
your incomes versus your merchant account expenses.

Third party merchant accounts are the best solution for new businesses, as
fewer expenses are involved to start accepting credit cards. When the business
has big incomes, and big transactions, though, it is advised to get a merchant
account, if possible.

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