When I finally reached the stage with my online business when I needed to move to a specialist merchant account, I was very excited. It signified to me that I was finally living my dream of owning and running a successful business.
What I didn't realize is that choosing an online merchant account was going to be so tough.
The rates that companies generally advertise on their website are often heavily discounted ones that either increase after introductory periods or do not include a whole host of extras which can take monthly costs to much higher levels.
Now, one of the reasons I was able to set up and be successful online was down to the numbers. I could sell cheaper on the net because my overheads were lower. However, the extra costs for taking credit cards really ate into my profits.
I learned my lesson quickly, when you sign up for an Ecommerce merchant account make sure that you only go with a company that gives you a full consultation and breakdown of everything related to your potential account first.
There are a lot of high pressured sales tactics used in this industry and it can be hard not to be taken in by them, especially the most persistent.
So to make sure you don't fall into the same traps, be wary of any merchant account providers that advertise very cheap rates on their websites, and make sure you read independent customer reviews or feedback to get a real view of how they do business.