This is one of the questions many medical offices ask us - Top 5 payment processing things a medical office should do to increase profit by using credit cards for payments.
- Get your clients to pay you by debit cards. The lowest credit card processing rates are for using debit cards, so it's always good to focus on accepting debit cards. The highest credit card processing rates are for keying in non-debit cards' info, whether in the terminal at your location or online. The difference can be huge, for example, if the non-debit card keying-in discount rate is 3%, then the debit card swiping discount rate could be as low as 1.3% or lower.
- Get a business relationship going with a reputable sales office. It's the quality of the relationship and one on one service here that matters, not just the rate. A good sales office and rep will care about your business and save you both time and money. Every few months check in with your credit card processing provider or trusted merchant account provider and see if there are any promotions or new technologies available that can streamline the payment process and save you time and money.
- Increase your security, improve your practices and do your own due diligence. Storing customer's credit card information especially on non-PCI compliance systems will cost you profit down the road. PCI DSS is a standard that was implemented to lower the credit card fraud. A non-PCI compliant merchant will face a higher cost at the end of the month. However, this is a cost that can be removed if your business becomes PCI compliant. Most sales offices will explain to you how to get PCI compliant and the process is as streamlined and very user-friendly.
- Get a second opinion on your pricing structure. This should ring a bell since you most likely hear it a few times a week from your clients, so why not apply it yourself? If you are looking to get a merchant account you want to make sure you are on the correct pricing structure so that you are not over-paying for merchant services and other overall operation expense. For example, if the majority of your customers are using debit cards then you want to be on a pricing structure called Interchange Plus Pricing. A good sales office will look out for your best interest and take the time to ask you the necessary questions to figure out the best pricing structure to set your account up properly.
- Remove the possibility of most credit card fraud instances and also get chargeback protection. This can take two forms: if you are swiping then become EMV-ready and get off the hook for the credit card fraud, or if you accept credit card payments over the Internet, get access to a program that shifts the liability from the merchant towards the credit card issuer called Payer Authentication.
At Moneck Payment Solutions, we offer industry-leading medical office credit card processing and payment solutions for medical office, drug store, dentist, animal care clinic and hospital.
Have any questions? Call us for any question about medical office payment processing and we will get back to you in one business day.
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