How to choose a credit card terminal
Choosing a credit card terminal is not as easy as it once was. Decades or even just a few years ago a credit card processing terminal was a simple device that read the magnetic strip on the back of the credit card, submitted the info through a phone line, and sent back a capture and approved (or declined) message to the merchant. However today, there are many other considerations and requirements for making sure you have the right credit card terminal.
Perhaps the most notable change to credit card terminals in the last couple of years is the card associations’ implementation of the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). These standards cover a broad range of procedures for acquiring, handling and storing card holder information in a secure manner. These standards require all merchants to have a PCI compliant credit card terminal. Here is where it can get tricky, because there are a lot of very nice and fairly new credit card machines on the market that are NOT PCI compliant. Occasionally we will receive a call from a prospective merchant that purchased a new or slightly used retail or mobile credit card terminal from a private party thinking that got a great deal, only to discover that their credit card terminal is not compliant and cannot be used on the major credit card processing networks.
Another major consideration in choosing a credit card processing terminal is, will it work in the environment that you intend to use it? If you have a VOIP line instead of a traditional copper line will your credit card terminal work right or at all? What if you have no phone lines at all in your building? Do you have an internet broad band connection? Are you a merchant on the go that needs a wireless credit card terminal? Or maybe you need a point of sale system. Total Merchant Services guarantees that the credit card terminals we provide for you will work correctly in the environment that you will be using them in. Our Hypercom T4100 credit card terminal is “duel com” meaning it will work with a traditional phone line, IP line or can connect directly to your broad band system through your router. For merchants on the go our mobile credit card terminal, the Nurit 8000 series, runs through cell data lines and uses a multi service network to ensure that you can process transactions most anywhere you need to.
Lastly make sure your credit card terminal will support external devices that you may have or wish to use with your terminal. All equipment provided by TMS including our retail and wireless credit card terminal, have built in receipt printers, but you may wish to add an external pin pad as an alternative to the internal pin pad that both of our models feature. You may also wish to add a check reader or scanner for electronic check guarantee and/or conversion as well as a contactless payment device to facilitate customer swiping of their credit card from the check- out counter.
Once you have chosen the correct machine for your business you will need to decide if you wish to purchase, lease or rent your machine. Fortunately, if you are a TMS customer we have made the choice easy! We provide free equipment to our merchants and we also have a rapid response terminal support team to help you with any issue that can arise up to and including overnight shipping of a replacement terminal to you, in the unlikely event that your terminal becomes inoperable.
In conclusion, keep in mind that in selecting a credit card processing terminal, while they are mostly the functional equivalent of each other, there are large differences in features, the way they operate, compliance as well as serviceability. Keeping your credit card processing functions up and running is essential to your business so don’t take a chance on a terminal or a processing company that may not serve your needs.
So what are you waiting for? Free equipment, no application fees or other enrollment costs of any type, free customer support and terminal maintenance, great rates and fees and world class customer service to boot. Simply stated we want your business and are willing to go the extra mile to earn it! Take advantage of this great offer right now by clicking on the application link below. The process only takes about 15 minutes!
