How do you process credit cards? - Personal Trainer Community - Forum

[Christina]

For those of you who accept credit cards, what method do you use to process and who do you go through? One company that I spoke to gave me a proposal for a phone in method that I thought was a little high.

Any info would be much appreciated!

Christina

[kettlebell king]

sounds rather complex! i'd rather stick to pay pal!

[megfit]

Christina,

I use Paypal's virtual terminal service. It works just like any other merchant account.

Another company that many RD's use is Midwest Transactions. Everyone says that Charlie is the person to contact and the phone number to call is 888-599-2209.

Also check your bank, because they should have a merchant account service. So does Costco.

Compare several, looking at fees, minimums (if required), what your actual needs are, and anything else you need to compare.

Margie

[Christina]

I use Paypal's virtual terminal service. It works just like any other merchant account.

Do you use Paypal for in home training as well? What's "virtual terminal service"? Is that the same as regular old Paypal?

Also check your bank, because they should have a merchant account service.

Unfortunately I did and their rates/minimums were a bit high.

Thanks for the additional info! I will check out Charlie's company.
Christina

[halsptw]

We've set our website up to use Paypal, and they also offer an email invoice option (good if you don't have a website). I'd check their stuff out, as the rates are pretty good.

[Christina]

Hey guys,

Please explain something to me. If I use PayPal to invoice my clients then my clients need to sign up for a PayPal account in order to pay me, right? If so, that seems pretty inconvenient. So then my other option is to use PayPal's Virtual Terminal where clients can use their credit cards without signing up for PayPal? Am I getting this right? If so, now we are talking 30 bucks a month to use PayPal's Virtual Terminal plus all the other fees that go with processing credit cards. Believe me, I know that there are always fees that go along with accepting credit cards but I am just looking for the best deal out there.

Can someone tell me if I have the whole PayPal thing down right?

Christina

[megfit]

Hi Christina,

First of all, yea, the rates for paypal have increased, which might make it not the best route to go. I need to start looking at other options. However, I'll probably still stick with paypal as an option for online sales, especially for when my book comes out.

However, when I set up the virtual terminal, it was the same time I set up the 'Websites Payment Pro'. Call paypal to confirm this, but I THINK I'm paying $30/month for the Websites Payment Pro. This is what allows anyone (not a paypal member) to pay me. Then, the virtual terminal is a feature that acts as my merchant account.

Now, would I be able to get the virtual terminal WITHOUT Websites Payment Pro? I don't know! But, I have always had good luck calling them with questions, so it can't hurt to call.

Margie