DirectPayNet

Category: CREDIT CARD PAYMENTS

  • The Rising Problem of Credit Card Declines: #1 Cause and Solutions for Merchants

    The Rising Problem of Credit Card Declines: #1 Cause and Solutions for Merchants

    Since the dawn of technology, credit cards have been a revolutionary payment method—providing unprecedented convenience and trust in online commerce.

    Nowadays, this simple yet powerful tool has become ubiquitous as an ever-popular means of transaction for shoppers worldwide. However, merchants are finding that their transactions are increasingly subject to declines from customers’ issuing banks due to reasons beyond the merchant’s control.

    This rising problem results in lost sales and customer dissatisfaction for merchants on all levels. In this article, we’ll explore why credit card declines occur, the effect on businesses, and strategies you can use to help reduce these incidents and avoid potential losses.

    The #1 Cause of Credit Card Declines Is Insufficient Funds

    When a customer attempts to make a purchase with a credit card, the card issuer performs a credit check to ensure that the customer has enough available funds to cover the transaction. If the customer’s available credit limit is not sufficient to cover the purchase, the issuing bank will decline the transaction.

    Not only does this result in a declined transaction for the customer, but it also results in a lost sale for the merchant. Moreover, the merchant also incurs a payment processing fee for the declined transaction, resulting in a further loss of revenue.

    Fee-Free Overdrafts Hurt Merchants

    Most banks and financial institutions offer fee-free overdrafts for account holders. That’s great for consumers who hover over the $0 line or live paycheck-to-paycheck, but it sucks for merchants. This convenience discards the fear consumers should have about spending money they don’t have, giving them the confidence to keep shopping.

    You can’t reverse the bank’s decision, but you can inform your customers about overspending prior to completing checkout. One way might be to encourage your customers to contact the credit card issuer to confirm their credit limit and, if necessary, to increase their limit before they attempt to make a purchase.

    Decline Message in Your Gateway

    It’s important to ensure that your payment gateway is up-to-date with the latest security protocols and check for any decline codes that may appear when a customer attempts to make a purchase with a credit card.

    Every credit card decline is linked to a code, reason, or message any merchant can find in their gateway. Use this to your advantage and see which declined credit card codes appear most often so you can work to mitigate the fees you, as the merchant, have to pay while smoothing out the customer experience.

    More declines than normal? We can help.

    Declined Transactions’ Impact on Merchants

    Merchants still pay a fee even if a transaction is declined. You should aim to mitigate any repeating declines you see on your payment gateway or processor because you are the one that suffers.

    Below are the top ways merchants are impacted by insufficient funds declines:

    1. Lost sales revenue: A declined transaction means that the merchant does not receive payment for the goods or services they have provided. This can result in lost sales revenue and reduced profits.
    2. Transaction fees: Merchants may still be charged transaction fees even if the payment is declined. This can increase the cost of doing business and further reduce profits.
    3. Time and effort: Processing a transaction takes time and effort on the part of the merchant. A declined transaction means that this time and effort has been wasted, which can be frustrating for the merchant.
    4. Negative customer experience: If a customer’s credit card payment is declined, they may be embarrassed or frustrated. This can lead to a negative customer experience, which can hurt the merchant’s reputation and lead to lost future sales.
    5. Payment disputes: If a customer’s payment is declined, they may dispute the charge with their bank or credit card company. This can result in chargebacks, which can be costly and time-consuming for the merchant to resolve.
    6. Cash flow problems: If a business owner relies on regular sales to maintain cash flow, a high rate of declined transactions can lead to cash flow problems. This can make it difficult to pay bills, make payroll, or invest in the e-commerce business.
    7. Fraud prevention measures: To reduce the risk of declined transactions due to insufficient funds, merchants may need to invest in fraud prevention measures. This can include additional staff, software, or hardware, which can be costly.
    8. Decreased approval rate: Declined transactions are seen as a sign of risk and may result in the merchant either being labeled as high-risk by the payment processor or increasing their risk profile if they are already operating in a high-risk industry.

    Overall, merchants should be aware of the impact that declined transactions can have on their business. By understanding the consequences and taking steps to reduce declined transactions, merchants can help protect their bottom line and keep their customers satisfied.

    Understanding the Consumer Perspective

    Understanding the consumer perspective is essential for any merchant seeking to maintain a successful business. The reasons for credit card declines are often beyond the merchant’s control and can cause confusion and frustration for shoppers.

    Merchants need to be aware of the possible causes of credit card declines, such as insufficient funds, changes in the cardholder’s account, or expired cards. Understanding the customer’s individual experience can help merchants take proactive steps to reduce the number of declined transactions.

    It is also important for merchants to understand the impact of declined transactions on their customers. For example, merchants must be aware of the decline message they are sending to customers and the credit card processing fees associated with declined transactions. Additionally, knowing the best practices for handling declined transactions can help merchants ensure customer satisfaction and keep transactions running smoothly.

    It is important to have a customer-focused mindset when dealing with declined transactions to ensure the customer’s experience is positive, even when their transaction is declined.

    Is your checkout customer-friendly? Let’s take a look.

    Solutions for Merchants to Help Reduce Insufficient Funds Declines

    Merchants need a solution ASAP. Here are a few you can implement now to save your business from drowning in fees or losing customers because they can’t afford your product.

    Implement Pre-Authorization

    Merchants can use pre-authorization to check if a customer’s form of payment has sufficient funds before the transaction process reaches the card network. This can help reduce the number of declined transactions due to insufficient funds and there’s no harm to the customer. They simply receive a message asking to retry with a different card.

    Offer Alternative Payment Methods

    Merchants can offer customers alternative payment methods, such as PayPal, Venmo, ACH, debit cards, or digital wallets. These payment methods may have lower transaction fees and may be more convenient for customers.

    Set Up Automatic Billing

    Merchants can set up automatic billing for customers with recurring payments. This can help reduce the risk of declined transactions due to insufficient funds and ensure that payments are received on time.

    Offer a Discount

    Making a sale is better than losing one. Take a slight loss in revenue and offer customers who get their credit card transactions denied due to insufficient funds a discount code of 50%. Merchants will still make the sale, customer will get the products they want, and the relationship will remain strong.

    Review Pricing and Fees

    Merchants can review their pricing and fees to ensure that they are competitive and reasonable. This can help reduce the number of declined transactions due to customers not having enough funds to make a purchase.

    Work with Payment Processors

    Merchants can work with their payment processors to understand why declines are happening and to implement solutions to reduce the number of declined transactions. Depending on the relationship you have with your processor, you can request to remove any fees incurred on declines.

    Monitor Payment Trends

    Merchants can monitor payment trends to identify any patterns or issues that may be causing an increase in declined transactions due to insufficient funds. This can help them proactively address the issue and reduce the impact on their small business.

    Additional Recommendations

    Merchants should also consider implementing fraud prevention measures such as AVS (Address Verification System), CVV, or 3D Secure protocols for added security. These protocols allow merchants to verify the customer’s identity by matching the customer’s billing address, zip code, and other card information with their credit card number.

    Payment gateways are quite powerful. Merchants can set up a pre-auth check for payments made with Mastercard and Visa, specifically. Or if they see a trend of declines for American Express or Discover, offer coupons to customers in your database who frequently use those types of cards.

    Stop suffering from declines. Let’s make your business profitable again.

    Implement the solutions outlined above to help reduce the number of declined transactions due to insufficient funds. These solutions can help merchants save money, improve customer satisfaction, and keep their businesses running smoothly.

    If you need to lower your transaction fees due to declines, DirectPayNet can help. We will set you up with a merchant account and link you with a payment processor that allows you to negotiate fees as well as support your business. Contact us today to get started.

    STOP DECLINES TODAY. GET IN TOUCH NOW!

  • Should You Pass Off Credit Card Surcharges to Customers?

    Should You Pass Off Credit Card Surcharges to Customers?

    It’s no secret that credit card processing fees are expensive, but what about taking a processor’s fees add it as a surcharge fee to your transaction? In this article, we’ll talk about whether you can pass on these costs to customers and what the consequences might be if you do.

    Fees are typically 2-3% of a credit card purchase, but whether you can pass along these fees to customers is often a matter of dispute.

    The cost of credit card processing has been rising for years. Regardless of that fact, not all processing rates are equal. Card brands like American Express has notoriously high fees. And if you’re desperate for a merchant account, the easiest ones to be approved for will absolutely cost you more per transaction. The same goes for high-risk business owners. Lower risk business have lower fees. The higher the risk, the higher the fees.

    Small businesses pay higher rates than large ones due to their smaller purchasing volume and less bargaining power with banks and other processors.

    But who should bare the burden of those fees, customers or merchants?

    Merchants don’t want to give away a portion of potential profits because of a transaction fee. Customers don’t want to pay any additional fee in order to buy something from a merchant. There are arguments for both sides: merchants can make more and pay less, or customers can spend less.

    Mandatory service fees and surcharges are prohibited across the board in 10 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, and in many countries.

    It’s against state law to charge a surcharge or pass on credit card processing costs as an additional fee in the following states:

    • Florida
    • Maine
    • Texas
    • Illinois
    • New York
    • Kansas
    • Oklahoma
    • California
    • Utah
    • Massachusetts
    • Connecticut
    • Colorado

    Canada prohibited charging fees (until now) for accepting credit cards and debit cards at retailers with less than $3 million in annual revenue. If you have more than $3 million in annual revenue and process more than 25 purchases per day using a single payment method (such as cash or cheque), then you’re allowed to charge extra for using credit cards or debit cards.

    Australia has strict regulations about how much merchants can charge for accepting payments by credit card—and there are no exemptions for small businesses here either. If a merchant processes less than AU$1 million worth of credit card transactions per year, they’re not allowed to impose any surcharges at all; otherwise, they must cap their fees at 1% of the transaction value—and even that might seem like too much if your business makes only a few dollars each day through credit card payments. (For comparison’s sake: Visa imposes its own 2% interchange fee.)

    However, there are ways around the prohibitions in these states.

    For example, you can use a different term for what you charge customers. In California, a finance charge is prohibited unless it’s at least 1% of a transaction and disclosed beforehand. But if you call your fee something like “convenience fee” or “processing fee,” then it’s not technically a finance charge under the law and you can charge more than 1%.

    There are also other legal loopholes that may allow you to pass on credit card fees without having to change anything about your business model.

    In states where credit card processing surcharges are banned, most businesses simply create a mandatory service fee that applies to all transactions and state it as an amount on their menus or price lists.

    This is not considered a surcharge by the law because it’s not additional money being charged for using a credit card. It’s just another way of stating the price you’ll pay for your meal at this restaurant—and it’s legally permissible in many areas.

    We see this kind of charge all the time. Go into a gas station and get an automatic $1 charge just to swipe your card. Paying with Discover? That’s an additional 3%.

    Many businesses have a minimum purchase requirement at the point of sale, which is generally accepted by customers. Otherwise, there are other forms of payment like cash.

    Some countries, like Canada, are lifting surcharge restrictions.

    If you’re in Canada, or another of the countries that has lifted surcharge restrictions, then it is okay to pass off credit card processing fees to customers legally.

    For example:

    • In Germany, you can tack on a merchant service fee of one-and-a-half percent on top of your prices.
    • In the Netherlands, there is no limit on how much extra you can charge for using a credit card—but there are rules about how much information needs to be given to customers before they buy something where they’ll have to pay by card.
    • In Canada, legislation is changing where now merchants are able to pass credit card surcharges onto their customers without limit, only requiring signage at checkout.

    What are the consequences of adding a credit card processing surcharge to a customer’s transaction?

    You might think that adding a payment processing surcharge is an easy way to make extra cash. But before you implement this policy, think carefully about the consequences. It’s possible that charging customers more than they expect could lead to a loss of customers, negative reviews, and chargebacks—all of which will have a negative impact on your business.

    In addition to these potential drawbacks, charging customers more than their original unauthorized payment may also be considered deceptive business practice by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) if you don’t disclose the additional fee upfront.

    Loss of Customers

    If you charge customers more than they expect, they may be less likely to do business with you in the future. They may not understand why they had to pay more than the original unauthorized transaction amount and may feel that their consent was taken advantage of.

    Poor Business Reputation

    Your business could be seen as deceptive. Customers are always willing to report businesses on scam reporting sites, Trustpilot, and social media about their negative experience. Seeing an extra charge on their bank statement won’t look good for your business.

    Increase in Chargebacks

    If your customers feel that they were charged without their permission, they may file a chargeback with their bank. This means that the transaction is reversed and the money goes back to the customer. Chargebacks are costly for businesses, as banks charge fees for processing them.

    The amount you “saved” will be tripled when that chargeback is filed.

    Scenario: What if your processor attempts a customer’s card multiple times?

    Let’s say you operate in Canada and now want to gain back the 2.5% of sales that gets eaten up by processing fees. A customer is at your store’s checkout, enters their credit card details and gets hit with an error, “Something went wrong. Try your payment again.”

    Even though that error occurred, the processing fee was still charged. So who should pay it, you or the customer? It’s not the customer’s fault that your gateway malfunctioned, or that the processor glitched. Even if they entered their credit card details in wrong, should that simple mistake cost them $5?

    Should it be the responsibility of the customer to pay your processing fee, regardless of the processor you use?

    While the processor might be willing to absorb some of the cost of processing, there’s no reason why your customer should have any part in paying for your extra fees. It’s important that you and your merchant account provider are working together to find a solution that works for everyone involved.

    In reality, these surcharges are most likely going to be imposed on B2B transactions, not B2C. Customers won’t understand and won’t be forgiving, whereas other businesses will. There’s always a risk, though. Before you take advantage of this latest change be sure your customers are willing to accept it.

    Need a merchant account and processor with lower fees?

    Though credit card processing fees are common and legal, it’s still important to know federal laws in your state or country. By understanding what businesses can charge customers and how they should do so, you’ll be able to make an informed decision about whether or not to pass a surcharge onto your customers.

    Credit card network fees like interchange rates can’t be negotiated, but your other charges can be. And offering multiple payment options can help reduce the fees you pay, overall, if customers are able to choose a method that costs less to process.

    The bottom line is that you have the choice: risk your business or protect it.

    If you’re currently struggling with high credit card surcharges and interchange fees from Visa and Mastercard, it’s time to open a new merchant account—one with lower fees. Get in touch with the team here at DirectPayNet to pay less in fees and increase your processing potential.

  • 4 Simple Ways for Faster Checkouts

    4 Simple Ways for Faster Checkouts

    If you’ve ever shopped online, you know that speed matters.

    From the time you enter a product into your cart to the moment it arrives on your doorstep, the faster that process is, the happier and more likely we are to return to that merchant again.

    The faster you can get customers in and out of checkout, the better the overall customer experience will be. Here are some ways to make fast checkout a reality for your ecommerce store, whether you’re improving the Shopify.com experience or your own custom checkout.

    Slow processing speed could lead to lower sales and decreased customer loyalty.

    Slow checkout speed can lead to a number of consequences:

    • Cart abandonment rates can increase. If the checkout process takes too long, shoppers may get frustrated and leave the site before completing their purchases.
    • Customers won’t want to purchase from you again. The success of any business depends on the quality of its products or services. If the final checkout page is slow going, customers will be less likely to make another purchase from you in the future.
    • It can harm your reputation. A slow checkout process could be seen as an indication of poor quality or lack of effort on your part. If you don’t care about the customer experience, it give the impression that your Shopify store or other online store is a scam which can lead to negative reviews and less trust in your company from buyers and banks.

    Merchants who provide a fast payment process have the upper hand.

    The faster a merchant can process payments, the more customers they will have. The lack of a speedy checkout process is a major turnoff for potential customers and one of the top reasons that people abandon their shopping carts.

    This research shows that the consequence of a single second of delay is a 7% drop in conversions. Now what if your checkout takes 2 seconds too long? Or 5? Expect your conversion rate to plummet.

    In addition to increasing sales, speed of checkout also plays into customer satisfaction—and when customers are happy, they are more likely to become repeat customers.

    Ways to Create a Fast Checkout

    1. Don’t require customers to sign in on the checkout screen.

    For the sake of your checkout flow, we recommend you avoid requiring users to sign in on the checkout screen.

    Customers expect the requirement of entering their email. That’s how they get receipts and shipping updates. Use that single field to your advantage.

    They don’t need to sign in (though the option should be there in case they way to) in order for their purchase to appear on their account. You can easily attach it by using the email and/or credit card information entered.

    The simplest checkout pages are the most attractive. No fuss, no confusion, no waiting. Just in and out.

    2. Offer one-click checkouts for users who are signed in.

    Shoppers don’t really need to have the journey of going to the product page, clicking the Add to Cart button, viewing their cart page, clicking Purchase, entering their info, logging in, and finally getting confirmation. That’s too many steps. Luckily, one-click buying functionality is the optimization that fixes it!

    The easiest way to make one-click shopping a reality is to make sure your customers are signed in. If they’ve already logged in, then all you need to do is check their email address and credit card on file—no matter how many gift cards or special offers they have saved, or what other purchases they might have made on the site beforehand.

    If they aren’t logged in yet, then make that a really simple process. No redirects. For example, when they hover over your Buy Now button, provide a username and password login form. Once the information is entered, they get logged in, the cart is purchased, and there’s nothing more to do!

    One-click is difficult but not impossible if customers don’t have an account on your site. you could use something like PayPal’s one-click payment if applicable, or even digital wallet payments.

    Single-click checkout buttons, quick buy, or skip-to-checkout methods can be great for increasing the average order value. Generally, customers want to get out fast. Use that to your advantage and give them really easy and accurate “upgrades” to the items in their cart that can be swapped out in a single click, even after the purchase.

    3. Ask for just the minimum amount of required payment info from the customer.

    All the additional information is generally for collecting data—which is useful.

    We do promote the collection and use of consumer data to better the customer experience, but that your actual customer needs into consideration. If you’re collecting and not seeing the gains you anticipated, then maybe it’s time for a different strategy.

    At checkout, the most basic information includes:

    • Email address
    • Name
    • Credit Card Number
    • CVV
    • Shipping Address (if a physical product)

    You don’t really need any more than that; the rest is extraneous customer information. You don’t need the phone number. You don’t need duplicate fields for entering the email, nor do you need for them to login or sign up for an account. You don’t need any of that.

    Keeping it minimal is appealing in the age of instant. And if you’re worried about making upsells, don’t. You can easily send those offers over via email after initial checkout.

    4. Accept digital wallet payments like Google Pay, Samsung Pay, and Apple Pay.

    Accepting different payment methods is a great way to increase your sales. Digital wallet payment options are fast and easy for customers, who can use their phone to pay. They’re also more secure than credit cards, so you can worry less about fraud or chargebacks.

    Digital wallet payments also automatically fill all the required (and some extra) fields of information for you. So while you might not be collecting the actual credit card number, you’ll still get the customer’s name, email, address, and phone number.

    That’s generally all the data you want from a customer and it was done in just a tap on their phone and a scan of their face or fingerprint. Easy.

    Make sure your payment processor isn’t slowing you down.

    The bottom line is that processing speed matters. If merchants want to reduce the time it takes for customers to check out and complete a purchase, they should focus on the payment experience.

    The best way to do this is by using a fast payment processor that doesn’t slow down your site with unnecessary steps. Limit requests for customers to sign in before checking out or asking them for too much personal information at one time.

    Our top 4 tips for fast checkout will speed up the customer journey and improve the experience ten-fold whether you’re looking to improve Shopify checkout speed or your own one-page checkout. If you’re experiencing high abandoned cart rates and low conversions, it’s time you look at your business’ checkout experience.

    Speak with the experts here at DirectPayNet for more insight into the payment process and what you can do to speed things up and scale faster.

  • Save Money & Qualify for Level 3 Credit Card Processing Rates

    Save Money & Qualify for Level 3 Credit Card Processing Rates

    Level 3 processing offers lower interchange fees and helps businesses better navigate their data to increase profit and decrease costs. So why isn’t anyone talking about it?

    Find out what it takes to qualify for Level 3 processing, what additional information you’ll need to provide, how it compares to the other levels of data processing, and the required fields for each. Level 3 is a powerful and inexpensive way to save costs while keeping your business more organized and ready for the future of commerce.

    What is level 3 data for credit cards?

    Level 3 data is the credit card data that you won’t see when you use your credit card at a store. This includes the BIN, card type and expiration date. Level III or L3 is also used to refer to this information in general. The name comes from how it’s divided into levels: Level 1 being the consumer-facing information on a receipt and Level 2 including more detailed information about an individual purchase (like a total amount).

    Level 3 data is the most detailed of the three levels, and includes information like a cardholder’s name, address and phone number. It also includes the credit card number itself. This information can be used for fraud prevention or to help identify a customer’s preferences. It may also be used for marketing purposes.

    What does Level III data include?

    Level III data is the most detailed level of credit card data. It includes:

    • Name of the cardholder
    • Last 4 digits of the card number
    • Card verification value (CVV) or security code, which can be found on the back or bottom edge of your credit card. You may also see it referred to as CID (card identification).
    • Expiration date for the credit card.
    • Service code for the Visa or MasterCard account, which helps differentiate between different cards within the merchant account from one another (e.g., if you have multiple ecommerce businesses that all use a single merchant account). This allows your merchant services provider to process transactions more efficiently and accurately without having to contact you every time they’re not sure which business it belongs to.

    All of this information is on top of Level 1 and Level 2 data. As you can see, there’s a lot of potential once you activate L3 data.

    What is the difference between L3 and L2 data?

    Let’s break down what each data level of processing includes.

    Level 1 Data

    Level 1 data includes basic information about the transaction, such as:

    • The amount charged and currency (e.g., $10 USD)
    • Merchant ID number (MID)
    • Card type (e.g., Visa or Mastercard)

    Level 2 Data

    Level 2 data includes the above information, plus:

    • The location of the transaction (e.g., United States)
    • The date and time of the transaction

    Level 3 Data

    Level 3 data includes the above information, plus:

    • Customer ID number (e.g., 1234567890123456)
    • Merchant name and address
    • The type of business (e.g., restaurant, retail store)
    • A description of the transaction (e.g., food purchase)

    How does Level 3 processing work?

    Level 3 processing works by using a data processor to extract all of the information from each transaction. The processor then sends this data over to a business intelligence platform, where it can be analyzed and used for decision-making purposes. If you’re currently only using Level 1 and Level 2 data, this move will help you gain insight into what’s happening with your sales, costs and profits.

    The first step is to figure out what kind of data you want to collect. You’ll want to decide whether you need a specific type of information or if it’s more important to capture the movement itself. For example, if you’re looking at customer lifetime value, then it makes sense to track their purchases over time.

    If you’re more concerned with the customer’s average purchase size and frequency, then you should be tracking things like their average spend or the number of orders they place over a set period. The second step is to decide how you want to collect this data. If your company already has an existing CRM system in place, then it might make sense to use that as your starting point. However, there are many other options available today that can help automate this process for you.

    Who can use Level III processing?

    Level III processing is best suited for businesses who have a large volume of transactions and want to optimize their revenue by increasing the average spend of each customer.

    This can be especially useful if you have a subscription-based business model where customers are paying on a recurring basis. It also makes sense if your company has a wide variety of products or services that need to be sold together in order for them to be effective.

    How does Level 3 credit card processing save you money?

    The biggest benefit is a lower interchange rate by more than 1% on certain types of cards, like corporate business cards or commercial cards.

    1% doesn’t sound like much, but keep in mind that it’s per transaction and credit card processing fees can go as high as 5%. Since the discount applies mostly to corporate cards, it makes sense for merchants selling to corporations or SMBs working with large corporations. However, there are benefits to anyone who uses it.

    Level 3 data includes much more detail than L1 or L2, which allows you to adjust your marketing and sales to increase profits and customer order value.

    Other features of Level 3 credit card processing.

    Level 3 credit card processing is a great choice for business owners who want to integrate their point of sale software with accounting software. Level 3 offers built-in B2B fields that allow you to send data directly from your POS system to your accounting software. You can also use the Level 3 integration tools to send reports and track sales or inventory inside your accounting package.

    Qualifying for Level 3 processing rates.

    To qualify for L3 processing, here’s what you need:

    • Level 1 data: merchant name, transaction amount, date, and billing zip code.
    • Level 2 data: sales tax amount, customer code, merchant postal code and tax ID, invoice number, and order number
    • Product/item description (SKU)
    • Commodity code and product code
    • Unit price, extended price, discount amount, per line discount, and line item detail total
    • Quantity and unit of measure
    • Debit/credit indicator
    • Shipping/freight amount and duty amount

    After ensuring you have all of the proper information, you need to ensure that your processor supports Level 3 data as well as your payment gateway or virtual terminal. It also depends on the credit card network.

    To qualify for Visa or Mastercard Level 3 processing, you need to process at least 20k transactions annually. There are also a couple of forms to fill out and a quarterly network scan required.

    American Express and Discover do not offer Level 3 processing.

    Level 3 credit card processing makes it possible for businesses to process large B2B transactions out-of-the-box, using built-in B2B fields and integrations with accounting software.

    Level 3 credit card processing is ideal for high-volume business-to-business merchants looking to streamline their business processes. The solution is designed to help businesses process large-scale credit card transactions with ease. It includes a built-in B2B module that supports invoice and purchase order processing, level 2/3 data encryption, full business reporting and unlimited users.

    Processing Level 3 credit cards has become an essential tool for businesses that operate at a large scale. By taking advantage of these features, level 3 credit card processing allows companies to save money on credit card payment processing fees and use powerful data to improve sales and revenue.

    Looking to add Level 3 processing to your business? Speak with the experts here at DirectPayNet. We’ll help you qualify with the right processor.

  • FINALLY You Can Easily Accept Credit Cards When Selling NFTs

    FINALLY You Can Easily Accept Credit Cards When Selling NFTs

    If you’re an NFT seller, then you know all too well how difficult it can be to accept credit cards. It’s not that the demand wasn’t there, it’s that payment gateways wouldn’t allow it. And the ones that did were…less than ideal.

    But a new processor has emerged over the horizon that allows simple, seamless payments for customers wanting to buy NFTs with a credit card. Finally!

    It’s called NFT Shark by NFTPay, and it’s allowing the 99% of customers who want to purchase an NFT the power to do so without needing a crypto wallet.

    Until now, buying NFTs has been such a hassle.

    First, you had to buy ETH (Ethereum) or BTC (Bitcoin), or SOL (Solana) from an exchange. Then you had to transfer it over to your exchange wallet (Coinbase). And then you had to transfer them again into your NFT wallet. Finally, when the time came for someone else to buy your NFTs, they’d have to go through the same process!

    It was a pain in the butt and made purchasing NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) too much of a hassle. It literally took 9 days to make a single transaction. In our connected age where transactions are expected to be instant—especially when based around digital goods, that’s unacceptable.

    But now that we have a new processor in place that allows customers who don’t have crypto wallets to pay with credit cards, spending good ol’ USD is more than possible.

    For users, credit card payments are the easiest way to spend money.

    It’s true, credit cards are a popular way to pay. In fact, they’re the most popular way to pay online and in-person. They’re also the most popular way to pay in apps and games.

    If you don’t accept credit card payments on your site or app, you’re missing out on a lot of potential buyers. Now there’s no excuse to not allow credit card payments for NFT purchases. Credit cards have and, for the foreseeable future, will be the dominant method of payment across the globe. Get on board now before your brand falls too far below your competitors.

    If you’re selling NFTs on (or off) OpenSea, you want to make it as easy as possible for people to buy from you.

    With credit card payments, you can do just that. Allowing consumers to pay with their Visa or Mastercard credit and debit cards will help you increase sales and boost your profits.

    OpenSea is the largest NFT marketplace to date. You can have your own website, of course. But for NFT Shark to work its magic, it needs an OpenSea URL. When customers navigate to your site and find an NFT to purchase, their API will accept the OpenSea link pasted into the cart (which you can automate), process their credit card, and done. It’s magic.

    Their service is fully implementable on any site. You can think of OpenSea as a place to store your digital NFT products. You’ll sell those products wherever you please.

    Credit card purchases are often more appealing than cryptocurrencies because of their speed and stability.

    You may be considering accepting cryptocurrency for your NFTs or other digital goods, but credit card payments may be a better option for you. While cryptocurrencies are gaining popularity as a form of payment, they can be hard to use and carry their own risks.

    Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin have been around since 2009, but they’re still not as widely accepted by vendors as other forms of payment like fiat currency or credit cards. Cryptocurrency transactions are also more time-consuming than the simple click-and-buy process offered by most e-commerce sites.

    In addition, because many cryptocurrency exchanges have been hacked in recent years (including some high profile ones), the average consumer might be leery about opening a cryptocurrency wallet. Not to mention the difficulty of navigating these crypto exchanges can be quite deterring.

    You can make it easier for users to pay for your NFTs by offering credit card options.

    Credit cards are the preferred method for online sales, and they help you avoid some of the drawbacks of cryptocurrencies in general. The latest NFT payment processor makes this as easy as PayPal to click and buy in seconds.

    You can also expect this type of service to expand in the future, allowing you to sell on other NFT markets—even your own. The best way to stay ahead of the competition is to act now while this service is on the rise.

    Allowing credit card payments means you’ll get access to more customers who may otherwise avoid digital currencies.

    Consider these scenarios:

    • People who don’t want to use cryptocurrencies. Some people don’t want to hold digital currency and would rather use their bank accounts, credit cards or even PayPal. Allowing these payment methods will allow them to buy your NFTs without having access to cryptocurrencies.
    • People who can’t use cryptocurrencies. Many people in the world simply do not have a way of getting involved with digital currencies at all. They are excluded from this trend because they live in countries that have yet to develop infrastructure for digital money (or perhaps their government has banned it). You can help these individuals by including them in your sales through traditional payment methods like credit cards and digital wallets (Apple Pay and Google Pay) which are available almost everywhere.
    • People traveling who don’t have access to their crypto wallets. Even though crypto is digital and seemingly borderless, there are limitations. Generally, you have to be within your home country to spend your own crypto, trade it, or transfer it. That’s very limiting for folks who live abroad or are currently traveling.

    NFT Shark allows NFT sellers on OpenSea (and beyond) to use both cryptocurrencies and fiat currency like dollars or euros.

    If you’re not already familiar with OpenSea, it’s an NFT platform where users can buy and sell NFTs. It also has a built-in wallet that allows users to store their cryptocurrency securely. If you want to accept credit card payments on OpenSea, there’s now a much easier way than what has currently been on offer.

    Credit card payments for buying NFTs isn’t an entirely new concept (re: Moonpay), but it hasn’t been the most straightforward. There’s a lot of transferring, storing, monitoring, and processing involved. It’s far from instant. At least, that was true for OpenSea’s proprietary payment means.

    NFT Shark simplifies that, allowing customers to simply buy. In seconds, that $10k NFT is sold.

    Credit cards are the preferred method for online sales.

    It’s a tried-and-true method that’s been around for more than 20 years. Millions of people use them every day, and they’re easier to understand than other forms of payment. Cryptocurrency is still a niche market, but it’s growing at an exponential rate. It’s all about accessibility for businesses like OpenSea who want to reach new customers through the platform.

    Credit cards offer less anonymity but make it easier for consumers to verify their identity before making purchases online. While cryptocurrencies may offer greater security than traditional methods when used correctly (considering the heightened security of the blockchain), most people prefer using credit cards because they offer instant checkouts and quick refunds if something goes wrong the your order.

    Ready to bump up your NFT sales?

    We’re excited to see the payments landscape for cryptocurrency and NFTs integrate better into the real world of online sales. This is the future of NFTs and digital art sales, and it’s one you need to start accepting ASAP. Whether your an NFT creator, trader, or selling off your digital assets, credit card payments are essential.

    DPN will hook you up with a credit card payment processor for NFTs so you can integrate it into your website, make sales on social media, and so much more. Get in touch today to get set up.