5 Hidden Payment Gateway Fees You Should Know About

<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><em>by Michelle Newman</em></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Payment gateways facilitate ecommerce in the Internet. It allows the merchants to conduct business through the Internet. However, please understand that payment gateway service comes with corresponding fees. Merchants have to pay to enjoy its benefits. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;&nbsp; Some gateway providers are upfront with their costumers with regards to these fees. They tell their customers the kinds of gateway service fees and what these fees are for. Others tend to &ldquo; conceal&rdquo; some of these fees at start-up. Hapless merchants will discover these unscrupulous fees on their first monthly statement. By then, it will be too late for them to back out.<br /> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;&nbsp; Consider the following true accounts:<br /> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <em>When Chris signed up for a gateway service for his MP3 players business, the sales people told him he only have to pay this much. To his surprise, his first monthly billing statement reflected &ldquo; bundled&rdquo; fees and service he never knew about. He felt cheated and terminated the contract. Little did he know that by doing so, he gave the payment gateway company the chance to charge him with a very high &ldquo;withdrawal fees&rdquo; . </em> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><br /> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <em>Mary Rose started her ladies belts&#39; business at their garage. It expanded so fast until she decided to try an online store. She then got a payment gateway service. Everything went fine, except after a year. She discovered a $300 charge on top of her usual payment gateway fees. Sales people told her it was &ldquo; annual fee&rdquo; a charge she was never informed about when she signed up for the service.</em></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><br /> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal">&nbsp;&nbsp; Listed below are some of the hidden payment gateways fees you should know about that some unscrupulous payment gateway companies charge against their unsuspecting customers: </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal"> <br /> </p> <ol><li><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal"> Chargeback fees----- a chargeback happens when an online shopper disputes a charge from her credit card. Some payment gateway companies do not exact &ldquo; chargeback fees&rdquo; ; some do. Ask the sales people regarding chargeback fees so you will not be surprised with monthly statement. Better still, settle for a payment gateway provider that does not charge you with any chargeback fee.</p> </li><li><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal"> Termination Charge--- If for some reason that you feel dissatisfied with your provider, you have the right to terminate the contract. However, some deceitful payment gateway companies point you out to the fine print of the contract where you will be charge with costly termination fee. You should carefully read the fine print of the contract before signing up. Or better still, ask the sales people about it. If they say they do not charge termination fee, you better insist that they put such claim in writing or you would be in for a big surprise.</p> </li><li><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal"> HelpDesk Fees--- when something goes wrong with your payment gateway processing, your first instinct is to call your provider&#39;s technical support. But watch out. Some unscrupulous gateway providers charge you for such service. Better be upfront with them and ask if they charge technical support fees. </p> </li><li><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal"> Annual Fees---- As the term suggests, some payment gateway companies charge unsuspecting merchants with annual fees. Look for a provider that is willing to waive this fee.</p> </li><li><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal"> Setup Fees---- Some companies will not mention about set up fees, not until you receive your first monthly billing.As we have advised again and again, carefully read the contract before signing it.<br /> </p> </li></ol> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; These are just some of the hidden fees that payment gateway providers charge hapless merchants. By knowing these fees and negotiating for a competitve pricing package can give you significant savings for your business. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-style: normal"> <br /> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><em>( Michelle Newman is the CEO of a leading Fortune 500 company based in San Francisco. She lectures on various business topics like marketing, competitive business strategies, and management-related issues. She does some business writings on her spare time.)</em></font></font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in">&nbsp;</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in"> <a href="http://www.onlywire.com/submit?u=http://www.securepaymentgateways.com/5_hidden_payment_gateway_fees_you_should_know_about.html;t=payment%20gateway;tags=payment%20gateway" target="_blank" title="Add this Article to Onlywire"><img src="http://www.onlywire.com/i/onlywire.ico" alt="" />Add to Onlywire!</a></p>