Credit Card Machines - A Necessary Evil

As I mentioned last week, I said there were a few lessons learned from the Bead & Button show.  My biggest problem was my new credit card machine.  Previously to this show I had been accepting M/C and Visa using my knuckle buster.  It's a slower process (more information to get from the customer) and it was a concern, especially since I thought I'd be doing the show alone.   I had called my Merchant Service people and they recommended the Omni VX 510 DC.  This particular machine could process payments through a phone line or an internet connection.   And the great thing, or so I thought, you can swipe the card, store it, and upload it when possible.  Perfect for doing shows . . . right?  I purchased the machine through eBay, got all the information downloaded through my payment processing group, and thought I was good to go.  The last thing they mentioned to me was "all uploads would be automatic at 5:00 a.m.".  I told them I needed to do the store/forward feature as I would be at a show and didn't have access to a phone line nor did I really want the machine going off at 5:00 a.m. in my hotel room. With store forward, you still swipe the card, it appears to the customer as if it's going through, but all that's happening is their information is getting stored in your machine.  First thing I learned was that when you're in store/forward mode, you run the risk of losing all data.  I then called my Merchant Services people who suggested this machine specifically for that and they said this wasn't a real problem.  All I needed to do was to run a Detailed Report and all the credit card info (number, exp. date) would be printed out.  Here's where my problem arose.  The first night of the show, I went back to the hotel, coded the credit card machine with the hotel pbx and thought it should run smoothly.  When I started the upload, I got a communication error.  I immediately called my credit card processing company.  I knew I'd be ok if I could just print a detailed report.  It was then that I was told you can't printed a detailed report when in store/forward mode.  It can only be printed when you settle the batch. What????  Second lesson - don't always believe what you're being told is true.  Do the research.  After following a few steps I was given by the technical support person, the machine now said "empty batch".  That, I knew, was not good.  We went back and forth a bit . . . and I asked to speak with someone else trying to stay calm.  Fortunately for me, this person took me through the steps to print out a Batch Authorization Report.  All the credit card numbers were there. If I hadn't printed out this report at this time, all information would have been lost. But I really wouldn't know until I got home if everything remained stored in the machine as I was unable to upload any charges from the hotel.  I would still be in store/forward the rest of the show. It was explained to me that because I was in a hotel and it was a digital line, the signal was very weak. These are the kinds of things no one ever tells you.  Unless I could access an analog line, I would have to wait 5 or so days until I got home to see if any of the charges would upload.  So, for the rest of the show, I took the precautions that I could and hoped for the best.  When I arrived home, all the charges uploaded, except for that first night . . . that empty batch problem was the cause.  I managed to manually put those charges through (taking information from that Batch Authorization Report) and it all worked out . . . but it could have been a disaster.  Lesson three - always ask the question "are there risks involved and if so, what are they"?

I wished I had the time to go around the show and ask others what they were doing for credit card processing.  My next door neighbor had a wireless processor because she has a retail store as well and could justify the cost.  But I did learn a few things in talking to people after this experience.  For instance, did you know that if you have an IPhone, you can use an app called "Square Up"?  I was told that it really won't be in full speed until August, but I googled it, and you can read about it here.  No contracts, no fees, or hidden costs.  Set up fee - free, monthly fee - free, monthly minimum - none.  You can read about that here.  Sound too good to be true?  You get (for free) a card reader that you plug into any device with an audio input jack.  As of today, it works on the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Nexus One and Droid.  I have an iPod Touch and will definitely be looking into this.  Other devices will be added in the future.  It is PCI Level 1 and PA-DSS compliant.

Or, as my husband suggested, you can always buy a cheap laptop, get a card reader, and accept cards that way.  The only thing is you have to make sure your credit card processing people support this. 

So - lessons were learned, and fortunately for me, it all worked out for which I'm very grateful for.  As you can see, there are other options to look at.  The technology is changing so fast that I guess it didn't surprise me that there would be an app for it.  But again, ask many questions . . . the most important being "what are the risks involved?"  If you have any other suggestions, please feel free to leave comments!
Have a great weekend!