Help with Mobile Card Payment Terminals!

[seasonsonline]

Hi everyone,

This year we will be attending The Clothes Show Live at Birmingham NEC, and we would love any advice on the following issue! Basically our website accounts for well over 70% of our turnover and because we use Sage pay we don't have the need for a hand terminal payment processor, - the occasions that we do get tele sales can be managed via Sage pay online terminal, so no problem there!

Now and again we get outdoors to local market events, but these sales tend to be smaller cash purchases. The Clothes Show event is certain to be a much larger event than our normal ones with larger average spends, hence the greater need for a mobile card payment terminal.

The problem we are faced with is getting a terminal on a short term basis. Our bank wants us to commit to 24 months of which there's simply no need, and of the few companies found on the Internet they are charging a whopping £500 deposit and about £350 for a 6 day event which seems ludicrous!

Value for money is important, so rather than taking the short term deal it's looking like we'll just have to bite the bullet and go to our bank and sign up. Maybe we'll just have to do more outdoor promotional events over the next 2 years to warrant having one of these terminals, but it just seems like a big price to pay for something we need to just test the water.

Also, is there any way of getting around the need for a 24 month sign up for a merchant account?

If anyone has any other great ideas to get around this then they'd be greatly received. P.s Already looked into mobile phone payments but that just isn't an option. - Looks bad to the customer, time consuming and unprofessional!

 

[Idontbuy]

Are you are paypal merchant?

Virtual Terminal via a laptop is the way we do it never had any problems with customers saying no the dont want to do it that way.

Pete

 

[seasonsonline]

Are you are paypal merchant?

Virtual Terminal via a laptop is the way we do it never had any problems with customers saying no the don't want to do it that way.

Pete

Yeah, already thought of that idea but unfortunately we're going for high volume, so time is critical and I don't think it would be feasible to have to sit down with each customer to take payment for a £15 up wards sale.

Nice idea, but yeah we need something quick fire!

 

[Online Trader]

But you can process a Sagpay terminal transaction as quick as using a hand held terminal so just take the laptop with you

 

[activew]

Sagem Matsu Ltd
Matsu House
Woodside Park
Catteshall Lane
Godalming Surrey GU7 1LG
Sales; 01483 862 487
Fax: 01483 862 500 HELP DESK 0844 257 0115
email : [email protected]
www.sagem-matsu.com ​

 

[seasonsonline]

But you can process a Sagpay terminal transaction as quick as using a hand held terminal so just take the laptop with you

Having taken card payments over the phone we've found it a little time consuming, especially having to take the customers billing address, delivery address etc etc.- With the show forecast to be exceptionally busy we're just concerned that customers will be put off.

My great concern with this is that the image of someone sitting on a laptop, inputting customers valuable data will also not go down at all well. If anyone has had any experiences doing it this way it would be great to get some feedback.

Thanks folks for the tips so far, keep them coming.

 

[activew]

We have the same problem as we do trade shows and it is a lot easier with the hired terminal and quicker ..... Sagem were the cheapest we found for short term hire ....only issue we had was that it worked on Orange network and coverage was iffy at Gmex at the time but its been fine everywhere else.

 

[seasonsonline]

We have the same problem as we do trade shows and it is a lot easier with the hired terminal and quicker ..... Sagem were the cheapest we found for short term hire ....only issue we had was that it worked on Orange network and coverage was iffy at Gmex at the time but its been fine everywhere else.

Okay, will give them a buzz. Guessing we'll still need a 24 month merchant account setting up with the bank anyway? - So really, there's no way of winning!

 

[Call Assistant UK]

Hi, we use paypal virtual terminal and have no problems, except paypal reserve 50% of your sale for 60 days.

We haven't found any problems with using the iPhone app on this at all, infact customers seem to really take to it, and once you let them know that no details are stored, they seem fine.

We are, however, moving over to sagepay as they don't reserve any funds, and all for the same price.

For likes of trades etc though, we have a generally high volume of card payments due to the nature of our business, and by setting up different user accounts on paypal, you can take 2 laptops and reduce any waiting times.

Its also good to have everyone fully conversant in the system as that would also speed things up.

 

[activew]

Why dont you have a telphone number on your website?

I dont understand why you need a 24 month contract

 

[seasonsonline]

Why don't you have a telephone number on your website?

I don't understand why you need a 24 month contract

Telephone number is on contact page here, http://www.seasonsonline.co.uk/contact.html

We currently have an ecommerce merchant id no, but apparently a completely different merchant id is required for these type of payments.

I just phoned Sagem and you're right there prices are pretty reasonable, but they have also confirmed we will need a different merchant id, so need to get back onto the bank and see what expense this will be and what the minimum length of contract is.

 

[seasonsonline]

We have the same problem as we do trade shows and it is a lot easier with the hired terminal and quicker ..... Sagem were the cheapest we found for short term hire ....only issue we had was that it worked on Orange network and coverage was iffy at Gmex at the time but its been fine everywhere else.

Hi there. Do you have separate merchant account numbers for both your ecommerce set up and the card terminal??

I've been made aware that in order to take payments via a card terminal we will need a completely new merchant id no. This is the only way forward apparently, and it would seem that our bank will charge a set up fee and hold us to a 24 month contract! All unnecessary for us for just one big event!

 

[activew]

Just wondered how you got on with Sagem ...sorry about the tel number question its becauce i have too many tabs and windows open and the screen gets a little cramped .....you could always move it over to the left!!!!!

 

[seasonsonline]

Just wondered how you got on with Sagem ...sorry about the tel number question its because i have too many tabs and windows open and the screen gets a little cramped .....you could always move it over to the left!!!!!

Actually, along with a million other things that need doing we will eventually get round to moving the tel no onto the homepage to make it more visible! - So a valid point made there!

Phoned Sagem and their prices aren't bad. BUT and there's always a but - still looks like need to sort something out with regards to merchant bank no. The one we have for ecommerce isn't compatible

Need to get back on the phone to the bank and weigh up cost implications for either getting both terminal and merchant account with bank, or hiring a terminal etc.

Will post back when I have more info. Thanks so far!!