summary
5/5
Best for
E-commerce companies, SaaS companies, "high-risk businesses", & established small/medium businesses ($500,000+ in annual sales)
Specializes in
Easy Pay Direct has unique gateway software and banking solutions to optimize payments for eCommerce, SaaS, information products, supplements, and CBD amongst other verticals.
Pricing Summary
Setup Fee: $99
Monthly Fee: $24.95
Swipe Rate: 1.59% + $0.17
Keyed-in Rate: 2.39% + $0.29
Early Termination Fee: $0 (domestic accounts)
Contract Terms:
summary
4/5
Best for
High-Risk Merchants
Specializes in
High Risk
Pricing Summary
Setup Fee: None
Monthly Fee: None
Swipe Rate: Unknown
Keyed-in Rate: Unknown
Early Termination Fee: Unknown
Contract Terms:
summary
4/5
Best for
eMerchantBroker is best for any size business that is considered high-risk. It's considered one of the top payment processors for high-risk businesses that would otherwise have difficulty finding a standard merchant account provider.
Specializes in
eMerchantBroker specializes in credit repair, collections agencies, adult websites, travel and timeshare, firearms and guns, bankruptcy and bad credit, online and in-person smoke shops. They also work with electronic cigarettes and other companies that fit into the high-risk merchant account category.
Pricing Summary
Setup Fee: $0
Monthly Fee: Undisclosed
Swipe Rate: 3.00% + $0.15
Keyed-in Rate: 4.00% + $0.25
Early Termination Fee: Up to $595
Contract Terms:
A timeshare merchant account is a type of bank account that is used specifically for businesses in this industry to process credit cards and other types of payments.
The merchant account functions more like a temporary place to hold funds after a customer makes a purchase from a business. Once the funds from the sale arrive in the merchant account, transaction fees are removed.
From there, the money is deposited into the business’s bank account. It is a process that typically takes about 24-48 hours, in most cases.
Without merchant services, timeshare businesses would not be able to process credit card payments or other transactions. They would be limited to only accepting cash.
Most timeshare companies rely on the internet for their sales; although there are many that sell in-person as well.
Most customers prefer to pay with credit cards or other forms of electronic payment. In short, if a business does not have the ability to accept these payments, it probably won’t be in business very long.
Because timeshare companies need to accept payments in multiple ways, they need options. There are several ways for them to take credit, debit, and other forms of payment in exchange for timeshares.
An integrated payment gateway is probably the most common method of processing payments in the travel industry. That’s because most customers will make their purchases online.
Your payment gateway will be set up to work with your company’s website, and the integration should be seamless. The gateway will be branded with your company’s information so your customers will feel confident when they complete their purchases.
Is your business model set up to include taking payments over the phone or even through the mail? If so, you will need a virtual terminal to process those payments.
A virtual terminal can be set up on a desktop computer, laptop, or even a tablet. It works with any device that has an internet connection.
To process a payment using this method, you will manually enter your customer’s credit card or other payment information into a website set up for that purpose. The system will then accept the payment.
Your travel business may be open to the public, and if it is, you may have customers coming into the office to make timeshare payments.
You may want to consider using a POS system to process those payments. A POS system can help you in many ways, including keeping track of customers’ purchases, inventory, and even payroll.
There are many travel companies that visit trade shows and other events for the purpose of promoting what they offer. If that is something your business does, it helps to have a mobile card reader to take with you.
A mobile card reader functions very much like a miniature POS system. You can use it to accept credit card payments on the go and it will also keep track of important details about your customers’ accounts.
Some travel businesses might be inclined to use a payment service provider - also known as a payment aggregator - instead of choosing a merchant account provider. PayPal, Square, and Stripe all fall into that category.
While there are some good reasons for making that decision, it could be detrimental for the business.
Not all PSPs allow businesses in the travel industry to accept payments using their services. But they do have the reputation of being easy to use and they offer quick approvals.
To get around the regulations, there are businesses in the timeshare space that avoid disclosing what their businesses really are. But this is risky because it can result in closed accounts and/or frozen funds.
Chargebacks are common for any business in the travel industry. Too many of them can result in a PSP closing your account, and if that happens, you could lose access to all of your funds.
A high risk merchant account doesn’t carry as much risk, and it is a much safer option for a legitimate business.
Before you choose a timeshare merchant account provider, there are several things you’ll want to take into consideration.
Your business is considered high risk. That means that not every merchant service provider or payment processor will work with you.
But that doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to find a provider.
Because your business is high risk, you should plan on paying higher transaction fees, and there may be additional fees you’ll need to pay as well.
Because you have a high risk business, you will likely have to enter into a contract that has a term of 3 to 5 years. That is considered typical for the travel industry.
But contract terms can vary wildly, and you’ll want to read every contract very carefully before you sign it. Pay close attention to the fees you will be charged, which may include:
You will also want to find out what happens if you decide to cancel the processor’s services before your contract ends. Many MSPs charge early termination fees that could be as high as $500 or more.
Transaction fees are a part of doing business in the timeshare industry, but every credit card processing company has a model it uses.
You may find that you are presented with one of the three following options, depending on the company.
Because you are in the travel industry, you’re likely to get customers from all over the world. You will need the ability to accept payments from other countries, and this is not something that every merchant services provider offers.
The processor you choose to work with should offer you as many currency options as possible.
It should also take care of ensuring that the customer is charged any applicable taxes or fees, depending on what country they live in.
As a high risk business, you should expect to have a rolling reserve in place once you start processing payments. This is something that most MSPs require.
A rolling reserve means that a percentage of all payments you receive will be held in a separate account for a period of usually six months. Once six months have passed, some of the money will be released, and the process will continue.
It may be possible for your processor to remove this requirement once you have a significant payment processing history in place. But in many cases, travel companies always have a rolling reserve.
The best travel merchant account provider will take the time to talk with you and address any concerns or questions you may have. They should be willing to provide you with any information you need to help you make your decision.
Also, customer service is extremely important when it comes to payment processing. If your business has an online presence, your customers may be making purchases at all hours of the day and night.
When it comes to technology, anything could go wrong. You want to know that the processor you work with will be available to help you make things right for your customers. That means it might not be beneficial for you to work with a company that doesn’t offer 24/7 customer support and tech support.
As you can imagine, fraud is rampant in the travel industry, which is one reason timeshares are considered high risk.
Merchant service providers that work with timeshare companies need to have excellent fraud protection and prevention measures in place.
The last thing you want is for any of your customers to become victims of cyberattacks or identity theft. But if your payment processor doesn’t have a way of preventing them, it is only a matter of time.
A chargeback occurs when a customer disputes a credit card transaction, and chargebacks are very common in the travel industry. Most of the time, people plan their vacations months, or in some cases, years in advance. That leaves a lot of time for people to change their minds.
People know that they only need to dispute a transaction with their credit card companies in order to have it removed, and they have up to six months to do it.
Some chargebacks are the result of fraud, but others are the result of people simply changing their minds. The key is to have chargeback prevention in place to avoid them being put through in the first place.
When your credit card processor has this type of protection in place, you will be alerted so you can contact the customer and issue a refund instead. While your company will lose money this way, you won’t have to pay any chargeback fees with refunds.
Your timeshare business probably needs a way for customers to have recurring billing in place. Otherwise, you would depend on them to make regular payments on their own.
This could potentially be problematic because you would experience late payments or people defaulting on their commitments.
Recurring billing takes care of both of these issues because your customers’ payments will be processed monthly on a regular schedule.
When you choose the right timeshare merchant account provider, you’ll never have to worry about getting paid. Your customers’ transactions will go through effortlessly, and you can continue focusing on doing what you do best, which is running your business.
Before we go, here are our recommendations for the best timeshare merchant account providers: