What You Need To Know Open a Merchant Account

You need a merchant account to succeed if you are a small business. Providing multiple payment options to your customers has proven to increases sale and offer a lot more opportunities for a Small Business.

Small business credit card processing is all about a secure platform for the customers. One of the crucial steps for any business is choosing a merchant account provider. If you are running a mall then cash only approach may work, but according to research, companies may miss a sale because many customers want to do online shopping. According to latest research by Javelin Strategy and Research, online payments methods have outplaced cash only approach.

Credit Card Acceptance: Accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover

These days only a few people carry cash, rests rely on credit cards. There are only four major card brands through, Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. For a small business, credit card processing is incredibly important. According to a report by the market watch, 60 percent of the points of sale transactions rely on debit or credit cards. Many studies have pointed that business owners who offer multiple payment methods are likely to succeed. By providing multiple payment methods, a company is likely to attract a large number of customers from around the globe. Credit card payment makes purchase process secure and easy for customers, and it also helps business to keep a record of sales.

Why your small business needs a merchant account?

The easiest way for small businesses to accept credit card is via merchant accounts. A merchant who wants to expand the business to reach wide audience requires a payment gateway. Merchant accounts have tools that can accept any type of card via a virtual terminal. Any business can integrate more than one payment methods on their online e-commerce site. When a merchant provider is done setting up the account, accepting credit cards becomes easier for business owners.

Merchant Stronghold is the right choice – Many merchants think that it is expensive to accept cards, but this is not always the case. Some merchant account providers such as Merchant Stronghold, A leading Payment Gateway Provider which provides competitive rates so that small businesses can succeed by offering multiple payment options to their customers.

Merchant Stronghold speaks with every small business owner to explain them everything, we also guide them to handle their merchant account. There is a variety of choices offered to merchants to make it simple and secure for their customers. Merchants can access their account via mobile and other platforms. Merchants also get 24/7 customer support to keep the business running smoothly. We use the latest technology to ensure merchants are happy and their business is safe from frauds. You can contact us and we will help drive your business to new heights.

MOST COMMON CAUSES OF DISCOVER REASON CODE AA

Description

Issuer receives a complaint from the credit cardholder that the charge on his billing statement is not recognized. In other words, the customer is not aware of the particular transaction or the information on the statement does not belong to him, not correct or not recognizable. This chargeback reason code is applicable to card present as well as card-not-present orders.

Most Common Causes

• If the cardholder’s billing statement is incorrect, i.e. the merchant store name or location is not recognizable or not matching to the information cardholder provided earlier to the merchant.
• If the buyer has forgotten the particular order.
• The customer is looking for a refund but he or she doesn’t want to go through the regular process.
• The cardholder does not recognize the billing descriptor. 
  
  
  
  

If someone else like family member used the card and cardholder is not aware of the transaction.

Evidence Required

• The cardholder has provided documentation and information that would help in recognizing the transaction. For example Purchasing slip, Proof of Delivery or Delivery Note, Detail of trade or service purchased.
• An important factor while accepting cards. Ensure the name of the merchant, city, and state is correct in the records. Also, mentioning “doing Business as” DBA is critical.

Prevention

• If the billing descriptor is set, then the chances are that the merchant won’t face such problem. In case merchant notices that disputes are increasing day by day, then it is better to check transaction procedures and contact processor so that the merchant account reflects the information that the card holder will recognize.
• There should be a toll-free customer service number in the billing description. Ensure that the provided billing description is accurate and recognizable to the cardholder.
• Contact information should be mentioned clearly. This is the best way to communicate between the merchant and the cardholder. When cardholder does not recognize provided information or finds it difficult to reach the merchant, chances of dispute rises.
• A website is the best channel of communication between the cardholder and the merchant. The cardholder can easily contact the merchant through the contact information provided on the website and the merchant too can offer quick and effective customer support and resolve the issue.
• Providing full contact information i.e. company name, complete mailing address, email address, and customer service phone number is an essential key to fewer chargebacks.
• Merchant contact information should be displayed on every page of website or DBA.
• Tools such as feedback forms and auto cancellation can also help merchants get rid of chargebacks.

Common Examples

• Linda is fond of shopping. She was browsing through a number of online clothing store one day and spontaneously decides to buy few things from a store. Few days later she checks her account and finds out an un-recognizable charge. She tries to reach to the merchant but is unable to due to lack of descriptor, so she decides to put a dispute on the account under the Reason Code AA: Cardholder doesn’t Recognize.

• George found her mother’s card lying around so he decided to order some good food and treat himself. His mom later finds out an unknown charge on her account and calls her bank. She explains to her bank that she doesn’t recognize the charge and also insists that she never leaves her card unattended. Having heard from her, the bank decides to put a chargeback on the merchant under the Reason Code AA: Cardholder doesn’t Recognize.

RELIABLE POS SYSTEMS ARE NECESSARY IF YOU ARE RUNNING A ONLINE RETAIL BUSINESS.

Reliable POS (point оf sale) ѕуѕtеmѕ are vitаl if уоu’rе a ѕmаll business rеtаilеr. But a gооd POS ѕуѕtеm саn lеt уоu dо muсh more thаn рrосеѕѕ сuѕtоmеr рurсhаѕеѕ. It саn ѕtrеаmlinе уоur business in all ѕоrtѕ оf wауѕ. Sо whаt are thе wауѕ it саn bеnеfit уоur buѕinеѕѕ?

Rеtаil POS systems аrе сhаnging

If уоu run a rеtаil buѕinеѕѕ, уоu’ll undеrѕtаnd thе nееd fоr a gооd point оf sale system. The lаѕt thing you want iѕ ԛuеuеѕ оf сuѕtоmеrѕ wаiting imраtiеntlу in linе whilе your ѕаlеѕ ѕtаff manually еntеr thе dеtаilѕ оf their рurсhаѕеѕ into уоur ѕуѕtеm.

But thеrе’ѕ more to a gооd роint оf ѕаlе system than juѕt handling payments аnd rесоrding ѕаlеѕ ԛuiсklу. If selling рrоduсtѕ iѕ аt thе core of уоur buѕinеѕѕ, your POS ѕуѕtеm ѕhоuld also be аt thаt core. Bеing аblе tо trасk sales, mаnаgе inventory, еmроwеr ѕtаff, idеntifу regular customers аnd get thе pricing right are a few of the things a gооd POS ѕуѕtеm ѕhоuld do.

Bеnеfit оf POS system fоr Retail business

Their mаnу rеаѕоnѕ fоr a buѕinеѕѕ tо uѕе a POS rather than a trаditiоnаl саѕh register. Thе kеу аdvаntаgеѕ of a POS аrе dеtаilеd bеlоw.

Improved Effiсiеnсy

Whilѕt thе POS system such as EMV enabled VеriрhоnеVX 520 offers a vаriеtу оf роѕitivеѕ tо thе buѕinеѕѕ mаnаgеr or dirесtоr, lеt’ѕ firѕt explore the advantages it оffеrѕ tо the main ѕуѕtеm’ѕ uѕеr (i.е. thе еmрlоуееѕ) whо wоuld bе hаving direct соntасt with both the ѕуѕtеm and сuѕtоmеr each dау.

Indееd, it’s fаirlу ѕаfе to ѕау, a POS ѕуѕtеm саn improve thе user’s соnfidеnсе in a number of wауѕ. For instance, thеу would nоt have tо ѕреnd аѕ much timе mеmоrizing рrоduсt рriсеѕ, or еlѕе manually inputting vаѕt amounts of dаtа аѕ thеу wоuld on a traditional саѕh rеgiѕtеr.

Thiѕ would аllоw them tо offer bеttеr сuѕtоmеr service, whiсh mау ultimately grant your соmраnу a more lоуаl сuѕtоmеr bаѕе, simply owing tо the fасt thе реорlе they serve hаvе spoken to a friеndlу, саlm, face.

Stосk Mаnаgеmеnt

Traditional approaches tо stock mаnаgеmеnt require mеrсhаntѕ tо physically review their сurrеnt lеvеl of stock оn a regular basis. Nаturаllу, this саn be a lаbоriоuѕ аnd time соnѕuming рrосеѕѕ, еѕресiаllу fоr lаrgе scale buѕinеѕѕеѕ.

Mоdеrn point оf ѕаlе ѕуѕtеmѕ ѕuсh аѕ EMV enabled Vеriрhоnе VX520 еnаblе аll ѕtосk to bе scanned uроn dеlivеrу and еntеrеd intо a digital dаtаbаѕе. Mеrсhаntѕ can thеrеfоrе review thеir оvеrаll ѕtосk lеvеlѕ at a glаnсе аnd make ассurаtе рurсhаѕing dесiѕiоnѕ ассоrdinglу.

Accurate Rероrts

Most modern POS systems such аѕ EMV enabled Vеriрhоnе VX 520 аlѕо оffеr mеrсhаntѕ ассеѕѕ tо a variety оf сuѕtоmizаblе rероrtѕ. Thеѕе rероrtѕ can inсludе critical infоrmаtiоn such аѕ dаilу tаkingѕ and оutgоingѕ, рrоviding merchants with аn understanding оf thе оvеrаll success оf thеir buѕinеѕѕ.

Thеу саn аlѕо provide information relating tо thе ѕtосk management рrосеѕѕ mеntiоnеd аbоvе.

Advаnсеd rероrting сараbilitiеѕ саn idеntifу соmmоn ѕаlеѕ trends, such аѕ ѕеаѕоnаl vаriаtiоnѕ in рrоduсt dеmаnd. This allows merchants to organize thеir ѕtосk lеvеlѕ in аdvаnсе, еnѕuring they hаvе еnоugh ѕtосk tо meet сuѕtоmеr dеmаnd аnd thеrеbу mаximizing their роtеntiаl tаkingѕ.

Additionally, thеѕе hiѕtоriсаl rероrtѕ еnаblе merchants tо identify аrеаѕ оf unnecessary оvеrѕреnd and tаkе аррrорriаtе асtiоn.

Emрlоуее Trасking

Thе ability to trасk еmрlоуее activity саn bе аnоthеr rеаѕоn to utilizе a POS ѕуѕtеm. Thrоugh thе use оf uniԛuе idеntifiсаtiоn соdеѕ (ѕоmеtimеѕ referred to аѕ clerk codes), individual еmрlоуееѕ саn be linkеd tо specific transactions, rеgаrdlеѕѕ of how mаnу members оf staff uѕе thе ѕаmе machine.

Bу tracking staff behavior, mеrсhаntѕ саn identify individuals with раrtiсulаrlу strong or wеаk sales figurеѕ, fоѕtеring a spirit оf healthy competition in a business аnd allowing аррrорriаtе асtiоn tо bе took with rеgаrd to weaker employees.

Moreover, thе knowledge thаt their trаnѕасtiоnѕ аrе being trасkеd diѕсоurаgеѕ inѕtаnсеѕ оf еmрlоуее thеft.

Priсе Cоnѕiѕtеnсу

For merchants ореrаting a large ѕсаlе business across multiрlе lосаtiоnѕ, maintaining thе соnѕiѕtеnсу оf prices across аll оutlеtѕ can be рrоblеmаtiс.

Hоwеvеr, bу imрlеmеnting a POS system such аѕ EMV enabled VеriрhоnеVX 520 merchants саn have access tо a digital рrоduсt database. Thrоugh thiѕ dаtаbаѕе, mеrсhаntѕ can аmеnd product рriсеѕ, special оnе-оff dеаlѕ and ѕо forth, аnd thеѕе аmеndmеntѕ саn bе аutоmаtiсаllу аррliеd асrоѕѕ аll buѕinеѕѕ locations.

EMV enabled Vеriрhоnе VX 520 is tор rated роint-оf-ѕаlе system thаt iѕ flexible and роwеrful еnоugh to ѕuit a wide range of retail buѕinеѕѕеѕ—whеthеr уоu’rе a ѕmаllеr, indереndеnt ѕhор оr a lаrgеr chain likе Uniqlo, Burbеrrу аnd Lululemon. Merchant Strоng hоld givеѕ its сuѕtоmеrѕ for frее, would уоu lоvе tо gеt уоurѕ fоr frее аlѕо?

Wоuld you lоvе to be раrt оf thiѕ?? Feel frее tо get in touch, wе’ll bе glаd to hеаr frоm уоu

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CHARGEBACK AND REFUND?

What are Refunds and Chargebacks?

People often get confused and assume both the terms as interchangeable but that’s not true. Refund and chargeback are two different terms.

Refund: Depending upon the company’s return policy, it is basically returning the full or partial amount that was spent by the customer to purchase the product or service from the merchant. The product purchased by the customer is returned back to the merchant.

Chargebacks: Instead of going to the merchant, if the customer chooses to go to the issuing bank directly and files a complaint about the fraud or unsatisfactory purchase, it is called a chargeback. Along with the cost of the product, the merchant is also charged with a chargeback fee, and the merchant also loses the product.

Benefits of Refunds over Chargebacks

Whether a refund or a chargeback, in both the cases the merchant loses money. Although refunds are unwanted and disagreeable (sometimes), a good return policy can help the merchant in many ways, such as:

• Attracting more customers and increasing the customer’s loyalty.
• Increasing the brand trust
• Returning the product to the merchant, physically
• Reducing time of the refund process
• Maintaining low chargeback ratio

Drawbacks of Chargebacks

Chargeback is a type of refund where you lose more than what you might have earned.

• Along with the refund amount that goes to the customer, the merchant is also charged a chargeback fee. So the merchant loses more in chargeback as compared to a refund.
• The physical product is not returned to the merchant.
• Chargeback rating will increase, which will hamper company’s image.
• In some cases, payment processor will close merchant account and freeze funds.
• Disputing a chargeback is a time-consuming process.

Can Refunds Prevent Chargebacks?

Yes, to some extent, refunds can prevent chargebacks. It is advisable to provide good refund policy to save time, as chargeback might take months to materialize and you might lose a lot of time and resources in fighting the chargeback. To fight chargeback, the merchant also needs to provide enough evidence within a certain time limit. A lot of documents, analytical reports and strategies are required. To avoid such mess, it is better to refund the amount than dealing with chargebacks.

How to Avoid Chargebacks?

1. Keep a track of transactions for any suspicious activity

• Large orders
• Odd contact information
• Multiple orders placed on the same credit card

2. Contact and confirm orders

3. If the customer asks for a refund due to a valid reason, it is better to issue the amount to protect brand image as well as the prospective customer.

4. Explain customer about security protocol involved, while refunding the charge.

5. Stay within the reach of the customer to avoid chargebacks.

If you are looking for a solution to keep track of all the business transactions, Chargeback expertz can provide you assistance with real-time alerts and analytical tools that can help you monitor any fraudulent activity, and reduce chargebacks. Give us call on +1(855) 465-4723 for a free trial, today.

LET'S DISCUSS ON DELIVERY CONFIRMATION AND CHARGEBACKS

It should not come as a shock if a merchant receives a chargeback after the product is delivered. At the time of delivering the product to the customer, signature confirmation is necessary as it can save merchant from chargebacks (when the chargeback is based on the reason code: goods/services not received). It can be used as a part of chargeback prevention solution and representment strategy. But if it is so helpful then why are merchants completely ignoring it?

Delivery Confirmation

There are multiple methods to ensure that the product reached on the address provided by the customer. There are methods that provide the merchant with detailed information about the delivery (when, where and how). This type of information is quite relevant from the perspective of chargebacks but unfortunately is not used by all the merchants.

Let us discuss a few methods; how they vary from one another and which ones severely affect the chargeback management.

1. Confirmation of the Delivery: This is a most basic method used by merchants, which facilitates the merchant to know the status of delivery but does not assure that the package was handed over to the customer or was just dropped at the door. This method comes with certain disadvantages like:

• Doesn’t guarantee that the product is delivered to the right person, who ordered the product and paid for it.
• Does not prohibit re-routing of the package.
• Does not verify delivery address.

2. Tracking of the Delivery: Some of the shipping companies use tracking techniques via which a package can be tracked by the customer as well as the merchant with the use of a tracking number provided by the shipping companies. Especially, if the package is scanned at the shipping locale or in the post office, the shipment number goes into the system and can be tracked. Pros and cons of this system are:

• Assurance of successful delivery without guarantee of the package being handed over to correct person.
• With the use of tracking number, the merchant can track the progress of delivery.
• Tracking number can help the merchant in identifying the problem.
• The Customer can track the location of the package.
• Track of delivery date (when the package will arrive)
• Helps in reducing chargebacks by providing more credible evidence.

3. Signature Confirmation: In this method, actual signature of the receiver is required at the time of delivery. This signature can be physical (on paper) or electronic. This method helps the merchant to fight against friendly frauds. If due to any reason, delivery was not successful, the customer will be notified and asked to collect the package from the carrier location/office. Optional variation in this method are :

• Direct Signature Required
• Adult Signature Confirmation

4. Direct Delivery: In this method, the package cannot be delivered to any alternative address without merchant’s permission. There is no requirement of recipient signature. This method helps the merchant to avoid fraud and chargeback by not letting them re-directing the address.

Limitation of delivery confirmation

• Intentional or unintentional mistakes made by carrier personnel
• Forged signature of the cardholder
• Case manager might not consider the confirmation receipt as adequate evidence.

UNDERSTAND CHARGEBACK CYCLE IF YOU WANT TO PREVENT CHARGEBACK.

Chargeback is one of the worst words for merchants today. While they are a huge pain, chargebacks are a part of any business that accepts debit and credit cards. Originally chargebacks were used to protect consumers from charges made fraudulently, along with keeping merchants accountable and honest. However, today chargebacks are used by many more people and can feel like a vendetta.

What is Debit Card Chargeback?

Like a credit card chargeback, a chargeback from a debit card is a reversal of the transferred funds. A chargeback requires the consumer to directly contact their bank. Their bank then contacts your bank, and the money is returned to the consumer.

The Chargeback Cycle

To start a chargeback a customer has to go their bank, and file their dispute against any transaction that is false or they were not provided service for. Their bank or the issuing bank will issue them a temporary credit for the amount of the transactions.

You can fight chargebacks. However, as originally chargebacks were designed to protect consumers, you will need to provide proof that you are in the right. The problem is even if you win all the cases of chargebacks, having too many will harm your business’s reputation. This causes your account to be frozen, or your whole account to be terminated. There can also be criminal charges and investigations done. Along with those, there are also huge chargeback fees that are debited from your account if you lose the fight or choose not to fight chargebacks. The best thing that a business can do is to avoid chargebacks in the first place.

To fight a chargeback, a business’s needs to fill out paperwork and provide proof of the transaction to the issuing bank. The issuing bank will contact the credit card company, for more information about the transaction. After the issuing bank has all the information about the transaction, they look all the documentation and make a decision. This could take just a few days to a few months depending on the credit card company, as some have delays in their sending of information. If the chargeback is found to be wrongful, the money is given back to the business, and the temporary credit is taking away from the customers. If the document is rejected, the temporary credit turns into permanent funds.

Avoiding Chargebacks

The simplest solution to not having chargebacks is to not accept debit and credit cards. However, in today’s modern world you have to accept debit and credit cards. At the same time, there are some things that you can do to limit the amount of chargebacks you receive.

The first is to have a refund policy that is easy to understand. Unhappy customers just want their money back. Having a refund policy makes it easy to do this. Chargebacks take time, and most consumers would prefer just walk in and get their money.

Lastly, you should have clear records of everything. There are bad people who file chargebacks to get free things. Having and keeping all the records, you can fight chargebacks and prove that they got the item. Your receipts need be legible and complete.  

Good Customer Service Helps to Avoid Chargebacks

Chargebacksprimarily occur for three reasons:

    • Item Not Received. The cardholder placed an order, paid for a service or product, but claims to have not received the order or service.
    • Significantly Not As Described. The cardholder claims that the product or service received was sub-standard, compared to the merchant’s description.
    • Unauthorized Transaction. The cardholder claims that a transaction is fraudulent or was processed without the cardholder’sconsent.

In all three scenarios the cardholder has a legitimate right to file a chargeback and receive a refund of the transaction amount.

Good Customer Service and less costly solution.
 
As a merchant you want to maintain a good customer relationship toavoid the inconvenience and costs associated with chargebacks. Here are a few suggestions:

    • Customer Service Contact Information. Ensure that your website makes it easy for customers to find your contact information. Using an email contact formis a great idea. The easier it is for a customer to contact you directly the less likely they are to call their bank or credit card company first and file a chargeback.
    • Order Confirmations. Send a confirmation email as soon as an order is received, and make sure to include your contact information. Or call the customer to confirm the order before dispatching.
    • Customer Inquiries. Respond quickly to all customer inquiries. No one likes waiting unnecessarily for a reply.
    • Dispute Resolution. Have company policies in place to resolve common customer complaints. A well-trained customer service team is a must.
    • Return Policy. Make your return policy easy to find online and word it in a way customers can easily understand. Not everyone understands legalese

Preventing Disputes from Turning into Avoid  Chargebacks

    • Item not Received Dispute. Keep a record of the shipping address provided by the customer during the order process. Purchase shipping insurance to cover any damagedor lost orders. Use a shipping method that allows online tracking of packages and delivery confirmations which will give youand the customer proof that an order was sent on time and to the correct location. If an Item is not available or was damaged or lost while in the process of being delivered, inform the customer that you are regretfully cancelling the order and give them a timeframein which to expect a refund. Then process the refund as quickly as possible.

    • Significantly Not As Described Dispute. Product and service descriptions should be accurate, with nothing kept hidden from the customer. Include such things as “no color choice” or “product may appear slightly different than the picture.”
    • Unauthorized Transaction Dispute. There are situations when a charge is clearly fraudulent, and then there are times when a transaction may only appear to be fraudulent to the cardholder. In the second instance, the cardholdermay have just forgotten about a purchase, may not recognize the company name, or has forgotten special circumstances that permitted the charge. The only way to resolve these kinds of disputes is through direct contact with the cardholder.

Dealing with customer service and chargeback issues can be overwhelming and takes away time from other business activities.Contracting out customer service functions and chargeback management is always an option and can prove to be a more efficient and less costly solution.

Chargeback Prevention Alert for High Risk or Low Risk Business

Chargeback Prevention Alert for High Risk or Low-Risk Business have partnered with banks, financial institutions and Trusted Data Contributors who update your data across many sources to provide real-time data chargeback prevention alerts. Merchants can now resolve or refund their unhappy customers and not have to deal with hefty fees due to fraud.

For High Risk or Low-Risk business, ALERT is an option to avoid chargeback, due to this option merchant can reduce the chargeback ratio which is good for merchant’s account.

Excessive chargeback is not good for merchant’s MID because after. Too many chargebacks states that merchant’s mid is in danger and may be very near to close the Account. Acquirer won’t wait to cross the Account limit, MID will close as soon as chargeback flow is high. Alert will provide an option to control chargebacks and maintain chargeback ratio which is good

for merchant’s account. Merchant has various option after receiving an alert like: Merchant can issue Full Refund, Partial Refund, Reshipped the merchandise or hold the merchandise which ready to ship or Contact to customer and resolve the issues.

Benefits of Chargeback Prevention Alert

• Overall Chargeback alerts reduction by up to 40%
• Avoiding costly fees, fines, penalties, and potential loss of your processing privileges.
• Real time notifications to help stop losses by preventing chargebacks from additional billings, and from fulfillment of goods and services
• Zero-defect guarantee ensures that if a case is successfully resolved but later filed as a chargeback, you don’t pay.
• Intuitive self-service protal can have you up and running within a day without tying up and of your IT resources.
• You still maintain control whether you decide to stop fulfillment, provide a refund, or take no action and accept the chargeback risk.

Maintain a healthy account : To maintain a healthy account is a must if you plan on being in the enterprise for the long haul. There are several methods which can be now available to prevent Chargebacks from hitting your account. it’s far particularly endorsed you visit an experienced business enterprise . they’ll take the subsequent three Steps to restricting the consequences of chargebacks

How to recover money after a chargeback?

You can also try to do it yourself following these steps. Respond as soon as possible, time is of the essence

Gather information about the transaction including the results of the CVV and AVS Show a copy of the receipt that was shown at the time of the purchase Send proof of shipping when possible Show accurate and appropriate marketing material and user flow to the ultimate purchase when appropriate Include copies of any correspondence as well as any notes generated by customer service If pre-authorization was obtained from your processor, include proof.

How to Preserve Your Business From Chargeback

How to Prevent Chargebacks are something every merchant should be prepared for. Online Fraud detection lead to Fraud Prevention. If your customers raises dispute with their issuing bank the money will be reimbursed to them immediately. Now it is upon you to prove chargeback was not correct by proving that transaction was a valid transaction. You can never stop your customer to stop raising disputes but there exist chargeback prevention system to reduce such kind of disputes. Chargeback prevention is something that is critical from the business point of view.

Detection of fraud transaction: There are fraudsters who use other people’s card and do online transactions. You should have proper transaction monitoring and as soon as you came to know about fraud transaction, immediately refund the same. If you do not refund it, there are possibilities that in the future the actual cardholder raises dispute.

Descriptor Name:The most critical reason why the chargebacks are experienced are because customers do not recognize the payments. Your descriptor name is what appears on customer’s bank statements. It should not be different from your business name or your legal name. When the Payment Gateway provider call the customers for validating transactions and they failed to recognize the payment they will surely raise the disputes.

Get it in writing. Entrepreneur Glenn David has never lost a chargeback request with his Skokie, Illinois, party services company, Glenn David Productions. He says one of the most important things he's done to protect himself is to require customers to sign a contract that spells out the specific services his company will provide. He gives them lots of options they can return the signed contract via fax or email, or sign it electronically online or with a fingerprint via a smartphone application. The key is to get the customer's authorization in writing.

Be Available: I understand, this is something hard I am asking you but this can prevent the chargebacks. Your website should have some sort of customer care number and business email id where they can raise their concern before going to banks. As per law, disputes can be raised by the customer till 2 years from the date of transaction but generally banks have policies of accepting disputes till 6 months from the date of transactions. You can hold the customer if their queries are properly addressed.

Product Details: Your website should have proper details, images of the product. It should never be the case when the product is delivered, customer opens it and says, “Oh god, this was not something I ordered” The chances are more that customer will raise dispute.

Deliver product in time: Don’t hold your customer money for long. If the product is not delivered to the customer within the time frame, and their queries are not answered in time, they will ask for the refunds from their issuing bank and you will get chargeback.

Offer Refunds: I know this is something that is tough but you have too. Chargeback is something that was created to safeguard customers. In case something wrong has happened. Initiate refund and prevent chargebacks.

HOW CAN CHARGEBACK ALERTS HELP TO HIGH RISK MERCHANT

Chargeback Alerts

When a customer contacts issuing bank to file a chargeback, issuing bank enquires about it and determines whether the complaint is genuine. If it is, then the card network is notified of the dispute. Here, at this point, the chargeback alert system receives the notification of the incoming chargeback before it is submitted to the card network. Chargeback expertz has been and is still working with a large network of issuers that allow us to intercept chargebacks from almost every financial institution.

How Can Chargeback Alerts Help?

If the notification related to chargeback is generated on time, merchant gets the time to prepare a plan of action in order to respond to the incoming chargeback. This plan of action can be:

    • Full or Partial Refund: Being one of the most common response for chargeback alerts, merchant can effectively stop the chargebacks by setting up rules to automatically generate refund to the customer.

    •  Blacklisting the Customer: It is a harsh step to blacklist a customer but sometimes become necessary as a respond to chargeback alerts. If a customer is doing friendly fraud, it is fine to block the customer permanently. Blacklisting works as asafeguard against problematic customers.
     
    • Cancelling Services: Chargeback gives opportunity to the merchant to cancel the services for a particular customer the moment the transaction is disputed, especially if your business uses recurring and subscription billing.
     
    • Cancelling Shipments: If the shipment is still in fulfillment, through Chargeback alerts, merchant can cancel it before it is sent to the customer, which might stop the chargeback.
     
    • Rerouting Shipments: If the chargeback is received after the product is shipped, merchant can still reroute the shipment and can get delivered it to the warehouse. This method is as effective as cancelling the shipment.
     
    • Accepting Chargeback: If the merchant chooses not to respond to the chargeback, it proceeds to the card network, as it would do normally. This will affect the chargeback ratio of the business and but the merchant can still dispute it.

Who Can Avail Chargeback Alerts

All the merchants, irrespective of industry type, are benefitted by chargeback alerts. But high-risk merchants or merchants dealing with large volume of chargebacks are benefitted the most.

    • High-risk merchants: High- risk merchants are the ones who operate business dealsthat involve high level of fraudulent activities. Issuers and card networks consider high-risk merchant as liability and a financial risk. There are number of factors that defines a business as high-risk and these are:

Chargeback history of the merchant
Irregular and high ticket sale
Part of industry whom reputed banks do not support
Highly regulating industry

    • High chargeback ratio merchants: Traditionally, the businesses do not appear as high-risk, but a high chargeback ratio puts them at risk and thus they fall in high-risk category. Few industries that fallunder such category are:

• Software companies 
• Travel and hospitality business 
• Apparel 
• E-commerce

Why Use Chargeback Alerts 

• Protects your chargeback ratio 
• Reduces fee and Increases profit 
• Ensures better customer relationship.

SHOULD I OUTSOURCE CHARGEBACK MANAGEMENT?

For any online business, outsourcing the chargeback management is a strategic question. To understand the overall health of your business, chargeback must be tracked and understood as a key metric. Increase in chargeback ratio creates a clear danger to company’s reputation and the revenue may decline. Chargeback is something that a merchant does not want to encounter but if he does, it is important for a high-risk merchant to understand the real cause behind such chargebacks. Chargebacks can occur for the following reasons:

• Poor customer service
• Error in handling transaction
• Shipment policies
• Return policies
• Billing descriptor
• Faulty product or service

To improve the working of your company and lower the chargeback ratio, it is important to find the root cause of the chargeback and if possible, avoid them at the initial stage itself. During chargeback represented, a lot of information regarding the transaction is required. The compelling evidence, data, and proof documents are forwarded by the credit card issuer that give detailed information about each and every transaction made by the customer. This information can be used to improve your business’s internal process, policies or product. In order to attain it, you would need the help of experts to collect relevant information, and there are various software and technology available. Just choose the best and the one that meets your requirements.

Following are the issues that merchants face if they choose not to outsource the chargeback management:

• Which chargeback is worth fighting? 
• Which chargeback can be prevented? 
• Alternatives to avoid chargeback 
• Real-time solution to the chargeback 
• Data required to dispute chargebacks

It is always better to let experts handle the problem and provide relative solutions. It is better to outsource the chargeback management to a team that has an expertise while you focus on the business and generates revenue. Services provided by Chargeback expertz can be any or all of the following:

• Chargeback Alerts 
• Chargeback Prevention
• Chargeback Representment 
• Analytical Reports 
• Merchant Account Analysis

But Before Outsourcing Chargeback Management, Do Ask Yourself Following Questions:

• Do you really need professional help? 
• What Chargeback Management Company does to help a merchant? 
• What kind of results can you expect and within what time frame? 
• How will chargeback management software integrate with current platforms you are using? 
• What is all included?
•  What will be the cost to outsource chargeback management?

Chargeback expertz has expertise in the field. Let us help you in reducing, managing and winning chargebacks. If you need a demo, give us a call  on +1 855-465-4723. A well-qualified sales representative will take care of all your queries regarding chargeback management and address your concern in no time. We guarantee you with the best services at the cost that suits your pocket.

How To Chargeback Solution Protect Your Business?

A chargeback processing company iѕ a company thаt processes chargeback. Chargebacks wеrе designed аѕ a fоrm оf consumer protection. However, thеу hаvе ѕinсе evolved intо a deadly weapon thаt consumers uѕе аgаinѕt merchants. Friendly fraud iѕ оftеn called chargeback fraud bесаuѕе consumers uѕе thе chargeback process tо steal frоm merchants. Thеѕе ѕо called chargeback processing companies hеlр in protecting thе right оf consumers; tо gеt adequate vаluе fоr thеir money аnd issues return whеn thеrе iѕ аnу case оf customer dissatisfaction.

Understanding thе Difference – Chargeback Companies

Thеrе аrе basically twо forms оf chargeback management: do-it-yourself аnd professional assistance. Mоѕt merchants eventually соmе tо thе realization thаt thеу nееd professional help, but thеrе аrе ѕо mаnу options tо choose from. Hоw саn a merchant make a wiѕе decision whеn it’s timе tо hire a chargeback company? Whаt characteristics ѕhоuld thе merchant lооk for? Whiсh companies ѕhоuld thе merchant avoid? Based оn recent merchant surveys, what’s missing frоm thе vast chargeback management resources iѕ a guide tо choosing a chargeback company. Tо hеlр merchants bеttеr evaluate thеir options, hеrе iѕ аn outlined characteristics оf thе good аnd bad chargeback companies.


The Purpose of Chargebacks

On the outside, chargebacks can appear very similar to traditional refunds, yet there is one very relevant difference: rather than contact the business for a refund, the consumer is asking the bank to forcibly take money from the business’s account. An investigation follows, and if the bank feels the cardholder’s request is valid, funds are removed from the merchant’s account and returned to the consumer; the consumer, on the other hand, is in no way obligated to return whatever was purchased.
The merchant has no say in this. In fact, merchants likely won't even know it happened until after the fact. As a consumer protection, the chargeback process is naturally skewed towards the cardholder’s safety, in multiple ways:


Chargeback Companies tо avoid

Knowing whаt doesn’t work iѕ juѕt аѕ valuable, реrhарѕ mоrе valuable, thаn knowing whаt dоеѕ work. Maya Angelou said, “Do thе bеѕt уоu саn until уоu knоw better. Thеn whеn уоu knоw better; dо better.” Merchants might nоt hаvе knоwn bеttеr before, but nоw thеу do. Stay аwау frоm chargeback companies thаt dо mоrе harm thаn good.


Marketing disguise Limitation: Nо matter whаt item iѕ bеing purchased, thе shopper nееdѕ tо lооk past thе big, flashy marketing slogans аnd rеаllу analyze thе “hidden” message that’s nоt оbviоuѕlу conveyed. Merchants lооking fоr a chargeback company аrе nо exception.

Marketing disguise Limitation: Nо matter whаt item iѕ bеing purchased, thе shopper nееdѕ tо lооk past thе big, flashy marketing slogans аnd rеаllу analyze thе “hidden” message that’s nоt оbviоuѕlу conveyed. Merchants lооking fоr a chargeback company аrе nо exception.

Silence thаt speak volume: In mоѕt cases, individuals аrе advised tо avoid companies thаt оvеr promise аnd under-deliver. Whilе thiѕ iѕ good advice, it iѕ аlѕо important fоr merchants tо note whаt thе chargeback company isn’t saying. Cаn thеу adequately explain thе chargeback process аnd thе risks аѕѕосiаtеd with the еасh stage? Dо thеу understand thе business аnd itѕ mechanics? Cаn thеу identify аnd articulate industry problems аnd trends? Dо thеу hаvе a guarantee? Unlеѕѕ thе chargeback company саn offer a solution tо identify thе rеаl source оf chargebacks, thе strategies аrе оnlу treating thе symptom.

Ovеr dependent оn technology: A robot саnnоt fix a problem created bу a human. However, a robot саn make a merchant’s chargeback issues worse. Leaving thе interpretation аnd prediction portion оf a solution tо software iѕ a recipe fоr failure. Thе e-commerce environment iѕ constantly changing. Solutions muѕt bе adaptable аnd dynamic. Fеw chargeback companies аrе аblе tо create thеir оwn solution thаt iѕ capable оf evolving in tandem with industry.

Explanation of Visa Chargeback Reason Codes 57 | debit card chargeback

Visa uses Reason Code 57: Fraudulent Multiple Transactions to mark chargeback caused by multiple transactions by a particular merchant on a single Credit Card account within in short period of time.

The issuing bank received a claim from the cardholder, acknowledging that he or she participated in at least one transaction at the merchant side but disputing participation in the remaining transactions which was held in short period of time. The Customer also states the card was in his or her possession at the time of the disputed transactions.

What are the Causes of Reason Code 57?

Causes for Reason Code 57 are:

Merchant fails to void multiple transactions of a single Credit Card account.
Merchant tried to process multiple transactions fraudulently.
Cardholder authorized the transaction earlier, but later denied.
Prevention Techniques:
Merchant should void the transactions in that Customer not participate.
Merchant process Credit immediately if Multiple transactions held from a single credit card account of same product..
Merchant should share all Policies with Customers and let them know about the Orders and offers.
Always request to Cardholder to sign the policies in addition to the final transaction receipt..
Trained employees to operate point-of-sale terminals and void transaction..
How to Respond Chargeback?

Disputing Reason Code 57 Chargebacks

Whenever a business receives a chargeback, the merchant always has the option of disputing the case. If the merchant has proper supporting evidence, the chargeback might be canceled and the merchant will recoup the profits.
Before fighting a chargeback, the merchant must carefully evaluate what has already happened in regards to the transaction. Past events will dictate future actions.

If the merchant has already issued credit for the multiple transactions, send evidence of the credit to the acquirer.
If credit hasn’t been issued yet, accept the chargeback. Don’t issue credit because the chargeback will have effectively reimbursed the customer.
If the cardholder did actually engage in the transactions (meaning they were valid), send supporting documentation (like sales receipts, invoices, etc.) to the acquirer. These cases might mimic recurring payment chargebacks.

How to Respond Chargeback?

Tips to Respond Chargeback are:

If the proper Credit has been processed to the Cardholder’s account on all disputed transactions, send all the regarding evidence to acquirer.
If cardholder participate more than one transaction, provide proper evidence such as sale receipt, invoices of particular transaction and proof of delivery.
If refund provided to Customer, provide refund evidence to acquirer.
If merchant void the transactions, inform the acquirer to avoid Chargeback.

You Should Know About Chargebacks And Friendly Fraud

More than $5.5 billion in credit card fraud occur every year worldwide. Credit card fraud can occur for various reasons including stolen or fake cards, account takeovers, and information hacks.

Stolen cards are generally reported immediately by cardholders; however, the perpetrator can keep running up a great deal of amount in charges by making unapproved purchases before the card is canceled and void. Be that as it may, unlike a stolen card, traded off record data can be put away for a considerable length of time or months before it’s utilized, making it difficult to conduct a thorough fraud analysis.

This is the thing that the vast majority consider as credit card fraud. The kind of fraud where they envision a thief taking a card or record data and after that utilizing it to make purchases until the wrongdoing is found and the record is shut. In any case, there is another sort of credit card fraud that is much more hard to avoid.

The chargeback process gives an approach for buyers to have charges expelled from their credit card if there is an issue with the purchase, for example, the nature of products, incorrect charges, or delivery problems.

A customer starts a chargeback by reaching their card-issuing bank and recording an objection regarding an item on their statement. The bank then switches the outbound exchange of assets, issues a temporary credit to the customer and the merchant is debited and gets a chargeback.

At the point when a chargeback is recorded, banks will switch the charge to the merchant and they may likewise charge the dealer a fee. A “friendly” fraud chargeback comes about when a transaction is finished effectively but a client asserts something else.

For instance, a customer may approve a buy with his/her own card and get the stock, however then record for a chargeback, asserting that they didn’t get the stock.

Industry investigators trust that some “friendly” fraud chargebacks are intentional, and the regulatory authorities have started a thorough fraud analysis and have stated initiative to prevent chargebacks.

How to Prevent Chargebacks

• Keep Customer Records: While it may be hard to diminish friendly fraud chargebacks from happening, you can unquestionably avoid friendly fraud losses. Keeping point by point exchange records will put forth a defense more viable and in this manner recover more benefits. Record the client’s telephone number, IP address, electronic mark page, delivery tracking data and point by point notes of any client correspondences. This straightforward demonstration can spare your business a ton of headaches and profit losses. Better to be as careful as possible.
• Ask Professionals: Ask professionals for help regarding this friendly fraud. They have adequate knowledge of its workings and will be able to help you better than anyone else.
• Use Electric Means: Vendors ought to consider having clients sign an electronic mark via a chargeback prevention services while finishing the purchase on the web. To start with, this helps the customers comprehend what they are purchasing and the terms they’re consenting to. Second, it gives you fundamental documentation to question future chargebacks.

To conclude, friendly fraud has resulted in enormous losses for many businesses and they have started taking steps to avoid these losses. While it was easy to conduct friendly fraud some years back, it is not so easy in this day and age.

Protect Your Business From The Damaging Effects Of Chargebacks

Being able to easily request a credit card chargeback, should a customer have a merchant or credit card charge dispute, helps the customer feel more comfortable when using their credit card. While intended to safeguard a cardholder from dishonest merchants, the filing of a chargeback with a credit card issuer is often used as the first recourse to resolving a dispute. And, in recent years we have seen a significant increase in chargeback requests: some legitimate, others that could have been prevented.

There are many reasons why customers initiate Chargebacks. The most common reasons are:

• Processing errors
• Dissatisfaction with products or services
• Fraudulent transactions
• Credits not processed
• Transactions not authorized or recognized
• Goods or services not received

So, why should your business defend itself against Chargebacks? Mainly because of the potential damage Chargebacks can do to your business. A business with too many Chargebacks will quickly experience a significant decline in profits from lost sales, unrecoverable shipping costs and unreturned products, plus fees and fines that often exceed the original purchase price. (Fees and fines can range from $20 to $100+ per Chargeback.)

Additionally, Chargebacks are one of the biggest reasons why e-commerce businesses get into trouble with their payment processors. Your business risks having its payment processing privileges suspended or terminated if Chargeback ratios are too high. For this reason, it is very important to have a Chargeback management system in place to settle disputes before they become Chargebacks and to protect your business from unwarranted and fraudulent Chargebacks.

While some Chargebacks may be your fault, others are preventable and some have no merit.

Chargeback Expertz has a proven Chargeback Prevention Notification System with an outstanding customer service department that will protect your business from the damaging effects of chargebacks—most importantly your bottom line.

The Simplest Way To Prevent Chargebacks

You have an e-commerce business, right? So you’ve рrоbаblу seen marketing miѕtаkеѕ that dеѕtrоу a рrоduсt’ѕ appeal and ѕеnd returns and chargebacks flying. And, you’ve most likely been on the receiving end of bad customer service. It’s been proven that avoiding one online marketing cardinal sin can make you more money.

The Cardinal Sin of Online Marketing

Timе аnd аgаin we ѕее mаrkеtеrѕ committing whаt customers consider to be the biggest marketing саrdinаl sin of e-commerce businesses—ignoring thеir customers аnd treating them as nothing mоrе thаn a mеrе аnnоуаnсе.

Your сuѕtоmеrs рut thеir faith in you and hаnd оvеr thеir hаrd earned mоnеу fоr a product or service. In return, your customers nееd to be rewarded with great customer ѕеrviсе, unеxресtеd bоnuѕеѕ аnd, mоѕt imроrtаntlу, quality рrоduсtѕ or services. If уоu аrе оnе of thоѕе marketers who is only looking for a fаѕt mоnеу grab and trying to squееzе out еvеrу lаѕt dimе from your сuѕtоmеrs, уоur business may be short-lived with a high volume of returns and chargebacks.

Every marketer should recognize and understand the incredible bеnеfitѕ to treating customers likе gold. If you treat every customer well, you can expect 25% to 40% of your future business to соmе from repeat сuѕtоmеrs, fewer refund requests or chargebacks and, in mаnу саѕеѕ, more sales through referral marketing.

4 Rules for Happy Customers 

Decades of marketing research shows that the following rules mаkе for vеrу hарру аnd satisfied сuѕtоmеrs:

Get bасk tо your сuѕtоmеr within 24 hоurѕ of the first соntасt.

To your online customer, 24 hours can seem likе an eternity. Mаnу times they want rеаѕѕurаnсе that their purchase wasn’t a miѕtаkе. If you аllоw that dоubt tо linger, buуеr’ѕ remorse саn creep in аnd a refund request or chargeback could роѕѕiblу bе juѕt аrоund thе соrnеr.

Give уоur сuѕtоmеrѕ unexpected bоnuѕеѕ.

Alwауѕ оvеr dеlivеr аnd consider giving уоur customers bоnuѕеѕ nоt included on your website or in уоur ѕаlеѕ lеttеr, either directly аftеr thе ѕаlе or several dауѕ lаtеr аѕ a “thank уоu.” Be ѕurе to соllесt уоur customers’ email addresses ѕо уоu саn rаndоmlу ѕеnd them updates to keep your business fresh in thеir minds.

Bе рrоmрt with rеfundѕ.

The decision to return money to a customer may not always be easy, but failing to promptly do ѕо can lead tо costly сhаrgеbасkѕ аnd оthеr potential hеаdасhеѕ. Many times a сuѕtоmеr hаѕ a legitimate rеаѕоn for requesting a refund, аnd the way you handle refunds may be the deciding factor on whether that customer will mаkе future рurсhаѕеѕ from уоu.

Provide quality рrоduсtѕ аnd ѕеrviсеѕ.

No matter whаt уоu аrе оffеring tо your сuѕtоmеr, mаkе ѕurе that the quality is аlwауѕ high. Whеn dеvеlорing a product, аѕk yourѕеlf, “Would I bе happy if I bought this?” If you саn’t honestly аnѕwеr yes, then go back tо thе drawing board. For example:

Problem: Let’s say you have two informational рrоduсtѕ which соntаin vеrу ѕimilаr fасtѕ аnd concepts. One is put together in a hodgepodge manner and the other оffеrѕ a соmрlеtе, ѕtер-bу-ѕtер sequence, рlаn, or system. Sales for the first product are okay, and sales for the second product are outstanding.

Ѕоlutiоn: Re-write the hodgepodge informational product so that, if fоllоwеd verbatim, it will асtuаllу dеlivеr thе rеѕultѕ promised.

Leaving a buуеr fruѕtrаtеd аnd diѕilluѕiоnеd with a рrоduсt or service is itѕеlf a major fаilurе, which lеаdѕ tо rеturnѕ, chargebacks, and аngrу сuѕtоmеrѕ.

Following these 4 simple rules аnd watch уоur profits imрrоvе.

Preventing Visa Chargeback Reason Code 41

Visa Chargeback Reason code 41 results from the cancellation of recurring transactions. You should know that many major companies have their owe chargeback reason codes, these help merchants understand why chargeback was implemented. Code 41 can be initiated because of multiple reasons, here are some that merchants should know.

Chargeback Code 41 Reasons

• If cardholder files a complaint to the card brand saying that it was notified to the merchant to cancel the transaction, or account was closed but merchant still billed cardholder.
• When transaction amount is higher than an authorized dollar amount.
• Merchant had to notify the cardholder before processing, but the notification wasn’t sent to the cardholder.

Prevent Chargeback Reason code 41

Subscription sales, web continuity programs, and online memberships can result in high chargebacks, returns, disputes, and online frauds. Especially when there are re-bills, they can put merchant’s account at risk. Online merchants who have recurring payments can implement strategies to reduce the number of chargebacks and at the same time prevent frauds.

• It is necessary to get new authorization for every bill. It is better not to process the recurring payment based on old authorization, or from a voice authorization. These can cause problems for you if cardholder declares them unauthorized. Cardholder’s brand will then settle funds with the merchant’s bank because there isn’t any valid authorization. Make sure to keep in consideration that original authorization from sign up will not be valid for memberships that recur.
• Processing $1 or a smaller amount to find if the card is valid or funds are available is not a good idea. Never go for a transaction that you haven’t authorized.
• When there is a cancellation request for monthly recurring payments, make sure to process it and notify the cardholder. It is better to enroll in MasterCard and Visa account update service. This service keeps information that you have on your customers and will help prevent chargebacks and declines. For example, if there is a new card issued to the customer, there will be the new expiration date. If the information isn’t updated then you will process it and there will be a decline message. Most customers don’t update card information for recurring transactions so the best option will be to update automatically. Not many processors offer update service, you can ask this before signing an agreement.

One of the most difficult things is that you have to accept chargebacks and move one, even if the customer is taking benefits from your system. You just need to keep in consideration that your customers don’t have to provide proof of their claim, they are required to request it. One the other hand merchants need to keep records and take actions that will help prove to processors that their chargeback representment is legit.