Low Price Guarantee: How BAMS Compares Processing Costs
How the BAMS Low Price Guarantee Works
The BAMS Low Price Guarantee gives business owners a structured way to compare payment processing costs before making a change. The five-step review looks beyond a single advertised rate and considers how a business actually accepts payments.
In the day-to-day grind as a business owner, you’re in a constant state of juggling. Whether it’s managing staff, approving new products, marketing an event or one of a hundred other things piled up on your to-do list, there’s no shortage of tasks vying for your attention.
It probably comes as no surprise then that of the roughly 400,000 small businesses launched within the U.S. every year, 20% of them fail before those first 12 months are through. For many businesses, especially those on the smaller side, there simply aren’t enough resources to remain both efficient and profitable long term.
One area where many businesses stumble is with regards to financing. There is either too little capital to keep efforts afloat or the money that does exist is mismanaged, potentially a combination of both.
Across any number of industries, eCommerce, restaurants, non-profits and healthcare, it can be easy to overlook just how quickly the cost of payment processing can add up. And yet, even with knowledge of those costs, it’s not something that can simply be eliminated.
As the industry leader in payment processing, we understand the frustration that can arise from hidden fees and chargebacks. That’s why we’ve developed a unique 5-step price comparison process to ensure our low price guarantee is always met.
BAMS also publishes its Competitive Price Guarantee terms for businesses that want to understand how price matching works. A complete comparison can help a merchant evaluate costs in the context of its actual processing setup.
How Our 5-Step Price Comparison Process Works
The BAMS five-step price comparison reviews classification, fees, regulations, payment methods and pricing before preparing a quote.
When you request a quote from BAMS, you’re requesting a personalized analysis of your current payment processing set up. Using your current merchant statement, we’ll piece through a detailed summary of fees paid to major credit card companies like Visa and Mastercard, your deposit summary, transaction count and more.
Step 1: Review Your Classification
You’d be surprised how many processors fail to understand a business upon set-up only to classify them under the wrong industry. When this happens, you’re likely to lose out on money in the long run. Before we dive into the finer details, we’ll make sure your classification lines up with your business for the sake of maximizing future savings.
Business classification can affect how a processor evaluates an account and the payment setup it recommends. Reviewing that information first creates a clearer starting point for the rest of the comparison.
Step 2: Uncover Hidden Fees
Hidden fees and price increases may not seem like a lot upfront, but they certainly add up over time. We’ll run a side-by-side comparison of your current payment processing system and BAMS to highlight which costs can be minimized, if not completely eliminated, upon migrating over.
Merchants can also review BAMS transparent interchange plus pricing when evaluating how processing costs are structured. Understanding each part of the pricing model makes it easier to compare more than the headline rate.
Step 3: Check the Fine Print for Updated Regulations
The regulatory environment that governs payments and payment processing is ever-changing and muddled with fine print. We take into account the most current pricing regulations to ensure that you’re not paying more than you should at any point in time.
Payment costs can also vary based on the type of transaction. The Federal Reserve publishes debit card interchange fee data across payment networks and transaction categories. Reviewing current payment rules and fee structures can provide useful context when comparing processing costs.
Step 4: Examine How You Accept Payments
How you process customer transactions is about more than just the credit cards you accept. Often times, the point of sale (POS) terminal or payment gateway can be at fault for negatively impacting your bottom line. Our analysts take all of this into account when generating a plan around your business’ current situation and future needs.
The way a business accepts payments can influence both operations and costs. Reviewing the complete payment environment helps put the numbers on a merchant statement into context.
Step 5: Give You a Quote
With all of the above laid out, reviewed and analyzed, it’s time for a quote. The BAMS team will show you exactly how our system compares to that of your current setup, with feature recommendations that cater to the exact needs of your business and your business alone.
The final comparison brings the earlier findings together. This gives the business a clearer view of its current setup and the proposed BAMS payment processing arrangement.
What the Price Comparison Helps Review
A payment processing comparison looks beyond one rate to review fees, transaction activity, classification and payment technology.
A processing comparison should look at the complete account rather than one number in isolation. Classification, fees, payment technology and transaction activity can each affect the way a merchant account performs.
Reviewing these areas together can also make hidden differences easier to identify. The goal is to give the business enough information to understand how its current setup compares with another option.
Final Thoughts: All About Our Low Price Guarantee
When it comes to running a business, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to doing it right. But there are services you can trust to ensure that the most important areas of your operation run as smoothly as possible.
If it’s time to rethink your current payment processing service! Contact us today to take advantage of our low price guarantee. Request a free analysis and quote.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does BAMS review during its price comparison?
BAMS reviews several areas of the current processing setup. These include business classification, fees, payment regulations, payment methods and the information needed to prepare a quote.
Why does business classification matter?
The classification provides context for how the business operates and accepts payments. Reviewing it helps ensure the comparison starts with accurate information about the merchant.
Why should merchants look for hidden fees?
Individual charges can seem small when viewed separately. Reviewing them together can show how fees affect the total cost of payment processing over time.
Why does BAMS review the way a business accepts payments?
Payment processing involves more than card brands. POS equipment, gateways and other payment technology can also affect how a business processes transactions.
What information does BAMS use for the comparison?
The process begins with the merchant’s current statement. BAMS uses that information to review fees, deposits, transaction activity and other details related to the existing processing setup.
What happens after the five-step review?
BAMS provides a quote based on the findings from the analysis. The comparison helps show how the proposed BAMS setup compares with the merchant’s current arrangement.
