Company offers credit processing alternative
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MISSION VALLEY – There is generally very little business owners can do to lower the cost of accepting credit and debit cards. The bulk of the charges are called interchange fees and are assessed on a per swipe basis by national mega-conglomerates that face little regulation from the U.S. government.
There is one potential way for businesses to lower additional costs added to those fees, however.
A company with Mission Valley roots prides itself on taking an innovative approach to helping customers find the best deal.
Mountain Star Payment Processing was founded five years ago by Ronan native and current Utah resident Troy Zentler. The company works as the middleman to identify the best option for card processing services that are responsible for moving money from bank to bank.
Credit processing is a field that is usually impersonal and full of hidden pitfalls, according to Mountain Star Regional Manager Justin Taylor. Most businesses are bombarded day after day by telemarketers trying to sell card processing services, Taylor said. Some traveling salesmen will actually make an appearance in a shop, but after that, dealings with the card processor are limited to frustrating 800-number interactions.
Too often Taylor sees business owners cajoled into signing contracts for sour deals they don’t understand. The statements read like a horror novel, with hidden fee on top of hidden fee that the salesperson never took the time to explain.
“It’s highway robbery, honestly,” Taylor said.
By the time the business realizes it is being overcharged, it has been roped into a multi-year contract that can’t be broken.
Mountain Star takes a different approach. Locally based service representatives walk customers through current bills, explain fees, and show how Mountain Star can save the shop-owner money. Usually finding savings is simple, Taylor said.
Many credit processing companies charge a monthly fee of up to $40 or $50 for the swipe terminal alone.
“That’s $480 per year just for a terminal for five years,” Taylor said. “That’s two grand. You can buy a terminal for $150, but people are paying two grand for it.”
Mountain Star gives terminals away for free, without contract obligations. Fees are generally 1.69 percent of the purchase price for standard credit cards or 2.69 percent for a mid-level specialty card. There isn’t a per swipe processing fee for those cards. Cards that aren’t swipeable and have to be entered manually are charged a per-swipe fee plus a higher percentage, because of a higher risk of fraud.
There are some monthly sales minimums customers have to meet so Morning Star makes money off the terminal, but those minimums are usually met without any problem, according to Taylor. If a customer has questions about his or her bill or payment system, Morning Star has a locally based sales representative nearby to help.
The representatives also help merchants get their terminals compliant with national standards. By taking a half-hour to fill out paperwork, a merchant certifies the terminal is safe, and protects itself from lawsuits should a fraudster make an illegal payment through the machine. Most credit companies don’t require merchants to become compliant. Instead, merchants are assessed a $25 monthly fee for not being compliant, and run the risk of being sued in the event of a fraudulent charge.
“Most people just don’t understand it,” Taylor said.
Charlo Grocery owner Rick Marcure switched to Mountain Star this year, after paying $11,000 in interchange and processing fees. He expects to save $1,600 per year after the switch. Marcure likened his switch to shopping for competitive car insurance.
“When’s the last time you looked at the bill and shopped around?” Marcure said. “There might be money to be saved if you do.”
Dobson Creek Coffee installed a Mountain Star terminal last week. Owner Trent Yost said he’d have to see how well it worked before he could give it a review, but that he thought the shop would get a better deal that than it received with previous processors.
Helping the customer understand charges so the business can save money is the ultimate goal. Mountain Star’s processing systems can be integrated with Quick Books for accounting purposes. A wide variety of terminal systems available from mobile phones swipes that work well for small business, to heavier duty systems for multi-million dollar clients. Whatever infrastructure is needed, business needs for its processing, Mountain Star promises to have the best rate.
“Our company is based on integrity,” Taylor said. “If you are unhappy we don’t want you to be unhappy and we’ll do the best we can to take care of it. What you see is what you get. We’ve had a company that we used to write for that raised the rates. We went back to that major processor and told them they had to change the rate back for the client. We’re watching out for the customer 100 percent of the time.”
Morning Star can be reached at 406-381-6460.
