Credit/debit card processing - Canada

[lily]

Hello friends,

Is anyone using Costco's credit card processing service, thru Elavon? I've been using Moneris for forever, but am now comparing the costs to Costco's service, and Costco is somewhat cheaper. But I'm not sure the savings is worth the switch... Moneris has been incredibly reliable. I may just use Costco's pricing to negotiate something better with Moneris. Any comments?

Lily

[bartleyg]

I went Moneris cause at the time, costco didn't have a tip line. I do like costco's prices much better, but maybe when my contract is up for renewal I will be able to use that as bargaining power. I hope someone has info.

[Care]

Be careful with Costco since I discovered at the very last minute that they didn't offer a tip line which I think is very important for us. Someone said they did offer it now but I'm not sure.

I'm with CollectivePOS and I really like them. I'm currently getting my cc processed through Elavon but my debit is through Collective. You can buy the machine and as long as you are processing with them there is a lifetime full replacement warrenty on the machine. When I signed they outsourced all their cc processing but I'm pretty sure now they are doing it themselves which will save you a $5.95 extra statment fee every month. I've been more than happy with CollectivePOS. Rates are competitive and the service is great!

I was also considering going with Global Payments since they are affiliated with CIBC and there are no deposit fees when they put the money into your account as long as you have a CIBC business account. They were the only other company I could find that would actually let you BUY the machine instead of renting it. If you can buy the machine it saves you huge in the long run. Their customer service was good for as long as I was dealing with them so that would be my second choice.

[lily]

Thanks for the info, ladies. I used Costco's lower pricing as leverage when I called Moneris this morning. They lowered my fees by 30-40%! Now I will pay a little more than what Costco is offering but get to stick with what I am used to.

Tonya, Moneris told me that you can get a rate review every year. So if its been a year since you signed up, give them a call and ask for a better deal. I made sure I had all my facts in front of me... and made them address every fee. I almost forgot to ask about the Interac transaction fee, and I'm pretty sure they wouldnt have offered a lower fee for that if I hadnt remembered to ask.

[bartleyg]

Originally Posted by lily

Thanks for the info, ladies. I used Costco's lower pricing as leverage when I called Moneris this morning. They lowered my fees by 30-40%! Now I will pay a little more than what Costco is offering but get to stick with what I am used to.

Tonya, Moneris told me that you can get a rate review every year. So if its been a year since you signed up, give them a call and ask for a better deal. I made sure I had all my facts in front of me... and made them address every fee. I almost forgot to ask about the Interac transaction fee, and I'm pretty sure they wouldnt have offered a lower fee for that if I hadnt remembered to ask.

thanks for that information Lily. It will be a year in April so I will write to call them in April. I hope that this means I can have some lower fees coming up. I get awesome service so I don't want to move, just need the leverage.

[lily]

I just wish I had asked sooner! But, it was only recently that I got on my "lowering monthly expenses" kick. I also switched to Shaw phone service, plus got Internet, for $10 less/month than I was paying for Telus phone!

[skwij]

For those wanting to save even more money, give VOIP phone a try. A great provider in Canada is voip.ms

You do have to invest in the hardware (phone and base station) but the savings are incredible. Compare $45/month with Bell (basic, no long distance plan) to less than $5/month with voip.ms. That is paying 1/2 CENT per minute incoming and outgoing, plus the base fee of a couple of dollars.

[Care]

Skwij - are you listed listed in the phone book then? I'm looking for something cheaper. Just did a negotiation with Rogers but didn't get exactly what I wanted. How is their customer service?

[bartleyg]

Lily, Telus sucks. I switched to SHaw when we moved. Much cheaper. THe only drawback is when the power goes out so does the phone. But with cell phones at least we have them for back up. I pay less now with two lines (one for business) than i did with telus with one line.

I should check out that voip thing skwij. Thanks for that info.

[mushie]

I've been using Costco's machine (Elavon) since last year and it's great -- no problems whatsoever. It does come with a tip line and that's the best move I've made in my business! (other than using CDC) ;-)

If anyone is considering using Costco's machine, I recommend it. All you have to do is ask that a tip line is on it.