1. What exactly is a Merchant Account and do I really need to have one?

Although it may seem having a merchant account is expensive and pricy, the long term benefits substantially outweighs the cost of having a merchant account. In today's marketplace people are turning towards credit cards as a common method of payment leaving most small business merchants very little choice but to accept credit cards or risk going out of business. The benefits of having a merchant account is that the funds from a credit card transaction are deposited into your checking account within 24 - 48 hours. The merchant account providers listed on this site are flexible and accept a broad range of merchants. To compare their rates go here:

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