As a business owner, an important routine task is reviewing all costs. This is important as it helps identify areas that may not be returning a reasonable ROI or determining how to gain added value from one of your current vendors. One of the often overlooked areas businesses miss out on are reviewing their credit card processing statements. This may be due to the fact that credit card processing is often taken for granted. However, it has been found that merchants may be overpaying by 30% to process credit cards. This means that there could be significant cost savings should a merchant want to pursue minimizing these expenses. So what are some areas merchants can achieve costs savings from just a simple credit card processing statement review?

Rates – When processing credit cards, every business has to pay processing rates for this business operation. However, when reviewing your credit card processing statement you may find that your rates unexpectedly increased. Sometimes this is due to the major card companies instituting additional services and features which means you, the merchant, gain added value. However, some credit card processing companies may be using this as a way to increase their profits at your expense.

Fees – Some credit card processing fees, like Interchange, are standard for all merchants. However, there may be other fees that may just be ways for credit card companies to extract more revenue from your business. That’s why it’s important to understand what fees are necessary (and even negotiable or non-negotiable) and which ones simply add no value.

Miscellaneous Costs – Some companies will charge merchants a monthly fee for a variety of items that add no value to your business. For example, a monthly statement service charge fee may be an item your business can avoid paying. If your merchant services provider has an online portal then you can reduce this unnecessary cost by simply utilizing this tool.

In order to stay competitive, businesses must always do a constant self assessment. This typically involves evaluating all products / services your company uses to conduct business. However, don’t let not reviewing your credit card processing statement prevent your business from not saving money and increasing your profits.