Starting up a brand new business can be as exciting as it is intimidating. Finally, you get to be your own boss and do things the way you’ve always wanted. Yet at the same time, you are also taking on a world of responsibility.

You get to set your own hours, but you also have to hire your own staff. You can stock the products you want, but you still need to make sure all of your expenses are taken care of. The constant ebb and flow of positives and negatives is just part of what running your own business is all about.

One way you can help add more positives into the mix is by accepting credit and debit cards through a merchant services account. At first, you might think that processing plastic will just make your business more complicated. But with an account provider on your side, it has never been easier. Here are a few ways that a merchant services account can help grow your business through credit card acceptance.

In-Person Acceptance

For starters, let’s say you run a store that has a physical “bricks and mortar” location. This can be anything from a gas station to a grocery store, from a sandwich shop to a hardware store.

If you run a business where people come into your store and can physically hand you a credit or debit card, then you will need what is called a retail swipe terminal. When you swipe the customer’s card through the terminal, it will transmit the information directly to your account provider. They will handle all the complex ins and outs of the transaction and then simply deposit the money into your business bank account. This process can take anywhere from one to three days, depending on the plan you sign up for.

Your provider will also have a variety of different retail swipe terminals available for you. You can get swipe terminals with touch screens, built-in printers, keypads for PIN numbers and more. Some of these terminals will even instantly accept a card without a signature or a PIN number.

The nicest thing about the retail swipe terminals is that they have the lowest processing fees in the credit card business. This is because fraud is lowest during face-to-face interactions. This saves your account provider money, so they let you save a few bucks too.

Phone and E-mail Solutions

In some instances, you might not have a physical credit card in your hand to swipe. There might be a situation where your business needs to take down credit card information either over the phone, through a fax or via e-mail. To solve this situation, your account provider can set you up with a virtual terminal.

Virtual terminals are secure portals accessible through any computer that is linked to the Internet. Punch in your username and password and you will be directed to a screen where you can enter all the necessary credit card information. From there, your account provider will process it just as if you would have swiped the card itself. These virtual terminals are perfect for businesses like a hotel, where your customer would call in and need to hold a room with their credit card.

On the Road

Do you operate a business that is always on the move? Does your restaurant want to start offering curbside service or delivery? Do you want to be able to accept credit cards at your ice cream truck? Or do you simply operate a large retail store and want your customer service representatives to be able to check people out from anywhere on the floor?

When you get a wireless terminal through your merchant account provider, you can swipe a card from just about anywhere. These terminals are great for any business that needs to keep moving. You can even swipe a card and store the information in the terminal itself in case you are out of a service area. Later you can just send it when you have coverage again.

On the Web

Of course, your account provider can also help your business to accept debit and credit cards over the Internet. More people pay for their web transactions with a credit or debit card than through any other form of payment.

Your merchant account provider will make sure that all of your web transactions are conducted safely and securely. They will do this through fraud detection software and by storing sensitive data on PCI-compliant data centers.

When you have a merchant services account at your back, there is no limit to how far your business can reach. Don’t get left in the dust by other businesses in your field. Blast off into the stratosphere with credit card acceptance through a merchant account provider.

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