The Business Buzz

Did you know there’s more that goes on behind the scenes, from when customers pay businesses with their cards to when the business receives their payment? Well, there is! A whole lot goes on! So, how do businesses accept debit and credit card payments? How exactly do payment solutions like card terminals work? And what happens behind the scenes of payment processing?

In these articles, you’ll learn all about card networks like Visa and Mastercard. You’ll learn about how swiping a card through a magnetic strip reader is different from making a contactless or EMV payment. And you’ll learn about cutting-edge industry solutions like mobile payments, QR codes, and even biometric payments.

Did you know that contactless cards use radio wave technology—and that there’s a small antenna inside the credit card? Did you know that Visa and Mastercard have pioneered programs that allow customers to pay with a smile or a hand scan? Have you ever wondered how Amazon’s cashierless stores work? Do you know how many parties are involved in a single credit card transaction?

Aside from these very interesting “big picture” topics, we’ll explore pinpointed questions that relate directly to your business, like—why are flat-rate credit card fees so bad? What other pricing structures are there? What is an MCC or merchant category code—and does it impact my business? Or should I still accept cash?

In our Payment Processing Basics articles, you’ll get an overview of how payment processing works. The process of taking card payments will be demystified—and you’ll have more information to make better decisions moving forward—such as who to choose as your payment processor. As you’ll see, many of these considerations can only be answered when you consider the type of business you own.