Green businesses are huge these days. From organic foods to organic cleaning services, to even renewable energy, green businesses are some of the most profitable new businesses in the US market. While profitable and popular, many in the processing industry have issues with these businesses. This is for many reasons, ranging from the industry’s “newness” to its fad-like popularity. Because of this, many green merchants have a hard time obtaining things that they need, such as a business credit card and a merchant account. Like most things in life, if you look hard enough and are smart enough, you can get what you are looking for.
The problem with the processing industry and green businesses is that they label these businesses as “high risk”. It doesn’t matter if you, the merchant, has a great credit score, you will still have this label slapped on your business. This leaves you with limited options for a merchant account, as most processors will not deal with the added complications that high risk merchant accounts have. Higher chargeback percentages mean that everyone loses money, and this is something that processors simply do not want to deal with. Thankfully, there are processors like FAM who deal with green merchants on a regular basis, and know that chargebacks are simply something that comes along with the industry. Also, many merchants are also able to obtain a high risk merchant account with instant approval through FAM. This means that you can get to work quicker, and make money quicker.
While a high risk merchant account is a must, there are things that you can do to lessen the chargeback blow. While not all chargebacks can be prevented, by being proactive you can lessen your chances of having one hit at a terrible time. If you are an online merchant, be sure to use software to check out the card information that is being used. Visa has options available to online merchants to help determine if the address entered matches with the “billing” address used for a purchase. You can also ban an IP addresses, addresses, and even entire countries! There are many things that you can do to help your new green business stay in the clear (or mostly in the clear) when it comes to chargebacks.