by Ben Dwyer Gravity Payments gained national attention in early 2015 when CEO and founder Dan Price announced a $70,000 per year “minimum wage” for all employees. While that’s great for Gravity workers, it doesn’t tell you what you need to know about their services for your business and whether they’re the right fit. In this Gravity Payments review, we’ll take a look at what Gravity Payments does, how much it’ll cost you, and what other people think.
- History
- What can Gravity Payments do?
- Reporting
- How’s customer service?
- What does it cost?
- Is there a contract?
- Reviews
History
Gravity Payments was founded in Seattle, Washington in 2004. The company offers credit card processing services for businesses in the United States, with an emphasis on small businesses. Gravity currently serves more than 10,000 clients and processes more than $13 billion in transactions each year. Gravity Payments, Inc. is a registered ISO of Wells Fargo Bank.
What can Gravity Payments do?
Gravity Payments provides credit card processing and business financing. Credit card processing includes point-of-sale card processing for traditional brick-and-mortar stores, mobile processing for businesses who accept credit cards in multiple locations or on-the-go. Gravity states that additional options (such as e-commerce sales and gift card programs) are also possible.
In-Store Processing
If you take credit cards in a traditional storefront and would like to use point-of-sale equipment or credit card machines, Gravity Payments offers card processing for all major credit and debit cards. Gravity can provide terminals and equipment to suit your needs for an additional cost. If you already have processing equipment, Gravity Payments may be able to reprogram it for you so you can continue to use it with Gravity. Many major brands of terminals are compatible with processing through Gravity Payments.
Mobile Processing
If you accept or want to accept payments with your smartphone or tablet, Gravity Payments can do that, too. They’ll get you set up to take credit cards by iPhone, iPad, Android tablet, or other mobile devices. Mobile processing may be a great option if you take cards in non-traditional settings, such as craft fairs, antique shows, on deliveries, while performing services like landscaping or plumbing, and more.
Business Financing
If you need money for business expenses, Gravity Payments offers a free application for working capital. Money can be used for almost any business expense, including marketing, advertising, purchasing inventory or equipment, and more. Repayment terms are flexible based on your specific goals and needs, and there is no monthly minimum payment required.
Gift Cards
Gravity offers a mobile gift card solution through Yiftee. You’ll need to accept MasterCard in order to offer Yiftee gift cards. If you’re currently a Gravity Payments customer, you can add a gift card link to your website to offer gift cards. Your customers can purchase gift cards from their mobile device or computer, and the gift card is delivered to the recipient electronically through email, text, or Twitter.
Reporting
To help you run your business effectively, Gravity Payments offers reporting options through their system Gravity Analytics, which can provide insight into several different areas of your business. Gravity Analytics includes sales reports, customer tracking, marketing and social media tracking, and more. Reporting is available through an online portal, meaning you can access it from any device that is connected to the internet. If you’re not at the office or store but still need to see your data, you can log in through your personal laptop, smartphone, or tablet to get your info.
How’s customer service?
Gravity Payments is praised in reviews (including testimonials on Gravity’s website) for available and responsive customer service. The company lists a customer service phone number, email address, and contact form on their website, giving you a choice of preferred contact method, and boasts 24/7 support.
What does it cost?
Gravity Payments doesn’t disclose rates or fees on their website. The company’s FAQ page explains that rates aren’t disclosed because each business’s situation is unique and Gravity prefers to work with the business to create a tailored pricing plan. Many processors set rates and fees on a per-case basis for businesses, so make sure to review quotes thoroughly for all fees.
An easy way to get pricing for your business is to request a quote from Gravity Payments directly through your CardFellow account. Your contact information will not be shared, meaning you won’t have to worry about high pressure sales calls and can review your quote from Gravity Payments in private. Don’t have a CardFellow account yet? You can sign up right now. It’s free and takes less than 5 minutes.
Is there a contract?
Gravity doesn’t disclose information on contract terms. Complaints with the Better Business Bureau refer to a 3-year contract and to an early termination fee, but this information is not confirmed on Gravity Payments’ site. If you work with Gravity Payments, be sure to confirm any contract terms and early termination fees before signing up to avoid costly mistakes.
Reviews
Gravity Payments doesn’t have a lot of customer reviews on third party review sites such as Yelp and Ripoff Report. There are 2 complaints in the Ripoff Report directory, but those refer to problems with Gravity as an employer and as a competitor and can’t be used to make determinations about Gravity Payments’ services for businesses. There are no reviews on Yelp. Gravity Payments does have information at the Better Business Bureau’s website, and includes customer testimonials on their own site.
Reviews with the Better Business Bureau
Gravity Payments is accredited with the Better Business Bureau, and currently has an A+ rating. The company has been accredited since 2005. They have only had 3 complaints lodged with the BBB in the past 3 years, with 1 closed in the past year. All three complaints are in the “Billing/Collection Issues” category.
The complaints allege that Gravity continued to charge a monthly statement fee after account cancellation, didn’t deposit funds, and didn’t cancel accounts upon request. In all complaints, Gravity Payments responded to the BBB’s request for resolution, but the customer either stopped replying or wasn’t satisfied with the business response.
Testimonials from Gravity Payments Customers
Gravity Payments includes customer testimonials on their website. Reviews praise the company’s 24-hour customer service, low rates, and personal attention. Testimonials include the reviewer’s name, business name, and location.
What CardFellow Thinks
CardFellow does not “rank” or “grade” processors. (You can read why here.)
CardFellow’s experience with Gravity Payments has been limited compared to many other processors, but the reaction is a mixed from what we have seen.
Gravity seems to go above and beyond touting transparency and simplicity in its marketing, which is evident from the Gravity statements that we’ve reviewed. But we’ve also reviewed a quote that left a little to be desired.
The Gravity Payments credit card processing statements that we’ve reviewed show that they assess charges using interchange-plus pricing, albeit with a significantly higher markup than the businesses that provided the statements were quoted through CardFellow.
Gravity statements show that interchange and assessments are passed at cost, and the company’s markup is posted as a separate line item. This results in transparent billing.
While Gravity’s statements are transparent, its method of quoting doesn’t seem to follow the same standards. The quotes we’ve seen from Gravity Payments, such as this one, show pricing in aggregate without an explanation of the different components of cost.
We’re sure Gravity’s prospective clients would appreciate and benefit from more detail about the actual charges and fees they should expect if they choose Gravity Payments as their payment processor.
