Processor Directory > Merchant Focus
Merchant Focus Review
In this Merchant Focus review and profile, we’ll provide details on the company’s rates and fees, reviews, available services, and more.
Merchant Focus is an MSP and ISO of Deutsche Bank AG, New York.
What can Merchant Focus do?
Merchant Focus offers retail processing, e-commerce, point-of-sale, and mobile processing for businesses and non-profits of all sizes.
Retail Processing
Merchant Focus offers retail processing to allow you to accept credit and debit cards and deposits your funds into your checking account. You will need to purchase a terminal or work with Merchant Focus to reprogram your existing equipment. American Express and Discover card acceptance require separate approval.
Ecommerce Processing
Merchant Focus provides e-commerce processing through Authorize.Net. Accept credit cards and e-checks through the Authorize.Net gateway safely and securely. You can accept major credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, Diner’s Club, and JCB), manage your account by viewing transaction history, set up recurring billing, and integrate with QuickBooks.
Virtual Terminal (virtual POS) Processing
Merchant Focus offers a downloadable app via Google Chrome. The app allows you to use your computer as a payment terminal for card processing, usually also known as a virtual terminal. (Note that Merchant Focus doesn’t call any of their options a virtual terminal – they refer to point-of-sale systems and mail/phone order processing, but the “point of sale system” is a virtual terminal, not a typical cash drawer/card swiper/screen combination.
The virtual terminal/virtual POS features a transaction log and you can accept payments, process refunds, process voids, and print or email receipts. This option includes a free Magtek USB card reader.
Virtual terminals are ideal for phone and mail order businesses, or any company that doesn’t require customer-facing credit card processing equipment.
TakeCharge Mobile Processing
Merchant Focus offers mobile processing with the TakeCharge Mobile solution, allowing you to process cards using your smartphone. TakeCharge Mobile features:
- Electronic signature capture
- Branding customization
- Automatic tax calculation
- Tip acceptance
- Single screen transaction entry
- Transaction history
- Multiple user options
- Email receipts
- 24/7 tech support
- Security with SSL encryption and Address Verification
- Free card reader
Gift Cards
Merchant Focus offers gift card processing with customized gift card. The company provides 100 card starter package with the ability to issue and redeem cards through a terminal or online. Gift card service also includes online reporting to easily track transaction activity.
Gift card service rates and fees are as follow:
- Logo gift card set up fee with 100 cards: $99
- Per transaction fee: $0.25
- Monthly fee: $19.95
Merchant Focus will waive the setup fee for customers who sign up for merchant accounts.
Merchant Focus Rates and Fees
Merchant Focus’ rates and pricing are dependent on your credit card sales. Low volume businesses (processing less than $250,000/year) receive tiered pricing. High volume businesses may qualify for interchange plus pricing. Note that these volume requirements are specific to Merchant Focus. There is no minimum processing volume required in order to secure interchange plus pricing. In fact, that’s the pricing model we require for certified quotes here at CardFellow.
It’s difficult to get an accurate idea of what you’ll pay with tiered pricing, because you can’t just go by the published rate. That is only a starting point, and your transactions may not “qualify” for that rate.
With that in mind, here’s what Merchant Focus publishes for starting rates.
| Retail | Virtual Terminal (Merchant Focus Virtual POS) |
|---|---|
| Qualified rate: 1.69% for Visa, MasterCard, and Discover | Qualified rate: 1.74% |
| Per transaction fee: $0.25 | Mid-qualified rate: 2.29% |
| Monthly service fee: $10 | Non-qualified rate: 3.29% |
| Processing for American Express is subject to different rates. | Per transaction fee: $0.29 |
| Monthly fee: $25.00 |
| TakeCharge Mobile | Authorize.Net Gateway |
|---|---|
| Debit cards: 1.59% (card must be swiped) | Set up fee: $0 |
| Credit cards: 1.79% (card must be present) | Monthly fee: $15 |
| Per transaction fee: $0.29 | Per transaction fee: $0.05 |
| Monthly fee: $25.00 | |
| A downgrade fee of up to 1.3% may apply for keyed transactions, for a total of 2.89%. Corporate, government, foreign and rewards cards are also subject to a 2.89% rate. |
Remember, these are just some of the possible rates and fees you’ll pay. To get a fully-disclosed quote so that you can accurately compare your choices, request a Merchant Focus quote through CardFellow. Just sign in (or sign up for free) to get started.
Merchant Focus Reviews
Merchant Focus has relatively few negative reviews online, especially for how long the company has been in business. That may indicate generally good service, although we’d like to see Merchant Focus move to only interchange-plus pricing.
Merchant Focus’ Reviews and Rating with the Better Business Bureau
Merchant Focus has been accredited with the Better Business Bureau since 2006 and has an A- rating, down from the A rating it had when we first created this review and profile in 2014. However, the company has only had 5 complaints closed with the BBB in the last 3 years, a low number for a company that’s been around for awhile. Complaints allege that unauthorized funds were removed from customer accounts, including after customers had cancelled their account with Merchant Focus. The BBB determined that Merchant Focus had made efforts to resolve complaints.
Merchant Focus’ Reviews on its Website
On its website, Merchant Focus has a section of customer testimonials. Reviews praise the company’s helpful service reps, quick set up, easy application, good communication, and smooth process. Reviews include the reviewer’s name and sometimes the business name, review’s job title, or reviewer’s business website.
Leave your own review!
SATISFACTION
RATES & FEES
CUSTOMER SERVICE
0/5
Unlike general web reviews, verified reviews are posted by businesses that have chosen the processor's quote through CardFellow's marketplace, and CardFellow has confirmed with the processor that the business is using its service. Businesses can update verified reviews at any time to ensure the review accurately reflects the processor's performance over time.
SATISFACTION
RATES & FEES
CUSTOMER SERVICE
1.5/5
Unlike verified reviews which are validated by CardFellow, web reviews can be submitted by anyone viewing this profile. While we validate these reviews as best we can, CardFellow does not verify that a reviewer is using or has used a processor's service.
Do you Know this processor? Write a review about it
Posted by Manning Shutter LLC on Nov 21, 2017
SATISFACTION
RATES & FEES
CUSTOMER SERVICE
1/5
MerchantFocus processing company is a scam! The charge back department is obsolete, lazy and extremely incompetent. Even with proof of order delivery and confirmation you will still get screwed. If you are a small business beware. Don't ever use them. After 3 months of using them I have so much regret. If I could give them -5 star I would. The customer service is practically non-existent.
Posted by ScamMerchantFocus on Aug 07, 2017
SATISFACTION
RATES & FEES
CUSTOMER SERVICE
1/5
Don't ever use these con artists. Didn't even apply with them. Authorize.Net gave them all my financial information that I used to sign up with them. Without my permission Authorize.net gave all my private information. Then all of the sudden I saw charges coming out of my bank account for something I didn't even know what was going on, month after month for 3 months straight. I looked at the Transaction ID and it looked like Authroize.net was charging my account. Authorize.net is another bunch of con artists. So it turns out so called Merchant Focus approved me without even notifying us or sending us any information. I get an email from their risk department saying they were sending my account to collections because we didn't pay for the monthly charges. So after ramming my legal department down Merchant Focus' throat they backed off and closed the account because they'd be facing immediate legal action. They never said anything to us, never introduced us, no set up, no login into their system to process credit cards. Merchant Focus knew they didn't send anything out and new they were illegally charging my account for services we didn't even know or use. Advise you to use a personal checking account, because if you give these scumbags a business account, you have no way of disputing the charges, only with a personal checking account do you have that protection.
Posted by AS on Mar 24, 2017
SATISFACTION
RATES & FEES
CUSTOMER SERVICE
1/5
This business is a scam, don't ever use them. They take advantage of small business owners with no regard for proper customer service. They charged me month upon month for a service I wasn't even using. I had spoken once with a salesperson to see if I was eligible for their payment processing app, was told my business was under review, and then charged monthly without any warning. A good business would have called me to confirm my business was approved, reached out when they saw I wasn't using the service (yet still being charged), and provided a full refund when I finally realized who they were (the charges were labeled non-descriptively in my bank statements so I had no idea what it even was. Do not do business with these guys!!
Posted by CardFellow on Mar 09, 2016
SATISFACTION
RATES & FEES
CUSTOMER SERVICE
3/5
MerchantFocus has been around a while, and we've watched them change over the years. The company has always been generally transparent with its offerings, and it has adapted to offer its clients new technology as it becomes available.
