For a good listing of the many fees that may be associated with your merchant account, we suggest you visit The Merchant Council's website.

Merchantcouncil.org provides four tips to help processing merchants avoid headaches with their merchant account provider.

The Merchant Council provides a succinct summary of the downside of leasing credit card processing terminals.

Heartland Payment Systems has announced The Merchant Bill of Rights, a major initiative to create an industry standard to inform and educate business owners about card processing costs and drive savings for small and mid-sized businesses.

Its purpose is to enable merchants who don't have the resources of large purchasing organizations to effectively manage their costs, determine which processor best meets their needs and realize significant savings.

Karen E. Klein writes in www.businessweek.com that "even if small businesses don't have an immediate need to pay on credit, it is a good idea for them to apply for and use a credit card. Using it and paying it on time builds up their good credit history, just like with a personal card.

Also, most small businesses have cash-flow challenges, and a credit card can help them bridge this gap if and when the need arises."

Karen E. Klein writing in businessweek.com offers a checklist covering the major tasks and costs involved in setting up a business to sell products or services on the Internet.

The Merchant Account Explorer offers 27 tips to help you reduce your chargebacks and avoid disputes with your customers.