1. Find out the total Setup Costs involved.
Confirm specifically what the grand total upfront costs will be, including any initial costs that you will incur during the first few months of processing.

2. Find out the total Monthly Costs that apply.
In particular, you will want to ask about any “monthly minimums” that might apply. This can often add $20-25/month in additional cost. Be sure to ask “if I processed $0 in sales, what would my grand total monthly billing amount be?”

3. Find out if there is any Annual Fee or Annual Cost.
Some processors charge an annual fee after just the first 1-2 months of service. Others charge fees as high as $95-$150/year and place this in the fine print of the contract.

4. Find out the Per Transaction Costs in Detail.
You will want to make sure that you understand the “Per Trans/Item” costs as well as any AVS, batch header or gateway per transaction items.

5. Ask what “Downgrade Fees” apply.
It is not uncommon for some accounts to have 3 Tiers – Qualified, Mid-Qualified and Non-Qualified. Unfortunately, there are often *many* transactions billed out at the Mid-Qualified level which can significantly impact your total cost. A 2 Tier program is thus preferable but be sure to ask what % of transactions are billed at each level statistically.

6. Ask how Chargebacks & Risk Management issues are handled.
This is a *critical* operational area that effects many merchants and any company should be able to tell you in great detail how it handles these kinds of issues. For instance, do they automatically notify you via e-mail? Or merely mail out rebuttals in U.S. mail which can delay your ability to return a rebuttal?

7. Do your Due Diligence and see what other merchants have experienced using that processor.
Remember, the best predictor of future results is a processor’s current track record with the majority of its merchants!

Sometimes, the answers to these questions may surprise you. There are a huge number of businesses that just “go with their bank” for merchant processing and end up paying the cost. Just as you shopped for bank accounts you must too shop for merchant processors.

Why would you just give away your hard earned profits?

If the best predictor of future results is a processor’s current track record than we have the rest beat. Our merchant processor had maintained a 99% customer retention rate for over the past 13 years.

Give us a call today and see what savings we can offer you. 813-909-9191

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Millions of people are bearing the brunt of debts like anything. Debt issues have become so commonplace that you’re hardly going to find households without debt these days. This has fueled a rise in the number of companies offering debt consolidation and restructuring services. These organizations are known to provide debt solutions and help people get rid of their debts. You get to manage your debts properly through these services. The burden of debts ceases to be a burden anymore with reduced interest rates and better payment options. Well, there are a few things that you have to consider and steps that you have to take to make sure your debts are part of history.

Tips and Ideas
The following are the tips that are going to help you restructure your debts so that you are free of them sooner than you realize.

•List your debts – This is the first thing that you should do while dealing with debts. Write down the total amount that you owe on the debts as well as their respective interest rates. Don’t forget to mention the minimum payments that you’re making towards each of the debts. It is of great importance that you have a clear picture of your outstanding debts and how much they are costing you.

•Get in touch with your mortgage lender – Renegotiations on the terms of mortgage is the only way to better interest rates and affordable debt repayment plans. This applies to people who have mortgage and are in possession of property. Using the equity in your home is a good way to pay off your debts. This is a great money saver.

•Ask for a loan – You can always go ahead and ask for a loan from your credit union. Your high debts may work against your loan application, but the credit unions are known to give out loans with better rates of interest. This loan, also known by the name of ‘consolidation loan’, helps you pay all of your debts at once. You’re able to get rid of the troubles of managing multiple debts. Consolidation helps restructure debts like no other.

•Go for a low APR credit card – This might be a difficult thing to get, but you’re going to be benefited a lot by a low APR credit card. These low interest APR credit cards generally come with attractive zero interest introductory periods. You can transfer your existing credit card debts onto a zero interest APR card and pay off your debts before the introductory offer lapses.

The consolidation services are the best to go for as they will merge your multiple debts into nothing more than a single monthly payment. The low interest rates will help you save a considerable amount of money. The final option for you would be to borrow money from a family or friend. This is the safest option and can be taken advantage of if possible. Your debts will be part of history if you know how to manage and restructure them well.

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The definition of outsourcing is simply to contract out; to obtain goods or services from an outside source; or to purchase (goods) or subcontract (services) from an outside supplier or source. No where in the definition is it stated or implied that outsourcing means to send jobs to countries outside of our own. For example, an outsource professional in the financial and management field contracts with individuals and/or local companies who recognize the benefit of having certain facets of their accounting and management work handled by a group of professionals outside their place of business. This assists them in having the highest possible professional expertise and benefits while preserving their valuable time and resources for other core business operations.

Outsourcing certain business functions saves priceless time that can be utilized for company’s strategies and objectives. The company’s in house workers can then focus on solving problems and instituting solutions. Many resources like manpower, office space, equipment, insurance and other benefits can be saved when companies outsource tasks. When outsourcing functions to an outside company, it’s possible to obtain fresh strategies for less money in a more timely and efficient manner. As a result, the business can simultaneously conserve money and time and be more accurate and up to date; which should be the ultimate goal. Both small and large scale companies realize serious advantages by outsourcing their jobs to outside professional businesses.

Companies looking to outsource business functions can gain considerable profit by looking to other US based businesses to handle their accounting, management and other work. At this time of worldwide financial crisis, businesses need to put their faith back into the American work force. Why not turn to seasoned professionals here in the United States to handle some of the business tasks you need handled; outsource to professionals in your own backyard.

Success in business comes from performing the tasks you know and accepting expertise from others who can enhance your strengths. The financial benefits are astounding.

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Total CFO is worthy of consideration for those small businesses looking to make a transformational shift in their organization and how they view the back office. We offer a broad range of services including accounting, billing, AP and payroll and allow companies to select only those pieces required to address their business needs. It is your comprehensive financial plan, and it is individually tailored to meet your specific needs.

Selecting Total CFO provides the added benefit of working with someone who knows your market and how to interact with your staff, customers and suppliers. Our well established, U.S. based, accounting firm will tailor our services to your small business as opposed to offshore solutions whose return only seems measurable for large enterprises. As we are a small business ourselves, we understand what it takes to get a small company off the ground and on the right track. Total CFO has a very diversified group of clients in a multitude of fields and industries. We can speak your language and have an understanding of your individualized goals and principals. This allows your business to obtain the greatest benefits of our staff’s expertise, while leaving the day to day management responsibilities to those familiar with managing such functions.

Utilizing Total CFO can result in significant cost reductions depending on your current back office support model and investments. Once you factor in employee expenses associated with hiring and terminating (including recruiting fees, training, vacation and holidays), the cost of hiring someone else to do these back office functions more efficiently or on a part time basis can often be lower.

In addition to being able to focus on your core and potential cost reduction, outsourcing back office functions will provide you with flexibility in your workforce, allowing you to pay for only the services you need while providing greater capabilities to meet peak demands. Without an outsourcing service provider in place, organizations often add a full time individual to meet their growth needs, resulting in too much or too little support for each business function. Outsourcers tend to have access to more skilled individuals per function, allowing for greater depth of knowledge and breadth of ideas. Businesses benefit by gaining access to greater tools and technology, such as electronic workflow and imaging solutions – solutions previously available only to larger companies due to consolidated spending and centralized operations of the outsourcer.

Contact Us Today for a FREE Consulation 813.909.9191

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Reason #1 – Business Assets
An accountant will become familiar with and handle the business assets, including the total ledger balance and its detailed credits, debits, profits and losses. Accountants are in a position to provide advice on how to keep monetary resources up or better them, since they have the specific insight into the financial position of your small business.

Reason #2 – Tax Assessments
Accountants are up to date on and have the appropriate tax law knowledge for small businesses. They can also help to verify compliance for you which will ward off taxation troubles. Accountants also know about various taxation breaks as they occur so that you can get the best value claim reward available.

Reason #3 – Technical Financial Systems
Many accountants are extremely skillful and updated on how to apply the latest technical aspects for accounting, such as with software that enables quick statements and reports, as well as access to financial information. This can also help a business owner in other areas of their business, with access to some of the most organized accounting systems.

Reason #4 – Business Planning
An accounting firm can act as advisor and perform business reviews to provide information that will be important for key financial reports that your company will rely upon to make other important business decisions.

Accountants can assist with appraising the viability of future projects with gain and loss forecasts. The expertise of a professional accountant can be instrumental in preparing business proposals and plans that will grow your company.

Accountants often have experience in similar business organizations to yours, which will provide worthwhile business experience advice for your company. An example is that the accountant could provide useful suggestions from evaluation calculations and by setting income targets grounded upon your particular fiscal situation and business organization targets.

Reason #5 – Networking and Referrals
Because of the respect that they receive in the business community, accountants can also provide valuable networking contacts that can help to easily grow your business organically.

Professional accountants have similar customers that can be utilized as relevant contacts that may be referred to other clients. This also helps with networking for selling, buying and with potential business partnerships as well as other ventures.

Those are just a few of the many benefits you can receive from engaging the expertise of an accountant for your small business. Accountants don’t just crunch numbers; they can provide worthwhile and essential tax and business advice that is vital to your company and its future success.

As published on wahm.com

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Total CFO, LLC really wants potential customers to feel comfortable when choosing them. The BBB seal will help customers understand who they are and the core values they believe in.

BBB accreditation means Total CFO, LLC adheres to very high ethical standards. People know they can trust a company that has made the commitment to live up to the BBB Principles for Trust:

Build Trust, Advertise Honestly, Tell the Truth, Be Transparent, Honor Promises, Be Responsive, Embody Integrity, Safegaurd Privacy.

Being affiliated with the BBB shows that Total CFO, LLC is one a select group of businesses in our community that not only supports the BBB’s services but also subscribes to the idea that ethical business is good business and that you “deliver trust” by treating the public in a fair and honest manner.

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We are proud to offer a wealth of knowledge in our new article of financial interest to Ezine Articles.

In today’s rapidly changing economic landscape every company has to look at what they do, how they do it, and what needs to be done to survive. For some companies, even the most successful ones, cash flow has become a major issue. Often that cash flow issue stems from your Accounts Payable. Now is the time to consider corporate debt restructuring.

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1. Gather all necessary information & make copies:
In many divorce cases, one spouse generally assumes the responsibilities of maintaining the household’s financial foundation, leaving the other spouse to the household’s up-keeping responsibilities. During the marriage, this may seem to be a convenient partnership, but in a divorce, this tends to leave one spouse unaware of what the other spouse is doing with respect to finances such as: income, expenses, investing, credit cards, loans, family business, etc. If you are contemplating divorce, the first step you should take is to gather all financial information and make copies. It is amazing how documents come up missing once divorce is being discussed between spouses.

Getting these documents through an attorney at a later date can be quite costly. You want to have them up front, whether they’re originals or copies. The types of documents you want to have are your most recent: bank statements, credit card statements, investment account statements, retirement account statements, loan applications, last three to five years tax returns & W-2′s, property tax bills, mortgage statements, credit report, etc. In other words, anything that has bearing on your financial situation.

2. Accumulate some cash:
Depending on the type of divorce you may go through, the process can be potentially expensive. Once you are beyond contemplating divorce, start to save some cash each week to accumulate some liquid funds. What you know is you want a divorce, what you don’t know is how this divorce will affect you financially. Not only will you need some liquid money to live on, but you could need to hire legal representation, financial experts, and/or mental health professionals to guide you through your divorce and serve as your advocate.

Establishing some cash is a necessity because you will need to pay these people in the event you need use them. Some divorce professionals will not work for you without a down payment, and the last thing you want to happen is not to be able to hire someone because you haven’t planned properly.

3. Determine the type of divorce you will have & mentally prepare for it:
Not all divorces are the way they are portrayed on television, roughly 5 percent of divorce cases go to court. Not all divorce cases require hiring an attorney. In the state of Wisconsin, nearly 65-70 percent of divorce cases are “Pro-Se,” which means without legal representation. You want to have an idea of what type of divorce you will have and mentally prepare yourself for the costs.

In my experience with divorcing clients, a litigated divorce tends to be the most expensive regarding fees. If you are in an amicable divorce situation, you may not need to seek the legal support that you would in a highly litigated and disputed case. You may only need assistance with the financial aspects of your divorce. If finances are the only areas of dispute, than seek assistance from a divorce financial analyst, and after those issues have been resolved they can refer you to an attorney that will draft your settlement agreement. This saves time, money and provides for a better relationship with one another post-divorce.

There are other areas of dispute that require other professionals in a divorce. For example, let’s assume that you and your soon to be ex-spouse have no real issues except placement of your children. This is a perfect opportunity to seek guidance from a child specialist and/or mental health professional to determine what scenario’s are best suited for your children. Then after you come to an agreement find an attorney to review and draft the legal documents necessary to finalize your divorce.

Divorce is emotionally detrimental, the last outcome you need is for it to be financially detrimental as well. You don’t want to go into the process blind and each end up with a $20,000 legal bill, when your only issue pertained to dividing retirement accounts, for example. Do your research and find out what professionals you need to minimize costs.

Here is a list of your divorce options:

• Legal Separation – best used for couples that do not want to finalize divorce for various reasons (i.e. religious, health insurance, child support, maintenance, etc.)
• Pro-Se – best used for couples with few disputes, few assets, and no children
• Mediation – best used for couples who have issues to settle, but no reasons to go to court (i.e. financial issues, custody issues, placement issues, etc.)
• Traditional – best used for couples that are non-cooperative and want to fight
• Collaborative – best used for couples with assets, children and disputes that are seeking an amicable divorce and guidance through a team of professionals (attorneys, financial specialists, mental health professionals, etc.) that assist them through a mediation-style process
• Cooperative – best used for couples with assets, children and disputes that are seeking an amicable divorce and a team of professionals that assist them through a mediation-style process

Determining this will give you an estimate of what a divorce may cost you.

4. Make a detailed list of assets, debts & monthly income before your first consultation:
After you have determined the type of divorce you will go through, prepare your current financial position and have it ready for your first meeting with a divorce financial analyst. This step will save you time and money. The more detailed you are, the more cost effective it will be for you. You also want to make sure that you have an understanding of your monthly expenses as well as income. One area that is commonly argued, is the household expenses incurred by each spouse. On your detailed list show actual expenses that can be supported by credit card and/or bank account statements. Numbers don’t lie, and these documents can serve as a support item for negotiating proposed settlements and property division.

Knowing what your spouse earns in income is equally important when divorcing. You need to know all sources of income from: bonuses, cash under the table, exercised stock options, what they are deferring into retirement accounts, etc. Previous years tax returns and W-2′s will have this information.

5. Choose the right type of financial professional that can give you expert advice:
When selecting a financial professional, be certain they have an area of expertise in divorce financial analysis and divorce financial counseling. Some financial professionals hold themselves out as divorce planners, but have ulterior motives such as booking new clients for asset management or tax preparation purposes. Look for the CDFA, CDP and/or CDS credentials. These credentials assure you that your financial professional is credible and competent to deal with the financial aspects of your divorce. These designation’s mean that your financial professional has taken the necessary tests and acquired the education to hold themselves out as a divorce financial planner.

There are many advantages in retaining a divorce financial professional, some of these benefits are: financial analysis conducted early in the divorce process can save time and money, it can also help you avoid long-term financial pitfalls pertaining to divorce agreements, they can assist you in developing detailed household budgets and help avoid post-divorce financial struggles. Most importantly, they can reduce the amount of apprehension and misunderstanding about the financial aspects of the divorce process.

Certified Divorce Financial Analysts also provide other valuable information such as: tax consequences, division of retirement plans, continued health care coverage, stock option elections, debt reduction and much more. They can work with you individually or by collaborating with your attorney to help make financial sense of proposed settlements.

By Garrick G. Zielinski as published on military.com

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