Merchant education
Eleven questions to ask any payment processor.
Bring this list to every sales pitch — including ours. A provider worth signing with answers all ten without flinching.
The list
What to ask, and what the answers tell you.
Processing agreements aren't complicated because payments are complicated. They're complicated because complexity hides margin. These questions take the hiding places away.
What is my effective rate?
A straight answerThey compute it with you from your own statement — total monthly fees divided by total card volume — and show their math.
A red flagThey quote only a headline rate that applies to a fraction of your transactions and hope you never do the division.
How much of this is interchange, and how much is your markup?
A straight answerThey separate the wholesale cost set by the card brands and issuing banks from the part they control, and tell you which is which.
A red flag“It's all one bundled rate” — meaning the markup is wherever they need it to be.
Will my pricing change after the first few months?
A straight answerA written answer: when pricing can change, what triggers it, and how much notice you get.
A red flag“Rates are subject to change” with no notice terms — the polite version of a teaser rate.
What's the contract term, and what does it cost to leave?
A straight answerTerm length, the auto-renewal window, and the exact early-termination amount, stated before you sign.
A red flag“You won't want to leave” — or an early-termination clause described only as “liquidated damages.”
Is the equipment purchased, rented, or “free”?
A straight answerAn itemized hardware cost — and if something is free, exactly what the agreement requires in exchange.
A red flagA separate equipment lease with its own multi-year, non-cancellable term that survives even if you close the account.
Which fees on my statement are yours, and which are pass-through?
A straight answerThey walk your statement line by line and name where each fee comes from.
A red flag“Those are standard industry fees” — without saying whose industry, or whose pocket.
What compliance-related fees will I see?
A straight answerThey name every monthly or annual program fee, including any non-validation fee, with the amounts.
A red flagFees that first appear on your statement months after signing, never mentioned in the pitch.
How is funding scheduled, and what can delay it?
A straight answerDeposit timing for your program, batch cutoff times, and how holds, reserves, and underwriting reviews work.
A red flagA blanket funding promise with no mention of holds — the thing merchants actually get surprised by.
Who answers when something breaks on a Friday night?
A straight answerA named contact, a direct line, and an escalation path you can actually use.
A red flagA 1-800 queue, a ticket number, and a callback window.
Will you put all of this in writing before I sign?
A straight answerA written proposal with every rate, fee, and term stated — and time to read it.
A red flagPressure to sign the application today “to lock in pricing.”
What's the batch cutoff time — and what happens to my funding if I miss it?
A straight answerA specific time of day, and a plain explanation that a batch closed after cutoff settles a business day later — plus how weekends and holidays move your deposits.
A red flagThey don't know, or the answer changes depending on who you ask — which is exactly how a “next-day funding” promise quietly becomes two.
Hold us to the same list.
This is how Argos already works: a written side-by-side proposal before you sign, your statement explained line by line, and an honest “we can't beat this” when your current deal is actually good. Ask us all ten — we like these questions.
Ask us the hard ones.
Bring a recent statement and this list. We'll answer everything in writing.