Because it’s a huge business more and more banks and merchant service firms are competing for your business. Here are some things you need to know about merchant services.

A) Every bank and merchant provider charges a monthly fee. Some state it’s for your monthly statement, some just say it’s an additional fee for account. Either way, it ranges from $5.00 to $25 per month. You will get separate statements for Visa/MasterCard (from your merchant provider), American Express (from AmEx directly) and Discover (from Discover directly).

B) There is a discount fee. A discount fee is percent of transaction merchant provider will take for doing business with them. Right now it ranges from 2% to 3%. Visa/MasterCard have one discount fee, American Express another and Discover yet another. (That’s reason for having three separate statements). American Express and Discover tend to have higher discount fees than Visa/MasterCard.

C) There is also a per transaction fee. This ranges from $0.15 to $0.25 per transaction. Again, American Express and Discover will have different transaction rates.

Be careful and read small print before signing application. Here are some questions to ask that have a major impact on your cash flow ~

1) How long from date of charge until money is deposited into your checking account? Some are as quick as 24 hours (that’s business hours). Some hold funds for as much as 14 days before going into your checking account.

2) At what amount will order(s) be held for verification? Some hold funds right away until they get 10-20 batches verified. Some hold anything over a set amount. I have been told that only orders over $1000 will be held. I have also been told that nothing will be released until 10 batches, regardless of size, have been verified. One merchant provider held more than $10,000 until 12 batches were verified.

What are habits of well-organised people? Can a person be 'taught' skills that will make them organised, or is that a quality you either possess or lack? We asked those questions of our readers and here are some of their responses:

"I think that natural abililty has to be coupled with good training to fully develop skills such as being organised."

"Thankfully, organisation skills are learned. The first requirement is DESIRE. The second is WORK! By consistently using such tools as a well thought out set of goals, a planner and a PRIORITISED daily "to do" list, I have made a positive difference in my personal and professional life."

"A well-organised person reviews their actions each day. They assess where mistakes were made, identifying ways to eliminate those mistakes in future. They assess areas for improvement. They also plan out their day ahead of time. These habits can be learned by anyone."