A quick and dirty guide on how to go about when choosing a solution for accepting card payments for your business. WHICH CREDIT CARD TERMINAL FOR YOUR BUSINESS? 5 ESSENTIALS FOR A SMART CHOICE. Useful tips on how to choose your Credit Card Terminal and what you should pay attention to when choosing your supplier.

1. WHICH CREDIT CARD TERMINAL FOR YOUR BUSINESS?
5 ESSENTIALS FOR A SMART CHOICE
First a few facts: more than 165 million payment cards (credit, debit, charge and ATM) were
in circulation in the UK at the end of 2011, for a population of 60-65 million souls. Sixty-two
percent of UK adults possessed a credit or charge card, and a whopping 90 percent had a
debit card.
So it’s safe to say that card payments are an undeniable fact of
life in the UK. Your local chemist and even the corner
newsagent are joining the ranks of retailers offering customers
the convenience and security of debit and credit card payment
for everyday items. If you want to keep your customers coming,
you clearly need a card payment terminal. In order to make a
proper choice for your particular business, you’ll just need to
keep a few basic facts in mind.
1) KNOW YOUR P-D-Q’s
Most card terminals run on PDQ technology (“Parallel Data Query” or “Process Data Quickly”), which breaks down the
transaction validation query into pieces so that several parts of it can be searched simultaneously. PDQ terminals speed
card transaction processing, with most terminals able to process a payment in less than six seconds. They can be
connected or wireless, using IP, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or GPRS to query the merchant bank to authorize a transaction.
PDQ machines can run off business broadband or a mobile network at no extra cost for connection. Using business
broadband also means the number of PDQ machines in use can be increased without additional cost during busy
periods. This offers a big advantage to hospitality and leisure businesses that take payments from customers at tables or
at multiple locations on their premises.
Where can you use a PDQ machine?
Being able to process card payments within seconds can help boost customer traffic and sales. PDQ machines are well
adapted to several transaction markets:
• Trade fairs and exhibitions
• Hotels, restaurants, cafes, takeaways, ice food stalls, bars and
clubs
• Outdoor businesses such as gardening centres, markets, beach
sellers and kiosks
• Small retailers like newsagents, sandwich bars and beauty
parlours
• Sole traders like hairdressers and beauticians, and trades
people like plumbers or electricians

2. What features should you insist on?
The main features to look for when choosing your PDQ machine include the following:
• A thermal printer for fast printing
• Abbreviated credit card numbers on receipts for added security
• A long-life battery with charging dock option
• Fast recharging (under an hour, preferably), plus an in-car battery charger
• Chip and PIN technology for added security
• Fast merchant processing services – e.g., payments within three working days
Other options
• “Wave-and-pay” processing technology for transactions under £15
• Optional Bluetooth technology to enable you to connect to a PDA
• Cheque warranty add-on (e.g., TRANSAX)
• A capability to integrate into other payment systems such as EPoS or countertop terminals
• Hosted merchant accounts with Web reporting for automatic transaction logging
2) CHIP AND PIN SECURITY
Chip and PIN refers to the EMV (Europay MasterCard Visa)
smartcard payment system for debit, credit and ATM cards.
“Chip” refers to a computer chip embedded in the card, and
“PIN” stands for the Personal Identification Number the
customer must supply to confirm his or her identity as the
owner of the card. Chip and PIN technology began to replace
signatures as a validation method in 2004, and has since
expanded to become a ubiquitous payment solution in UK
shops.
What types of Chip and PIN terminals are available?
Chip and PIN card machines for small business may include
fixed-countertop and mobile solutions which can operate at
restaurants or multi-site business premises. Chip and PIN
technology evolves continuously, and you have several
options for a payment terminal that provides a flexible card
processing solution that will save your business both time and money.
Contactless Chip and PIN
Contactless terminals are typically used to process sales under £15. They use wave-and-pay technology, with the
customer simply holding the card in front of the reader which registers the transaction in seconds. This can speed up
your business’s small transactions volume.
Fixed countertop Chip and PIN
Countertop payment terminals have become small and compact, meaning that SMEs with limited counter space can
now deal with a wide range of payments at checkout without having to hire extra staff. The rapidity of these readers
ensures a fast turnaround and helps prevent impatient customers from walking out before making their purchase.

3. EPoS Chip and PIN
Electronic Point of Sale systems are integrated business solutions
that can be linked to other business software such as CRM, stock
control and security systems. By integrating all aspects of an SME
into one business solution, EPoS does the work of several employees
– reducing payroll costs – and also logs and cross-references data
automatically.
Mobile (GPRS) Chip and PIN
Mobile card payment terminals are essential to small or home
offices, telephone order businesses, sole traders, and SMEs working
in open-air environments. The reader uses mobile technology or is connected to a mobile phone using a virtual (hosted)
merchant service. Mobile readers can be charged in a vehicle or using a dock. They are capable of processing up to 300
transactions on a single charge.
Portable (Bluetooth) Chip and PIN
Readers operate within a prescribed radius of the main payment terminal or base station. They are most commonly
used in restaurants, bars, clubs and hotels, allowing payment at the table or away from the main till. Portable Chip and
PIN card readers are designed for a wide range of conditions, with backlit screens and keypads for poor lighting
conditions. Portable terminals also record transaction automatically, helping to reduce paperwork.
Touch-screen Chip and PIN
Configured with pre-programmed icons, touch-screen terminals speed up payment and reduce mistakes at the till.
Touch-screen technology is common in retail shops, restaurants and cafes where there is a fast turnaround of customers
and items may need to be altered quickly as a result of changes in stock.
3) TECHNICAL ASPECTS
There are several factors to take into account when
choosing your card processing machine:
Portability
• Countertop (fixed), portable (works within a
radius), mobile (works wherever there is a GPRS
signal) or flexible (a combination of fixed and
portable or mobile).
Display
• LCD resolution is measured in pixels; more pixels means sharper display-screen resolution. A high-contrast
screen with white backlighting can be used in poor lighting conditions, especially if the keypad is backlit.
Memory
• More memory means more transactions, processed at greater speed. Most PDQ card processors average 3-6
seconds per transaction. Memory on a typical card terminal will range from 6MB to 24MB and will comprise
both Flash memory and SRAM memory.

4. Modem
• Card terminals now come with a range of connection options, with some offering both GPRS and Bluetooth or
GPRS and Wi-Fi as standard or as options. This means your card processing machine can be used in multiple
locations, e.g., indoors and at open air events.
Regulatory compliance
• Your card processing machine should comply with PCI (Payment Card Industry) and PED (PIN Entry Device)
security requirements. And of course you’ll want to make sure it accepts all major cards such as Mastercard,
Visa, Amex and debit cards.
4) MERCHANT CARD SERVICES
Your businesses will need a merchant account in order to use Chip and PIN payment
processing for card payments. The bank will charge a monthly fee for the facility as well
as a percentage of each card transaction. Look for add-ons such as e-Commerce
processing if your business trades online, or fee-per-batch if you do high volume, which
may be cheaper than fee-per-transaction charges.
Merchant service providers will usually supply you with (a) Chip and PIN machine(s) as
part of your merchant services account. It’s also possible to set up a merchant account
and buy or lease a Chip and PIN machine separately. Details of service plans will vary,
so it’s important to do some comparative shopping before choosing your merchant
service plan.
What should you look for in your merchant account?
• A business overview to analyse where savings might be made in your business
• Low transaction fees which may go below 1% per transaction, depending on your volume
• Service plans without set-up fees, early-termination fees, or terminal leasing fees
• Flexibility if you occasionally work special events such as trade fairs; look for providers that offer merchant
services and card processing terminals on an irregular basis
• Access to a reliable help desk and support centre is always desirable
5) KEEP AN EYE ON NEW TECHNOLOGIES
Chip and PIN technology is lurching forward, particularly in the PDA domain. Growing numbers of retailers and
individuals are using mobile phones and tablets to make and accept card payments.
Turning your smart phone into a till
Using a mobile phone handset as a payment terminal is
increasingly popular. Providers like Square in the United
States and SumUp in the UK offer devices that enable smart
phones to process Chip and PIN transactions anywhere a
mobile network connection is available. Users download an
application onto their phone to scan barcodes and manage
stock and billing. An additional piece of hardware attaches
to the handset to process card payments.

5. The potential advantages smart phone terminals are enormous:
• Sales assistants equipped with the device could take payments for
purchases anywhere in the store at the moment a customer decides to buy.
This could dramatically accelerate sales by eliminating the need for queuing
and avoiding lost sales that result when customers have time to reconsider
on their way to the till.
• Receipts can be emailed from the Smartphone terminal directly to the
customer.
• As mobile networks continue to expand throughout town and country,
mobile Chip and PIN transactions will no longer be limited to traditional
retail premises.
• The handset can provide brands with a platform to advertise special offers,
promotions, directions to their stores, or other sales-generating
information.