Merchant Services Adventure
Question.
You've had a merchant service through Quickbooks for a year and a half in your brick and mortar store. Wouldn't you think you could use that same merchant service to accept credit card payments through your new web site? The answer in my case was NO.
I only thought I had Quickbooks Merchant Service but apparently had only a hybrid used exclusively for Quickbooks POS. It only took me about a week to figure that one out through no help from Quickbooks. So, I filled out an application for a new account, it was approved and I received a congratulatory email. Life is good, huh?
Only a few simple steps and I'll be up and running. My email tells me to create a login to the Quickbooks web site. Done. Next I'm supposed to login and "activate" my account. I login. Nothing. No link or helpful hint that says anything about "activating" my account...?? What the heck?
I go back to my GoDaddy shopping cart thinking I need to do the verification there. I click Verify. Not able to verify. Apparently I don't exist. I click the seemingly helpful link provided by GoDaddy to the Quickbooks site. It asks me to login. Second verse same as the first... it's a CIRCLE and I'm stuck in it!
I searched for help on the Quickbooks support site which past experience should tell me will only succeed in raising my blood pressure a notch or two... and I'm usually a pretty calm person. No luck and I'm not sure why I even tried. I call the 800 number for Quickbooks Merchant Service 24/7 support. They will surely be able to help me. Five minutes on hold and I'm connected to a young man that asks me to open my Quickbooks software. I'm 250 miles away and I'm at my day job so this is not an option right now. He doesn't seem to appreciate this and wants to know where I am...???
I ask what he wants me to do once I get home and can access Quickbooks. He is keeping it a secret. He scolds me and tries talking to me like a small child by saying "I told you to open your Quickbooks software!". This would have only been better if he had ended that sentence with "this instant, young lady!". I hang up on him and go to Quickbooks web site to complain. I vented my frustration about great software with zero support and documentation. I feel better but still don't have my merchant service "activated".
Finally, I do what I should have done first. I searched for "activate" on the merchant service web site and got a small clue. This clue led me to another clue and soon I had something that seemed like it might work. To "activate" my merchant service, I needed to open my Quickbooks Financial software. Easy so far. I need to click on the "Customers" menu at the top of the page (sorry but this was not so intuitive). I go to "accept credit cards" or something similar and click. Voila! It takes me to the Quickbooks web site and I log in using my newly created login. I am officially activated!!!!!!! It only took a couple of weeks of spare time.
Here's where it gets good. A few days later I get a message on my cell phone. "Hi. This is Leo from Quickbooks Merchant Service. I just wanted to let you know that it looks like everything has been resolved!". Still laughing...:-)
Till next time, Sandy
