If you have a small business, you probably want to be able to take credit cards. They allow your customers to be more flexible about what’s on their shopping lists, and you don’t have the worries you might about bounced cheques. If you are a small or home based business, you may have to pay fees at a higher rate than a large or established business.

In general, the length of time you’ve been in business, and the percentage of sales you make over the internet or phone, and the type of business you’re in will affect the rates and fees you will have to pay card processing services. For home and small businesses, rates of 2.25 to 3% are typical. There are processing companies that will ask 5%, but you shouldn’t accept it unless all other possibilities for a lower rate have been exhausted.

Three options for credit card processing in Ireland are PayPal, Realex, and USBSwiper.com

If you already have a PayPal account, you can set up with their Pro Solutions service and take credit cards online. It is really easy to do, but you may balk at the fees you pay. However, if you don’t need to process very many online credit card orders, it could be worthwhile.

Realex Payments has offices in Dublin, London, and Paris, and does payment processing for over 3,000 clients. Realex specializes in payment processing for online businesses, and works with Aer Lingus, Virgin Atlantic, and Vodafone. You can apply online and Realex will get in touch with you about what they can offer you and the pricing schedule.

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Depending how you interpret the word “design,” you can pick a “best” in many ways. If you’re looking for a credit card that looks nice, then there are credit card issuers like Capital One whose platinum MasterCards can be personalized in many different ways. However, if you get a credit card with the lowest interest rate that does not have a “smart chip” as some European Visa cards do, you can personalize your card in an almost infinite number of ways with credit card skins.

Think of credit card skins like the “skins” that people choose to dress up their iPod. It’s like a wardrobe of tiny clothing that won’t keep your card from working like it’s supposed to (unless you have a “smart chip” Visa). Credit card skins are basically super thin stickers that you apply to the front of your card with a hole over where your name, card number, and expiration date go.

There are websites where you can choose from a dizzying array of credit card skins with every kind of graphic or message you can imagine, from gay pride to preppy Argyle designs. Creditcovers.com has hundreds of designs to choose from and an opportunity to make your own design and make royalties from it if it sells.

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If you have a small business, you probably want to be able to take credit cards. They allow your customers to be more flexible about what’s on their shopping lists, and you don’t have the worries you might about bounced cheques. If you are a small or home based business, you may have to pay fees at a higher rate than a large or established business.

In general, the length of time you’ve been in business, and the percentage of sales you make over the internet or phone, and the type of business you’re in will affect the rates and fees you will have to pay card processing services. For home and small businesses, rates of 2.25 to 3% are typical. There are processing companies that will ask 5%, but you shouldn’t accept it unless all other possibilities for a lower rate have been exhausted.

Three options for credit card processing in Ireland are PayPal, Realex, and USBSwiper.com

If you already have a PayPal account, you can set up with their Pro Solutions service and take credit cards online. It is really easy to do, but you may balk at the fees you pay. However, if you don’t need to process very many online credit card orders, it could be worthwhile.

Realex Payments has offices in Dublin, London, and Paris, and does payment processing for over 3,000 clients. Realex specializes in payment processing for online businesses, and works with Aer Lingus, Virgin Atlantic, and Vodafone. You can apply online and Realex will get in touch with you about what they can offer you and the pricing schedule.

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There’s nothing unique about Irish credit card debt compared to credit card debt elsewhere in the world. It is true that Ireland has suffered more than other countries in the worldwide recession, but even with a new economic reality, getting rid of Irish credit card debt is similar to getting rid of any other debt: it is a matter of commitment and hard work.

Most people, particularly if they travel, cannot do without a credit card. They can, however, do without eight or nine credit cards. Most money experts suggest having two credit cards, both of which provide a backstop in times of trouble. For those with multiple credit cards, there are several options for paying off your debt.

One option is transferring debt onto a new credit card with a low introductory interest rate and putting all your effort into paying that debt off before the “teaser” interest rate expires. It sounds like a great idea in principle, but if you can’t pay off €4,000 indefinitely with 14.9% interest, it isn’t that much more likely you’ll be able to pay it off in the 10 months or so that you have the low rate on the new card.

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