In the late 2000s, as a broke college student struggling to make ends meet, I was contacted by a merchant services company after uploading my resume to a job listings website. This company promised substantial commissions and ongoing residual income for simply persuading businesses to accept credit card payments. It seemed straightforward enough—after all, what business doesn’t need to process credit card payments? Following a phone interview with a persuasive “sales director,” I found myself embarking on what I believed would be an easy job that would significantly boost my bank account with reliable monthly income and large sales commissions. However, the lessons I learned would profoundly change my life in ways I could never have imagined.
After completing my sales training, I hit the ground running, eager to make sales. This broke college student was determined to improve his financial situation! My first attempt at a cold call, with no prior appointment, ended with a burly man in his 50s yelling at me to leave, claiming he had been “totally robbed” by someone like me before. As I hastily exited, puzzled and intimidated by his reaction, I couldn’t help but wonder what he meant. Throughout the day, I encountered similar hostility from other business owners, all expressing disdain for the industry I had been so excited to join that morning. Confused and curious, I decided to shift my approach from selling to listening.
I quickly uncovered that the merchant services sector was riddled with unethical practices, including hidden fees, deceptive marketing, fine-print traps, and much more. It dawned on me that I had nearly been tricked by a dubious company into selling overpriced services under contracts with long-term commitments, all without being fully aware of what I was promoting. Outraged, I resigned from that company but learned that there were indeed ethical credit card processing companies that treated their clients fairly. Over the next four years, I worked for one such company, assisting hundreds of businesses in securing cost-effective processing solutions. Yet, I also met many more who had been misled and trapped in onerous service agreements. Determined to help people steer clear of these unscrupulous providers, I launched this website in my spare time, dedicating myself to researching and sharing my findings on every merchant account provider I could investigate.
Gradually, more and more business owners began to discover my articles. As word spread, search engines started to rank my content highly, amplifying its reach. My efforts were making a difference! Eventually, the website garnered enough traffic to enable me to leave my job and focus on it full-time, a journey that has now spanned over a decade. This path has not been without its challenges; unscrupulous company owners have tried to intimidate and sue me into silence on several occasions. Yet, I have stood firm against each threat. Here I am, continuing to publish reviews and articles, hoping to safeguard others from the pitfalls of the credit card processing industry.
If you believe in my mission and wish to contribute, please share my articles on your websites and social media. Thank you for visiting!
Bill Hagerty
Have been with 1NPS since Dec. of 2011 and in Aug. of this year (2016) decided not to do credit cards anymore in my business. Contacted 1NPS and I did the paper work to terminate my relationship with them. In a few shorts days they debited my account $295.00. This should only had happened if I had been with them less than a year.
I have contacted them in regards to this with no results. Also sent them the original contract showing them when I signed up.
No fair and not good business practices.
I would not recommend this company to anyone needing a merchant provider.
Michael Cho
I am with 1st national solution company for more than 10 years. I am paying $26.00 a flat month fee instead of $5.00 a flat month fee Mr. Giovanni claims. I decide to use PayPa credit company. They are trying to charge me $200.00 for 6 month short of contract, which I knew nothing about. I will not introduce my friends to “1st national payment solution” anymore.
Michael DiGiovanni
Hi Philip,
I like what you are doing here. I have a similar site in the works. If you sift through my site you will see in the merchant academy section (formerly buyer beware) I have written many articles over the past 16 years addressing deceptive business practices of my competitors who have blackened the eye of the industry. I hope you locate any and all of these companies and treat them accordingly.
Also please note that every merchant that signs up with our company is aware of every single rate and fee that may apply to their account. Our motto since inception has always been Superior Service and Support along with Honesty, Integrity & Full Disclosure. Yes, I do have contracts but we are flexible hence the 1,2, and 3 year agreements. I am even empowered to waive contracts and ETFs and we do that quite often. The ETF fee is our protection against losses we may sustain due to Free Terminal & POS Placements where we give up hundreds sometimes thousands up front to board an account, much like a cell phone provider giving away an $800 I Phone. I don’t think it is very fair to penalize me with a C- for that, but I guess its your scale and it applies to everyone. The problem is most of the competition does not make their terms and conditions readily available to merchants as we do. One more thing, you note the PCI Fee and I Access Fee at I Payment / First National Processing. Please be advised through my other Vendor Woodforest we offer a flat monthly fee of $5.00 per month with no other monthly fees, no annual fees, no PCI Fees and no IRS fees. This is our primary provider.
Please see below and update your records accordingly.
I have multiple locations land the NY Address has changed. New Suite #
NEW YORK CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS
40 Underhill Blvd Ste LA1 Syosset NY 11791 Tel: 877-964-1622 Fax 231-941-4204
MICHIGAN BRANCH OFFICE est 2008
120 Boardman Ave, Traverse City MI 49684 Tel: 877-964-1622 Fax 231-941-4204
CA BRANCH OFFICE
32530 Hupa Drive, Temcula, CA 92592
Thank you. Keep up the good work
P.S. I am very interested in leads you may be generating from your site. I would pay for them and you would be assured that your are sending the merchant to a company that would give them bottom line pricing and fair treatment.
Sincerely,
Michael Di Giovanni
President
1st National Payment Solutions
http://www.1nps.com
[email protected]