American Express has changed the way your business can accept AMEX payments… again!

This change could benefit you by allowing you to get a lower rate than what you’re currently paying!

Introducing the newest program from American Express… The American Express OptBlue program!

In the past an AMEX sponsored program called “One Point” allowed for direct integration between AMEX and merchant account processing companies.

The One Point program helped you [the business owner] get your money quicker but didn’t do much for the cost of accepting AMEX payments.

In addition, if you currently accept American Express payments and you’re NOT using the One Point program, you know that it usually takes about 3-5 business days to receive your deposits AND you get a separate statement directly from AMEX each month.

The extra couple of days and higher rates, relative to Visa, Mastercard and Discover rates, are  typically enough to cause disgruntled viewpoints from business owners across the nation on whether accepting American Express payments is worth the cost.

So what is the biggest change with American Express OptBlue?

Well, let’s look at the top three reasons that I believe this is a game changer for accepting AMEX payments at your business.

1- You can now get your money faster!

Instead of 3-5 business days, you should receive your AMEX deposits in 24-48 hours!

If you are enrolled in the OptBlue program, you will get your deposits in the same timeframe as your Visa, MasterCard and Discover deposits.

2- You’ll get ONE statement!

You can say goodbye to the extra statement from AMEX each month. OptBlue allows your merchant account provider to conveniently list AMEX deposits on your statement each month!  Much simpler!

3- It could be cheaper!

Typically, AMEX has rates are as high as 3.50%, but with this new program, AMEX has given select merchant account processing companies the ability to adjust the rates on your behalf!

While there are still some limitations, there is a LOT more flexibility than there was before.

Recently I did an Opt Blue conversion for one of my clients and was able to drop her rate from 2.95% all the way down to 2.25%, which is an amazing effective rate for AMEX!

It will remain at this 2.25% moving forward for her.

While the rate does still depend upon your type of business (specifically the SIC code that your business operates under) and how you accept cards from customers, I can almost guarantee you can get a lower rate as a result.

There’s One Catch To All Of This

Involvement in the OptBlue program requires that your business to process LESS than $1,000,000 in American Express volume per year!

If you’re above that mark, you already know that you  have a direct AMEX representative to service your account.

Now’s The Time

Wwhether or not you currently accept AMEX cards or you have not been accepting them because of the inconveniences mentioned above, now is the perfect opportunity to make the upgrade.

So in the end, accepting American Express payments just got easier! You really have nothing to lose; you get quicker deposits, one statement and possibly a lower rate.

Who can argue with that?

If you have questions about what your new and lower rate could be, just click here to book a consultation with a member of our team.