Merchant Advice Service, a provider of card payment advice, has launched a new solution-led approach in a move to help empower businesses to secure their next best merchant account, developed with input from experts who have previously worked on the development of comparison site MoneySuperMarket.
The new Merchant Advice Service approach, dubbed ‘The Payments Directory’, will aim to help business owners narrow down their search for card payments, business banking or merchant cash advance options, to the most relevant options to suit their requirements through filtering and algorithms.
The Payments Directory already lists 35 providers, including Worldpay, Paysafe, Trust Payments and Total Processing, with the team working towards listing over 200 providers by the end of the year.
Libby James, founder of the Merchant Advice Service
“Having started working on The Payment Directory back in March as a direct result of my frustrations around the lack of transparency and education available to business owners navigating the complex landscape of financial services, I’m incredibly excited to be able to launch an entirely self-serve solution,” explained Libby James, founder of Merchant Advice Services.
“I know it’s going to cause a stir in the industry, with this being the first time that this information has been released to businesses allowing them to take control, do the research and get educated on financial services by themselves, but I want to empower businesses and help them to understand the process and the industry better.”
To use the Directory, businesses need to input the relevant filters for their needs; selecting a category that suits their payment needs, along with geographical region, monthly turnover and the type of industry they’re in, and integration requirements, with some categories also requiring the location of the business or director.
Empowering and educating businesses
Using the Directory, businesses can compare financial services and products suited to their requirements, from business banking, cash advances and direct debits through to EPOS, merchant accounts and payment gateways.
Before the launch of The Payments Directory, this information wasn’t readily available to businesses without the need for a broker.
By providing this information free of charge, Merchant Advice Service hopes to empower and educate businesses, ensuring they understand all aspects of payments, banking and finance options available to them, allowing them to make informed decisions, and streamlining the operations process.
Free from any external influences or biases, the Directory aims to prioritise a business’s interest, ensuring the guidance and recommendations offered are impartial and focused on finding the best solutions to fit the business. It’s a platform that’s capable of servicing businesses of all sizes, including those with complex or high-risk requirements.
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