Inside Helcim

What Does a Product Designer Really Do?

As the Helcim Team has worked through the most recent updates to our software and user interface, I have been forced to think about the role of product designers in an organization.

Inside Helcim

Why We’re Switching to an Agile Approach to Software Development

To improve how we deliver changes to our software, we are going to move away from making changes on a case by case basis and instead approach new features and software improvements using Agile development.

Inside Helcim

Coming Soon! New Helcim User Interface

We will soon be releasing a new UI (user interface) and a major user experience upgrade to our merchants.

Payments News

CFIB and Mastercard Discontinuing Preferential Interchange Agreement

Mastercard has announced that they are ending their preferred interchange rates for merchants who are a member of CFIB (the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses) according to a recent update from the organizations.

The Helcim Vlog

A Summary of High Output Management by Andy Grove

Small Business Center

How Online Payments Can Benefit Small Businesses

Businesses of all sizes can benefit from offering online payment options for their customers

Understanding Payments

Have You Heard of the Overpayment Scam?

We’ve noticed a recent resurgence in popularity for the Overpayment Scam. The con involves fraudsters paying for a purchase with a stolen credit card, then requesting that you either forward some of the funds to a third-party or refund the purchase to a different form of payment.

Using Helcim

Pull Annual Sales Tax Reports from Your Helcim Account

Helcim merchants are now able to pull a sales tax report that includes the sales tax data for a full calendar year.

Understanding Payments

Your Interchange Fee Questions Answered

Here are some common questions related to the interchange fee that can help you better understand the payment processing fees your business is paying.

The Helcim Vlog

Helcim's Culture and Expectations

I believe it is the CEO’s responsibility to set the tone on culture and what expectations for behavior are at the company so that every new hire has a chance to succeed and thrive.

Understanding Payments

Debunking 6 Myths About Accepting Chip Credit Cards

If you’re new to accepting payments, or if your business operates in a region where swiping cards is still in fashion, then you may have heard some myths or misconceptions about accepting and using EMV enabled cards for payments.

The Helcim Vlog

Working in Payments is Awesome

On the surface, you might wonder how working in the payment processing industry could be exciting. Talking about credit and debit cards, Visa and Mastercard, interchange rates and bank reconciliation wouldn’t seem like a very popular conversation at a cocktail party. But I want to scratch past the surface and show how payment companies operate in a unique place in the world of business.

Understanding Payments

Prevent Card Present Fraud

If you’re regularly accepting credit cards in person, then you can use these tips to help you identify transactions that might be fraudulent and how to respond to them swiftly.

Understanding Payments

How Your Role in a Credit Card Transaction Changes Your Risk

Understanding where the unique risks lie for each entity involved in a transaction can help you better understand the fees you pay as a merchant, the processes - both apparent and hidden - you’re involved in each time you process a credit card, and your business’ general place in how it all works.

Payments News

Are Credit Card Signatures Becoming a Thing of the Past?

Amex, Mastercard, and Discover have all stated that merchants can stop requesting signatures as of April 13th, and Visa is expected to follow suit shortly. The change applies to customers in multiple countries depending on the card brand.

Payments News

Terminal Update Gives US Merchants Lower Debit Processing Rates

Helcim’s partner bank Elavon has issued a software update so that when terminals detect a debit card, the terminal will auto-select the debit network.

Understanding Payments

Best Practices for Card-Not-Present Transactions

There are a few best practices you can follow to help protect your business from inadvertently processing a fraudulent card-not-present transaction and to help protect your business and your customer’s personal information.

Understanding Payments

End-to-End Encryption for the Payment Industry

End-to-end encryption also referred to as E2EE, is a common process for securing communications that are being sent between two different people or companies to help protect the information from being accessed from an unauthorized third party while it’s being transmitted.

Small Business Center

Online Payment Trends for 2019

As ecommerce sales continue to increase and customers become more familiar with what a good online customer experience is, it’ll become more important than ever for businesses who are operating in the online space to know what the online payment trends are and how the trends can be adopted by their businesses.

Small Business Center

Ask an Entrepreneur - Lessons from Founders Vol. 6

For the final volume of the Founders series, we passed the microphone over to the audience to let them take control of the event and ask questions from our panel.

Small Business Center

The Future of Point-of-Sale Systems

Knowing what the latest trends are for POS systems, can help you keep your hardware and software up to date, ensuring you have the tools needed to provide the best possible customer experience as well as giving you the sales and customer insights that will help you make informed business decisions.

Understanding Payments

Introducing the Merchant’s Guide to Credit Card Processing

Now anyone who is looking to get a complete overview of how payment processing works or wants to know what goes into selecting a payment processor can download our comprehensive free guide to Understanding Payments.

Understanding Payments

Flat Rate Pricing | What They Don't Tell You

Flat Rate pricing simply means that the credit card processor is charging you one flat rate for all of your credit card transactions, regardless of the interchange rate fluctuating based on the card type.

Small Business Center

Payment Tools Retail Merchants Often Overlook

With today’s technology, businesses of any size are now able to access innovative tools that used to only be available for large enterprise size businesses with bloated budgets. While you may have just needed to accept card payments initially, there is a whole host of options that are opened up to you once you sign up for a merchant account that can really help you save time.

Understanding Payments

Common Misconceptions About Credit Card Processing

There are a few common misconceptions about credit card processing that we hear quite regularly, and we would like to help clear them up so you can avoid any potential frustration in the future if you come across any of these scenarios.

Inside Helcim

Founders Calgary Vol. 6: Ask Us Anything

Ask three successful entrepreneurs all your burning business questions at the April Founders event.

Small Business Center

Mobile Commerce Considerations for Your Business

Mobile commerce, or mcommerce, refers to payments made using smartphones or tablets, and it is the natural progression of ecommerce as more and more consumers have access to mobile devices.

Small Business Center

Technology Tools for Businesses - Lessons from Founders Vol. 5

Our February Founders panel was focused on the topic of technology, and the consensus of the evening was that today every business is a technology company and that all business owners should look to technology to help them execute their roles better.

Understanding Payments

What is Credit Card Tokenization?

Credit card tokenization is the process used to create a token to represent a customer’s credit card, this token is an alphanumeric string of characters that represent that customer’s credit card.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Don't be Tricked into Switching Providers by These Sales Pitches

High-pressure sales tactics may be used by some ISO’s (Independent Sales Organizations) when they’re speaking to potential merchants and trying to get them to sign up for payment processing.

Understanding Payments

What are NFC Payments?

It’s likely that you commonly understand NFC payments as “Tap and Pay” or simply “Tap,” but NFC stands for near field communication and refers to the technology employed to complete these types of transactions.

Understanding Payments

Equipment Solutions for Card Present Transactions

These hardware options should give you a good understanding to get started with taking payments in person. The most important things to remember is to select hardware that works for your business and that accepts payment types that your customers are comfortable using.

Understanding Payments

What You Need to Know About Deposits

If you’ve signed up for a merchant account, then you’ve probably looked into the deposit options offered by your payment processor. The funds your business receives from credit and debit card sales aren’t instantly transferred to your business’s bank account, it's important to know exactly when they’re deposited, and when you will have access to them.

Understanding Payments

Helcim FYI – What is a Point-of-Sale System?

Retail brick-and-mortar businesses typically use a Point-of-Sale, or POS, to facilitate their day to day transactions. A POS is a system of interconnected devices that can be made up of a cash register, iPad, computer system, credit card terminal, printer, bar code scanner, and other various components that support face to face transactions.

Inside Helcim

Merchants of Helcim – Zoran Dobric

To reach more customers across Canada and abroad, Zoran uses Helcim for his online store and ecommerce sales. As a niche designer, the ability to reach more customers in different regions and countries is very beneficial for Zoran and allows him to expand his customer base beyond just his local hub. He describes Helcim’s online store as being amazingly easy to use and that the sleek aesthetic aligns well with his fashion brand.

Understanding Payments

What are EMV Payments?

Transactions with EMV cards are commonly referred to as “Chip and Dip” or “Chip and Pin” because the cardholder is required to insert their card into the terminal and enter their pin to successfully process a transaction.

Understanding Payments

Understanding Payment Gateways

Payment gateways allow you to integrate credit card processing into your website so your customers can pay for their purchases with their preferred payment method.

Understanding Payments

Understanding Declines for Credit Card Processing

When a credit card is approved during a transaction, it is the customer’s issuing bank, not the processor or the card network, that is approving the card. Similar to how a transaction is approved, when a credit card is declined, it is typically declined by the cardholder’s issuing bank, as they are the entity that decides the outcome of the transaction.

Understanding Payments

What is an Acquirer?

If you accept credit card payments, there is a good chance you have heard the term acquirer or acquiring bank. Each of these terms is referencing the bank that completes credit card processing on your business’s side, or the merchant side, of the transaction.

Understanding Payments

What is the Difference Between an Acquiring Bank and an Issuing Bank?

Acquiring banks and issuing banks (sometimes referred to as “acquirers” and “issuers,” respectively) are two important institutions in the credit card processing ecosystem.

Understanding Payments

Understanding the Different Payment Processing Pricing Structures

One of the most important considerations when selecting a payment processor for your business is which pricing structure they offer, or simply, how they bill you for your processing.

Inside Helcim

Founders Calgary Vol. 5: Up Your Tech Game

Understanding Payments

Interchange Plus Pricing Explained

In interchange plus pricing, the merchant passes on the fluctuating interchange rates to the merchant, while their margin fee will be charged on top as a consistent, set rate for each transaction.

Choosing a Payment Processor

How Do I Know Which Payment Provider is Right for My Business?

Choosing a Payment Processor

Don’t Overpay for Credit Card Processing

You can help save your business money before you even sign up with a processor by doing your research and shopping around for a payment provider armed with the knowledge of what to look for with regard to processing rates and fees.

Payments News

Contactless Payments Gaining Popularity in the US

This year, US consumers can expect to upgrade many of their debit and credit cards to include tap and pay functionality, also known as NFC technology.

Understanding Payments

What You Need to Know About Batches and Settlements

The batches will reconcile all your transactions in a given timeframe and combine them into a total, while the settlement of that batch is the process that deposits the money into your bank account.

Understanding Payments

An Overview of Credit Card Processing Transaction Types

Here is an overview of the different types of transactions you might process if you accept credit card payments.

Small Business Center

Marketing Your Business - Lessons from Founders Vol. 4

Marketing is something that all business owners have to tackle, often from the very early stages when they may have just launched in the market. Today’s businesses are also putting more consideration into how they can use their platform to give back to their communities or to the charities that mean the most to them. These were the topics that we tackled in the fourth volume of Founders.

Understanding Payments

5 Benefits of Accepting Credit Cards

Whether you’re just starting out and debating which payment methods you’d like to accept, or you have a more established business that has been able to avoid accepting credit cards up until now, there is certainly a strong case to be made for accepting credit cards. Here are five ways that accepting credit cards can help your business.

Understanding Payments

Common Myths About PCI Compliance

PCI Compliance is an often-misunderstood aspect of payment processing, especially for business owners who are new to accepting credit cards.

Understanding Payments

An Overview of High-Risk Credit Card Processing

Payment processors are not all the same, they often have their own unique areas of specialization where they can best meet the needs of specific businesses or markets. This is especially true when it comes to finding a payment processor for high-risk merchants.

Inside Helcim

Founders Calgary Vol. 4: Marketing and Social Good

We’ve brought together three entrepreneurs that are running three very different businesses but who all share a common drive of having an impact on the communities they operate in.

Using Helcim

What is a Virtual Terminal?

Virtual Terminals are web-based interfaces that let you accept credit card payments.

Understanding Payments

What is PCI Compliance?

PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) is a set of standards designed to ensure that credit card information remains safe and is captured and transmitted in a secure way.

Using Helcim

WooCommerce Payment Integration with Helcim

We are excited to share that we have a new integration option available for merchants who are using WooCommerce as their website or online store.

Understanding Payments

Becoming PCI Compliant

There’s no doubt that PCI can get a bad rap, especially if you don’t know why you need to be compliant or how PCI is designed to help protect your customers and your business.

Using Helcim

Rezgo Integration Now Supported on Helcim Commerce

Recent updates to the Rezgo platform now allow Helcim Commerce users to use the integration.

Using Helcim

Ecwid Payment Integration for Helcim

If you’re using Ecwid as your eCommerce shopping cart, you can now add Helcim as a Payment Processor when you’re setting up your account.

Small Business Center

How Today’s Customers Want to Pay

Knowing how today’s customers want to pay for purchases can help your business improve efficiency as well as your customer experience during the checkout process.

Payments News

Visa and Mastercard Announce Rate Adjustment for January 2019

Visa and Mastercard have both announced rate adjustments effective January 1, 2019. Visa has announced that their base assessment fee will increase to 0.09% from the current 0.08% and Mastercard has announced a reduction to the Mastercard interchange rates.

Small Business Center

Funding Your Business - Lessons from Founders Vol. 3

Talking about money can be an uncomfortable topic, but the Founders series was designed to touch on all the different topics entrepreneurs have to face, and that includes talking about getting financing or funding for your business.

Understanding Payments

What is the Difference Between NFC and EMV?

Cards that use EMV technology have a small computer chip implanted on the card that communicates with the terminals to ensure you are not a fraudster. If a card is equipped with NFC, or Near Field Communication technology, then they are able to pay for a purchase by simply holding their card close to the terminal, essentially facilitating contactless payments.

Using Helcim

WHMCS Integration for Helcim Commerce

Now, if you use WHMCS for your web hosting automation, you can benefit from Helcim’s powerful and affordable payment processing.

Understanding Payments

Tap and Pay to Become a Primary Transaction Method

Creating a quick and easy checkout experience is beneficial for businesses looking to complete customer transactions as fast as possible such as grocery stores, quick-service restaurants, and pharmacies.

The Helcim Vlog

Crunch Time

As we’ve eluded to in previous episodes, there are a lot of big projects happening behind the scenes at Helcim. These projects have been requiring my full attention, so I had to make the decision to pull back on the frequency of the vlog while we work towards our big goals.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Choosing the Best Payment Processing Solution for Your Cannabis Business

Selecting a payment processor for cannabis retailers can be challenging. However, because accepting credit card payments is important for businesses to grow we are sharing some tips for selecting a credit card processor for your cannabis business.

Small Business Center

Is Your Business Ready for the Holiday Season?

Consumers will most likely be continuing their spending sprees up until the New Year and there are a few steps your business can take to make the most of this season of holiday spending.

Using Helcim

Magento Users Can Now Integrate with the Helcim Payment Plugin

We are excited to share that we have a new integration option available for merchants who are using Magento to host their eCommerce website.

Small Business Center

Building a Strong Company Culture - Lessons from Founders Vol. 2

Building a strong company culture, especially in the entrepreneurial startup space, is a popular topic, with varying opinions on how best to achieve your own unique culture while building an A-Team of people who can support your company’s goals and vision.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Ways Some Payment Processors Mislead Merchants

By knowing that these payment tricks exist, you can ask the right questions to see through the facades and select a payment processor who is committed to being a good partner for your business.

Using Helcim

Customize Your POS Tablet and Find Popular Products Faster

Using the Custom POS Templates, you can create customized templates highlighting certain popular products that you know customers will be buying, or that you find yourself searching for regularly, so you don’t have to sort through all the other product pages.

Understanding Payments

Why More Customers Are Misusing Chargebacks

Customers who do not understand how chargebacks fully work might unintentionally use the process to get funds returned to them when it might have been better to have contacted the business directly to dispute a transaction or obtain a refund.

Using Helcim

Drupal Payment Gateway Available with Helcim

We are excited to share that we have a new integration option available for merchants who are using Drupal as their web platform.

Inside Helcim

Founders Calgary Vol. 03: Financing Your Business

We’re back with the third edition of Founders and this month we’re talking all about Financing Your Business.

Inside Helcim

Helcim Ranks No. 98 on the 2018 Growth 500

The Helcim Team was thrilled to be listed as No. 98 on the 30th annual Growth 500, the definitive ranking of Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies.

Small Business Center

9 Ways to Spot Fraud and Avoid Processing Stolen Credit Cards

When customers commit fraud, then your business is exposed to the risk of chargebacks. By knowing what steps you can take to help mitigate the risk of fraudulent transactions and processing stolen credit card numbers, you can help protect your business.

Inside Helcim

Helcim Now Offering Payment Processing for Cannabis Retailers

Helcim is now able to provide our great payment solutions to businesses in the cannabis industry. That’s good news if you’re a cannabis retailer because you can now become a Helcim merchant and benefit from great low rates, interchange plus pricing, great customer service, and more.

Using Helcim

Avoid Manual Data Entry with Helcim’s QuickBooks Integration

By using an all-in-one platform with integration capabilities, such as Helcim Commerce, you remove the challenge of manually moving data between different systems and tracking which data has been added to which system.

Inside Helcim

Merchants of Helcim – FMI Professional Locksmiths

The Helcim Team met up with Fumi from FMI Professional Locksmiths to learn more about his business and get an inside look at what his day looks like. Fumi runs FMI Professional Locksmiths primarily as a mobile business out of his van because, as a locksmith, he needs to be able to meet people and businesses wherever they might be located.

Understanding Payments

Credit Card Processing Fees You Should be Aware Of

Outside of the processing rate, there are several per occurrence fees that might have been applied to your transactions. Understanding what each fee on your statement is, and when different fees apply can help you reconcile your statement each month.

Inside Helcim

Merchants of Helcim – MOST Physical Preparation

MOST Physical Preparation is more than just a gym, they are a movement-based fitness facility and multidisciplinary clinic that supports athletes and patients in achieving their health and fitness goals.

Understanding Payments

What is an Issuing Bank?

So, what exactly are issuing banks? An issuing bank is a bank that provides – or “issues” – the debit and credit cards to your customers, who are also known as cardholders.

Inside Helcim

Founders Calgary Vol. 02: Building an A-Team

Hiring can be challenging, and it can be especially daunting for new entrepreneurs who are getting ready to make their first hire, and that’s what Founders aims to help with.

Using Helcim

5 Ways Helcim’s Integration Tools Can Help Your Business

We understand that today’s businesses have unique needs and ambitious goals, that’s why our API’s and Developer tools give you the flexibility to use Helcim Commerce the way you need. Here are five ways Helcim’s integration tools can help your business.

Small Business Center

An Ideal POS Setup According to Helcim’s CEO

When you’re choosing a payment processor for your retail business, you also need to think about what type of point-of-sale (POS) setup will work best for your business along with what kind of equipment that would entail.

Small Business Center

Books I want the Helcim Team to Read

Here are a few of my favorite books, that I regularly recommend to the Helcim team when they’re looking for something new to read.

Understanding Payments

What is Chargeback Fraud?

If a customer makes a purchase and then deliberately files a chargeback falsely claiming the product or service was not delivered or received as described, then that is chargeback fraud.

Understanding Payments

What Do I Do If My Business Gets a Chargeback?

Understanding how your business should respond to a chargeback can be helpful in preparing you for what to do if there is ever a chargeback filed against your business.

Inside Helcim

Helcim Security Bug Bounty Program

To help with the continuous improvement of our security, we're introducing the Helcim Security Bug Bounty Program.

Understanding Payments

Chargebacks, What Your Business Needs to Know

A chargeback occurs when the cardholder contacts their financial institution to request a refund for a transaction, instead of contacting your business to raise a concern. When a cardholder files a chargeback, your business will be debited because of the request to return the funds to the cardholder’s account.

Understanding Payments

What is Friendly Fraud?

If you’re running a business that offers online sales, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of friendly fraud so you can put the necessary precautions in place to help protect your business.

Using Helcim

Quickly Accept Payments with Helcim Commerce Hosted Payment Pages

Helcim Commerce gives you the option to add Hosted Payment Pages to your website quickly and easily, so you can continue to focus on selling products, instead of worrying about how to make your online payment process work.

Small Business Center

Open-Book Management, Part 1

I recently read a book called Open-Book Management by John Case, and it had a big impact. The practice begins with showing your accounting and financials to all your employees, including detailed profit-and-loss statements and balance sheets.

Understanding Payments

Watch Out! These Types of Credit Card Fraud Could Harm Your Business

As a merchant, you want to ensure that the credit card transactions that you process are for legitimate purchases and that they are not associated with fraudulent activity. There are several different types of credit card fraud that you should be aware of.

The Helcim Vlog

I'm Ending The Helcim Weekly Vlog

We're ending the weekly vlog, and I wrote this article to share some of my lessons learned for anyone thinking of starting a vlog, and give context on my decision.

Inside Helcim

Calgary’s Growing Tech Company

I was selected as the Entrepreneur Of The Year Prairies Technology overall category winner and the award was a great testament to how far Helcim has come over the past ten years.

Small Business Center

Starting Your Business - Lessons from Founders Vol. 1

On October 15th, aspiring entrepreneurs, small business owners, hustlers, and other members of the Calgary community joined the Helcim and The Ace Class teams at Work Nicer to hear the startup stories from four passionate entrepreneurs.

Understanding Payments

What is a Chargeback?

To put it simply, a chargeback occurs when a customer initiates a dispute over the legitimacy of a credit card transaction.

Understanding Payments

What is Multi-Currency Processing?

Using Multi-Currency Processing (MCP) allows customers to pay for their purchases using their local currency no matter where the business they’re shopping at is located.

Inside Helcim

Introducing the New Helcim Blog!

You may have noticed that the Helcim Blog has undergone a significant facelift.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Advice for any New Business Looking for a Payment Processor

I wanted to share my top pieces of advice for you if you’re a new business looking for a payment processor - so you know what to ask, what to watch for and can protect yourself and your business. Whether you decide to go with Helcim or not, we choose to share advice with merchants because we’re committed to building trust in everything we do and giving people the information that they need when they need it.

The Helcim Vlog

It's a Team Effort

I want to highlight the teams of people who are often working behind the founders of companies. These people may not be as widely recognized as the entrepreneur, but they are also working very hard to help them grow their companies.

Using Helcim

Reduce Customer Attrition with Dunning Management

A Dunning Management software tool, like the one offered in Helcim Commerce, can help your business maintain a steady stream of payments.

Understanding Payments

A Quick Overview of Interchange

When you first research finding a payment processor for your business, you’re going to hear the term “interchange” frequently. This is a term that you likely have not heard before and may not be familiar with. So, what exactly is interchange? Interchange refers to the interchange fee that is charged by the card brand (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or Amex) for processing a credit card transaction.

The Helcim Vlog

The Challenging Side of Being a Business Owner

When people hear about starting a business, they tend to only focus on the positive. People can sometimes default to sharing only the positive aspects to keep things inspiring and motivational. Even for myself, I’m more tempted to share the good things over the difficult because the negative aspects can sometimes be pretty discouraging.

Inside Helcim

Founders Calgary Vol. 01: Startup Stories

Starting on October 15th we will be hosting a monthly event that focuses on some of the key challenges entrepreneurs face when they are launching their businesses.

Inside Helcim

Merchants of Helcim – Ke Charcoal Grill & Sushi

We met up with Terry, the owner of Ke Charcoal Grill & Sushi, to tour through his restaurant in this episode of Merchants of Helcim.

Understanding Payments

Accepting Payments from Customers with International Credit Cards

Your Helcim merchant account automatically allows you to accept international credit cards.

The Helcim Vlog

Finding Helcim’s Community

When we started doing this vlog we decided to really put ourselves out there and as a result, I have met more people in the last eight months than I did in my entire first ten years of business.

Payments News

Card Brands Now Require CVV Security Code

To help combat the occurrence of fraud, Visa now requires the CVV to obtain transaction authorization for all manually keyed in transactions.

Small Business Center

Three Ways Networking Can Help Your Business

Being able to network and make new connections, even when you don’t necessarily need something, can have a positive impact on your business.

The Helcim Vlog

How I Stay Motivated and Avoid Burnout

In the past few vlogs I’ve shared all the different things that I am working on, and since constantly hustling with a never-ending to-do list can be a bit tiring, I wanted to take this week to share the strategies and tools I use to stay motivated and not burn out.

Inside Helcim

Merchants of Helcim – Elite Travel Management

In this episode of Merchants of Helcim, we’re visiting Elite Travel Management. They are a corporate travel management company that helps Alberta based organizations spending between $100,000 and $5 million on travel per year consolidate their bookings and save money.

Small Business Center

Making the Most of Your Tech Internship

If you are working on completing your degree or considering pursuing a career in computer science, I would highly recommend looking into work experience opportunities.

The Helcim Vlog

Design and Functionality Go Hand in Hand

Design can sometimes end up on the back burner when it comes to priorities with web design. The first thing people see, even before they know anything about the product, is the design. Customers make their initial judgments based on what they see first.

Inside Helcim

Merchants of Helcim – Sheni’s Auto-Trend

In this episode of Merchants of Helcim because we’re visiting our long-term client, Sheni’s Auto-Trend. They have been a client of Helcim’s for ten years.

Small Business Center

5 Lessons I’ve Learned from Jack Welch About Building Great Teams

Becoming a better leader will help me grow Helcim into a strong company. I’m always striving to be the best leader that I can be, so to expand my leadership skills I’ve applied some of Jack Welch’s lessons.

The Helcim Vlog

Working Hard for the Next Step in Our Evolution

I’ve been busy working on some big changes that will be coming to Helcim. Because some things are currently under contract negotiations and others are still under wraps, I can’t share too many details about what we are working on yet.

Inside Helcim

Merchants of Helcim – SYSCAL

Our first installment of Merchants of Helcim features SYSCAL, a management services and IT provider for small businesses in the Calgary area.

Payments News

Canada Cuts Merchant Credit Card Processing Fees

Ottawa has announced that they have made a five-year agreement with Visa, MasterCard, and American Express to reduce the interchange rate that they charge merchants by about 10 basis points starting in 2020.

The Helcim Vlog

How to get a Job at Helcim (We’re Hiring)

We’re hiring again at Helcim! With ambitious growth plans for the next year, we will be continuing to grow the Helcim team, so I wanted to share how you can increase your chances of getting a job at Helcim.

Small Business Center

How to Start an Online Business – Digital Marketing

There are plenty of different digital marketing tactics you can use to drive web traffic. To get you started, we’ve selected three proven strategies that will get your e-commerce store in front of your customers.

Using Helcim

Use Helcim.js to Create a Better Payment Experience for Customers

Using Helcim.js will solve all your integration challenges and allow your business to quickly add payments to your website, without worrying about storing sensitive data, or the security of storing full credit card numbers.

The Helcim Vlog

Three Lessons in Making Better Vlogs

I’m back from vacation, and we have an exciting milestone to share! After over six months of publishing our weekly vlog, we have hit 500 subscribers on YouTube.

Small Business Center

How to Start an Online Business - Legal Considerations

Online businesses are subject to the same rules, taxes, and legal risks that traditional businesses are, so it is important to do your research ahead of time and ensure you and your business are protected.

Using Helcim

The Hardware Debate – Why You Should Never Lease Equipment

We don’t believe that leasing a terminal provides any values to merchants, so we simply don’t do it. Canadian merchants have the option to rent or purchase the terminal of their choice, and US merchants can purchase their terminals outright for one low one-time cost.

The Helcim Vlog

Don't Be Afraid To Leap Into The Unknown

I don’t have a clear five-step guide to becoming a successful COO, but there are some lessons I learned in real estate that have helped me succeed at Helcim.

Small Business Center

How to Start an Online Business – Building Your Website

If you’re going to start an ecommerce business, then you’re going to need a website. Your website is your store, so take the time to build a functional, beautiful site that will appeal to your customer base. If you have the technical skills, you can build the website yourself, or you can hire a developer and work with them to design the website.

Understanding Payments

6 Things You Didn’t Know About Your Credit Card Processing Fees

We’ve put together six things you might not know about your credit card processing fees, so you can be more informed about how payment processing fees work.

The Helcim Vlog

Lessons in Renting Office Space – Part 2

This week we want to talk about our current office space and some of the things we've learned about what features and amenities work best for the team.

Small Business Center

If You Want to Start an Online Business – Start with a Plan

Much like starting any business, it’s important to have a plan in place for the e-commerce business you want to launch. The plan will be a useful tool for providing you with a pathway to online success.

Small Business Center

What Features Should a Credit Card Processing Application Have?

Using a credit card application on your mobile devices to accept payments makes it easier for customers to make purchases from you, gives your business flexibility, and it can be very cost effective compared to traditional POS options. If your business is looking for a mobile credit card application here are five features you should check for.

The Helcim Vlog

Lessons in Renting Office Space – Part 1

I wanted to share the history of what Helcim has gone through as we’ve grown so that as you’re building your business you know what to look for and what to avoid in an office space.

Using Helcim

If You Want to Scale Your Business – Helcim is Here to Help

Scale your business using Helcim's low transaction fees, cost effective terminal options, friendly customer service, and innovative software.

Small Business Center

The Difference Between an Invoice and a Receipt

Knowing the difference between an invoice, receipt, bill and a statement can help your business service customers more efficiently and accurately track requests for payment.

The Helcim Vlog

Three Ways the Helcim Team is Using Visual Project Mapping

New on the Helcim Vlog, the team has been using visual project mapping to keep the team focused and on task with some of our larger team projects.

Using Helcim

A Step by Step Guide to Mobile Credit Card Processing

All you need is a tablet or a smartphone to begin accepting payments from customers. Here is a step by step guide to mobile credit card processing.

Small Business Center

Making Sense of a SKU vs. UPC vs. PLU

Product codes are not all equal, the different codes are used to differentiate different product characteristics and are assigned by different organizations depending on the function of the code.

The Helcim Vlog

Connecting with Other Entrepreneurs

Helcim's CEO connects with local entrepreneur Graham Sherman, the co-worker of Tool Shed Brewing Co. Watch the full video on the Helcim Vlog.

Small Business Center

The Basics of Invoicing

An invoice provides customers with a statement of the amount owed for a list of the goods or services they purchased. It includes a breakdown of the cost for the individual products or services and a description of both the seller and purchaser involved in the sale.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Interchange Plus Pricing vs Flat Rate Pricing

The payments industry is full of different credit card processing price structures, making it difficult for business owners to immediately tell which price structure will be best for their business.

The Helcim Vlog

Stampede Fun for a Good Cause

Welcome to July in Calgary, it’s time for the Calgary Stampede. Each July the Calgary Stampede takes over Calgary for a ten-day period where everyone embraces their inner cowboy and gets a little crazy. Not even a massive flood a few years ago was able to deter Calgary from holding the Stampede, it’s something that the city really cares about.

Understanding Payments

Can Businesses Charge Customers a Credit Card Processing Fee?

If you are a business owner wondering if you can offset some of the credit card processing fees your business pays by charging customers an additional fee to pay by credit card it can be challenging to find a clear answer.

Small Business Center

How to Create an Easy to Use Product Catalog with SKUs

Simplify your inventory using SKUs and a centralized product catalog.

Using Helcim

How Helcim Can Prepare Your Business for a Cashless Society

Fewer people are carrying cash with them these days. Helcim can help prepare your business for a cashless society.

The Helcim Vlog

Giving Your Team the Right Tools

Before each new team member starts, we ask them what system they prefer working on, either a PC or a Mac.

Small Business Center

Keep Track of Customer Data with a CRM

A customer relationship manager, or CRM, can help you keep track of your customers information.

Choosing a Payment Processor

What to Look for in Credit Card Processing Reviews

Credit card processing reviews aren’t all equal, the quality of the information and knowledge of the reviewer can impact how helpful the reviews are.

Understanding Payments

Everything You Need to Know About Nonprofit Credit Card Processing

If you are a registered charity or nonprofit looking to accept card payments, we have low rates and cost-effective credit card processing solutions for you.

The Helcim Vlog

Sharing What You have Created with Your Team

I wanted to build a company where everyone felt like they were a part of it, and where their contributions were recognized.

Small Business Center

What is Prorated Billing?

Curious about what prorated billing is and how it can help your business?

Small Business Center

10 Best Business YouTube Channels and Vlogs for Entrepreneurs

10 Best Business YouTube Channels and Vlogs for Entrepreneurs

Using Helcim

Make Your Business More Efficient with Online Invoice Payments

Allowing customers to pay with the click of a button makes it easier for you to get paid faster.

The Helcim Vlog

We Scrapped The Vlog On Friday Afternoon

We have a problem. It’s Friday, it’s noon, and we just decided to scrap the vlog.

Choosing a Payment Processor

5 Things to Ask Your Merchant Account Provider

Before signing up for a merchant account ask these five crucial questions to ensure you understand what your credit card processor will be providing for your business.

The Helcim Vlog

How Delegation Has Helped Helcim Grow

I think delegation is something a lot of entrepreneur’s struggle with, so I wanted to talk about it in this week’s vlog.

Understanding Payments

How Visa Debit Works in the US vs. Canada

Visa Debit includes the added benefits of credit cards, including purchase protection and the accessibility of online payments, while still allowing consumers to pay for purchases directly from their bank account.

The Helcim Vlog

What It's Like to Work on the Development Team

This week we’re getting geeky and taking a closer look at the Development Team, commonly referred to as the Dev Team.

Understanding Payments

How Credit Card Processing Works

Credit Cards are an extremely popular form of payment. They are used every day to pay bills, purchase items online and in stores, and to pay for all types of services.

Understanding Payments

3 Reasons Why Tap and Pay (NFC) Is Awesome

Tap and pay is a form of payment that allows a customer to tap a card or device against your card reader to pay instead of inserting a card.

Small Business Center

Why We Have In-House Developers

We would not be able to offer the products and services that we do without the support and hard work the development team puts into our products.

Using Helcim

Automate Your Billing and Make More Money

Recurring billing helps your customers by making it easier for them to do business with your company.

The Helcim Vlog

12 Reasons Why We Think Calgary is a Great City for a Technology Company

Helcim’s CEO Nicolas Beique and COO Rob Park have long-standing roots in Calgary and they both have a long list of reasons why Calgary provides advantages to new businesses that aren’t found in other cities.

Payments News

Cannabis Retailers - A Challenge For Payment Processors

Canada is getting ready to bring an industry into the mainstream with the introduction of The Cannabis Act, or Bill C-45, which would provide legal access to cannabis while controlling its production, distribution, and sale.

Using Helcim

Simplify Your Sales Tax with The Helcim Global Sales Tax Settings

Simplify Your Sales Tax with The Helcim Global Sales Tax Settings

The Helcim Vlog

Exceptional Customer Service Is The Helcim Advantage

At Helcim you’re not going to experience the customer service that has become commonplace at many large organizations.

The Helcim Vlog

Helcim's Small-Business Women Initiative

We want to encourage women to start businesses, that is why we are introducing Helcim's Small-Business Women Initiative, where your first year is on us.

Small Business Center

Using Your Social Media Channels for Customer Service

Being able to respond to customer inquiries on social media is as important as responding to emails or phone calls to your business.

Understanding Payments

The Better Point-of-Sale Option: iPad POS

The Tablet-POS is an amazing tool that can make your front-of-store practices faster, personalized, and more integrated into the management of the store.

Small Business Center

Three Steps to an Engaged Workforce

Employees spend about half of their waking hours at the office and by making these hours fun and productive employees are more likely to stay engaged and passionate about the work they are doing.

The Helcim Vlog

Work vs. Play, Why Do You Have to Choose?

Something almost everyone struggles with at some point is how to establish an effective work-life balance.

The Helcim Vlog

How to Make Giant LEGO Letters For A Wall | Just Build It

What is the best way to commemorate a new personal motto? To build it out of Lego of course.

The Helcim Vlog

Why We Hire Creative People

In this week’s vlog, we walk you through the ups and downs of our creative process.

Using Helcim

Get Invoices Paid Faster With The Credit Card Vault

Getting paid on time can be a challenge for any business.

Using Helcim

Making Your Call Centers PCI-DSS Compliant With A Secure Keypad

Whenever you process a transaction through a web-based Virtual Terminal, you expose your computer and network to sensitive credit card information

The Helcim Vlog

Snow and Chaos, Just Another Day In April

A snowstorm in late April and an unforeseen code change with a bank underwriting system. Sometimes you just have to put your plans on pause and go with the flow.

Using Helcim

Secure Your Business With The Helcim Credit Card Vault And Tokenization

Using the Helcim Card Vault is a great way to make your business more secure, while maintaining control over your payments and the ability to charge credit cards whenever you need.

Using Helcim

Reducing Fraudulent Credit Card Transactions With The Helcim Fraud Defender

Using the Helcim Fraud Defender is an excellent and simple step you can take to reduce the risk of fraudulent transactions and chargebacks.

The Helcim Vlog

The Ongoing Challenge of Staying Genuine

In this week’s vlog we look into our ongoing efforts to stay genuine in every type of communication with our merchants.

Small Business Center

Ecommerce Shipping Considerations for Small Businesses

Shipping is a crucial part of the online shopping experience. Here are several factors you should consider when deciding on your ecommerce shipping strategy.

The Helcim Vlog

Tips On How To Get Your First Customer

In this weekly update, we go over tips on how to get your first customer and common small business bolstering tips.

Understanding Payments

Did You Know Recurring Payments Get Lower Credit Card Processing Rates?

Both Visa and MasterCard Canada have lower interchange rates when transactions are marked as recurring by the payment processor.

The Helcim Vlog

Why Helcim Remains a Self-Funded Business

In this weekly update, we make a passionate argument on why you should consider bootstrapping your business instead of raising money from investors and venture capital.

Payments News

Visa and Mastercard Interchange Modifications for Spring 2018

Visa, Mastercard and Discover Card are making changes to the Canadian Interchange rates for Spring 2018.

The Helcim Vlog

Our Approach to Building a Great Team

Follow new Videographer Chris as he films his first day at Helcim and learns our approach to building a great team.

Small Business Center

How Not to Get Hacked: 8 Security Steps For Your Small Business

Every day there seems to be a new data leak from the world’s largest companies. Follow these eight security steps to help protect your business.

The Helcim Vlog

Why Helcim Actually Cares About Its Merchants

Helcim cares, because I care, and because my team cares.

The Helcim Vlog

When Life Gives You A Second Chance, Build A Better Ecommerce Platform

When life gives you a second chance, you have to grab onto it, remember every lesson you learned, and do it right the second time.

Understanding Payments

Bluetooth Credit Card Terminals

This article provides an overview of the Ingenico iWL220 Bluetooth terminal and how it works.

Understanding Payments

Why Do Merchant Accounts Need to Be Approved?

Learn why merchant accounts need to be approved and why payment processors ask for certain information.

The Helcim Vlog

A Day In The Life of Helcim

Welcome to A Day In the Life of Helcim! Jeff and Dafina followed me and the team as we went about our day.

Understanding Payments

What is CVV?

CVV has one purpose - to verify that the cardholder has the card in their possession.

The Helcim Vlog

Payments+ and Course Corrections | Evolving Our Services

The theme of this Weekly Update is course corrections. Over the years, we’ve certainly made course corrections of our own here at Helcim.

Choosing a Payment Processor

The Best and Worst Practices of Canadian Merchant Account Providers

We’ve compiled a list of the best and worst (mostly worst) practices of Canadian merchant account providers and credit card processors.

The Helcim Vlog

In-House vs. Outsourcing, Why We Made Our Choice

In our weekly update we explain why Helcim didn't outsource and explain the magic that a curated internal team can bring.

Using Helcim

How to Use the Helcim Mobile Card Reader to Take Payments

Aaron gives an overview of the Helcim Mobile Card Swiper, and how to process payments on your phone, how to troubleshoot the swiper, and even how to replace the battery.

The Helcim Vlog

Welcome to the Helcim Weekly Updates

We want to help you grow your business, so we’ll be sharing new videos every week with you in mind. It starts with this weekly vlog, giving you an inside look into Helcim and what drives us.

Understanding Payments

What is a Customer Credit Card Vault?

A customer credit card vault helps you store customer financial data securely so you can sell more and get paid faster. The vault is an excellent tool to have in your modern small business toolkit.

Understanding Payments

What is AVS (Address Verification Service)?

The Address Verification Service is a tool that allows you to check if the address of a credit card is linked to the person claiming to own that credit card. The AVS tool is usually provided to you by your credit card processor.

Understanding Payments

What is Two-Factor Authentication?

Two-Factor Authentication is a method of confirming the account owner’s identity by using two different factors of entry. In order to log in, you need to “know” something, and you need to “have” something that no-one else has.

Small Business Center

Scaling Your Business with a Self-Service Customer Portal

One popular tool that can help you boost your productivity rapidly is the self-service customer portal. Here’s what a customer portal is, and how it can help your business.

Understanding Payments

Everything You Need To Know To Start Accepting Credit Cards Over The Phone.

If you are invoicing clients, chances are you are talking payments over the phone or through a portal. These are called MOTO merchants (Mail Order/Telephone Order) and these business types are considered different from businesses that process transactions in-person.

Understanding Payments

3 Misconceptions of AVS (Address Verification Service)

The Address Verification Service can be a very useful tool for your business to help detect and prevent fraud. We clear up some of the common misconceptions about what it does and does not do.

Using Helcim

Credit Card Processing for Lawyers

A quick guide on how your law firm can accept compliant credit card payments.

Inside Helcim

Empowering City-Wide Towing and Recovery with Fair Payments

Wendy was looking for a processor that would be a real partner to her business. See how Helcim's fair and transparent payment processing works for her business.

Small Business Center

Why Your Retail Business Needs an Online Store

Whether an online store helps you sell more products to existing customers, or sell to more customers across the globe, an online store is an incredible tool.

Inside Helcim

How Chalk Therapy Expanded Their Business By Streamlining Customer Checkout and Selling Out Online Workshops

Tara Lee Genge is the owner of Chalk Therapy, a furniture shop that specializes in breathing new life into forgotten vintage and antique furniture located in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.

Inside Helcim

Helcim, Reborn

We are excited to announce the launch of Helcim Commerce.

Understanding Payments

What is Apple Pay?

Apple Pay is a mobile wallet that takes advantage of NFC (Near-Field-Communication) technology, also known as "Tap & Pay".

Payments News

Mastercard 2016 Card-Brand Fee Changes

The Canadian Interchange rates are not being impacted in April 2016.

Payments News

Canadian Merchants Can Now Accept JCB

As a Canadian merchant who accepts American Express, you can now accept JCB (Japan Credit Bureau) payments.

Understanding Payments

Android Pay: What You Need To Know

If you accept customer payments through tap and pay on your retail terminal, you are now automatically able to accept payments through Android Pay.

Understanding Payments

Protecting Your Ingenico Terminal From Fraudsters

There have been increased incidents of fraudsters abusing credit and debit card terminals. Here are some ways to protect your business from terminal fraud.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Why Interchange Differential Pricing Is Costing You Too Much

Almost every processor in Canada now uses an interchange differential as their pricing method. Explore how this is costing you money.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Understanding Qualified, Mid-Qualified & Non-Qualified Credit Card Processing Fees

There are a a few different types of credit card processing fees that processing companies charge their merchants. Here are the most popular.

Payments News

Canadian Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry in Canada

The Canadian Code of Conduct sets out standards for the Credit and Debit Card industry in Canada.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Easily Add a Donate Button to a Nonprofit Site

You can easily collected credit card numbers by phone or through donation forms and manually process them from any computer or tablet.

Payments News

Mastercard USA Annual Per-Location Fee Starting December 2016

Mastercard has recently announced a new annual fee which will be billed on a per-location basis for all US merchant locations accepting the card-brand.

Understanding Payments

What is American Express OptBlue?

American Express Opt-Blue is a program for merchants that provides three advantages: Amex acceptance, combine bank deposits, cost+ pricing for American Express.

Choosing a Payment Processor

The Top 5 Tricks & Misleading Techniques Used by Canadian Credit Card Processors

Be aware that many Canadian payment processors often trick their merchants into bad deals.

Understanding Payments

Understanding EMV Chip Card Technology

EMV is a payment technology made up of a small micro-chip embedded on the front of a credit card that increases transaction security.

Understanding Payments

What is a Payment Gateway?

A Payment Gateway is a specific URL that has no user-interface but is designed to receive an incoming transaction message.

Understanding Payments

What Are Credit Card Pre-Authorizations, Purchases and Captures?

A credit card authorization is a transaction that was processed through a credit card network

Understanding Payments

Top Tips to Make PCI Compliance Easier

Becoming PCI Compliant can be made easier by following a few best-practices.

Using Helcim

Helcim vs. Square

No-monthly-fee credit providers offering mobile processing services to small businesses, including Square and PayPal.

Understanding Payments

Accepting Visa Debit Online

Using a merchant account, you can accept Visa Debit cards online, and in-person.

Understanding Payments

Beware of Credit Card Terminal and Equipment Leases

Equipment leases for credit card terminals can trap merchants into a non-cancelable financing contract. Here is how to avoid this costly mistake.

Understanding Payments

PCI Compliance: Why Do I Need It?

Being PCI compliant is in the best interest of your business. Choosing the right payment partner can drastically alter your experience with PCI compliance.

Understanding Payments

Watch Out for Hidden Fees Charged by US Credit Card Processors

There are a few hidden fees that many credit card processors will include in their contracts. We reveal the top hidden processing fees.

Choosing a Payment Processor

The Top 5 Tricks & Misleading Techniques Used by Credit Card Processors

Many credit card processing companies use sneaky tactics to trick merchants into bad deals. Here are the top five.

Choosing a Payment Processor

Watch Out for Hidden Fees Charged by Canadian Credit Card Processors

There a few common fees charged by Canadian credit card processors that can eat away at your profit margin.

Payments News

Visa and Mastercard Have Officially Lowered the Canadian Interchange Rates

Visa and Mastercard announced that they would be voluntarily lowering the interchange rates for a duration of 5 years.

Understanding Payments

What is a Merchant Account?

A merchant account is a processing arrangement with a credit card processor to accept credit card payments.

Understanding Payments

Getting Out of Your Merchant Account Contract in Canada

Fortunately Canadian merchants have some tools available to get out of their payment processing contracts early.

Understanding Payments

EMV Reduces Card-Present Fraud in Canada (Infographic)

EMV is a technology designed to add additional security for merchants and consumers when processing card-present transactions.

Understanding Payments

How Tipping with EMV Cards Works

EMV chip and pin technology makes tipping a lot faster and easier.

Understanding Payments

EMV Liability Shift: Everything You Need to Know (Infographic)

Everything you need to know for the 2015 US EMV Migration.

Payments News

New Visa Online Convenience Fee Program in Canada

Visa Canada has just announced a new Service Fee Program that allows Canadian merchants of certain industries to charge a "Service Fee" to their customers.

Using Helcim

New Helcim.js - Client-Side Processing

Helcim Inc. is proud to announce the release of Helcim.js.

Inside Helcim

Helcim Launches in the US

With no contract cancelation fees and clear interchange plus pricing, Helcim is hoping to have the same response in the US that it has experienced in Canada.

Using Helcim

Email Payment Requests: Get Paid With The Click of a Button

Email payment requests let merchants request payments from their customers by email.

Understanding Payments

New Ingenico Telium Terminals

The Ingenico Telium terminals are state-of-the-art devices with faster processors, faster printers, bigger screens; all in a more compact design.

Inside Helcim

Welcome to Our New Cost+ Pricing

Cost plus pricing is now available to all Helcim merchants across the board, from retail, to virtual terminal, to mobile and e-commerce solutions.

Payments News

Visa and Mastercard Interchange for Spring 2013

Visa and Mastercard have both announced that there will be changes to their fees in the upcoming 2013 Interchange.

Payments News

CBC News Reports on Hidden Credit Card Fees

CBC released a great article on some of the nightmares that small businesses have experienced by switching to less-than-honest competitors.

Using Helcim

Card Tokenization Now Available on the Helcim Gateway

We are excited to announce the official release of the card tokenization feature for the Helcim Gateway.