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Spotlight Innovators

or over two decades Humboldt Merchant Services
has been the premier provider of credit card pro-
cessing solutions for high-risk or hard-to-place
F merchants, offering competitive pricing and first
class service. Combining dedication with knowledge and a
primary focus on customer satisfaction, HBMS has grown
to become a leader in the credit card processing industry.
Offering superior processing, and the latest in payment
acceptance solutions, we are at the forefront of innovative
payment thinking.
What’s New:
Selling in the higher risk marketplace

t’s no secret. Some merchant types require a little more evaluation and handling to qualify for a merchant services
account than others do. Generally, this is because these merchants are from industries that fall into one of the high-
er-risk brackets defined by the card brands. Assuming the merchant is operating legally, has a stable business his-
I tory and also has no record of legal or security issues, they can generally still obtain an electronic payment account.
They simply have to undergo a more intensive underwriting analysis. While this may sound straight forward, the extra
care is not something all processors, or the ISOs that sell for them, have the built-in capacity for. Consequently, some
companies attempt to adopt the higher-risk merchant brackets into their portfolio, only to realize they aren’t adequately
equipped to support them. This often results in legitimate merchants being cancelled without warning or fault, leaving
them to cycle through service providers in search of an affordable and reliable one.

This makes for a difficult sales environment, and despite the income potential of selling in the higher-risk marketplace, a
majority of payment sales representatives do not have an experienced and trustworthy merchant services option readily
available to offer these merchants. “Whenever hard-to-place accounts are encountered in the marketplace, chances are
a sales professional will spend a great deal of time hunting for a payment services provider that promises to keep the
account long term,” said Leonard Garcia, vice president of sales at Humboldt Merchant Services (HBMS). “Therefore, it
is uncommon for sales representatives to ever reach a point where they are experienced enough to feel confident about
placing these companies.”
Industry expertise is the key

Fortunately, there are a handful of service providers in the industry that are established and well positioned as a specialty
service provider for merchants that fall into hard-to-place industry brackets. However, outside of HBMS, none offer two
decades of reputable service to merchants in the higher-risk markets, or a well credentialed in-house underwriting team
that specializes in boarding them quickly and efficiently.

HBMS offers competitive, secure and reliable payment processing solutions to a myriad of merchant industries that are
legally operating businesses, but are still considered hard-to-place accounts due to additional underwriting requirements.

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