ondering what to give your merchant prospects for the holidays? Especially the ones who've been telling you "maybe" for months, but have not yet agreed to sign on the dotted line?

Hampton, N.J.-based United Bank Card (UBC), a payment and transaction processor, has the perfect gift for those merchants and for you, an ISO/merchant level salesperson (MLS): free equipment!

As part of a new program UBC rolled out on Nov. 22, 2004, the company now provides Lipman NURIT 8320 terminals free of charge to its ISOs/MLSs, who can then turn around and offer the product free of charge to their prospects. "We're the first processing organization to go nationwide with a free equipment program," said Jared Isaacman, Chief Executive Officer of UBC.

"All of our ISO and MLS partners now have the ability to sell two to three times the number of merchants, thereby increasing their overall portfolio dramatically."

Isaacman said UBC's program is very similar to one offered by a cable TV company or wireless cell phone company in that the "box" is free in exchange for the service.

He also said there are no hidden fees or long-term contracts as part of the deal.

UBC will pay ISOs/MLSs an additional $100 up-front bonus per merchant application to counteract the loss resulting from giving away the terminals, which ISOs/MLSs usually sell or lease to merchants.

The NURIT 8320, ideal for small and medium-sized businesses, is an all-in-one POS terminal that supports credit and debit, loyalty, gift and proprietary cards and enables value-added applications such as prepaid services. It includes a secure internal PIN pad, a high-speed modem and a thermal printer.

UBC also offers a free Ingenico eN Check 2500 check reader and a free e-Pad signature capture system, which provides merchants with a full payment solution.

The best part of this new program? It's a gift from UBC that keeps on giving. It's not just for the holidays; the offer is here to stay.