Merchant Accounts For Seminars & Coaching

An Overview

Seminar And Coaching Credit Card Processing

Why We Proudly Accept Seminar And Coaching Businesses (Even When Many Processors Don’t)

Many credit card processors do not accept consulting, development training, coaching or seminar businesses for four reasons:

1. The first reason is that seminar-related businesses typically accept credit card payments over the phone or via a website. Debit and credit card sales that take place without face-to-face interaction are more prone to fraud and customer misunderstandings, which lead to higher rates of chargebacks.
2. The second reason that seminar merchant accounts are often considered high risk, is that seminar and coaching businesses typically have large transaction sizes. Large single transactions (those in excess of $100-250) pose larger financial risks for the credit card processor, and in addition, due to their increased size are more likely to be charged back by any dissatisfied customers.
3. Thirdly, people come to a seminar or professional development training course with expectations that they will learn something that will significantly impact their professional or personal life. Either because of outsized expectations, or because the seminar failed to fully deliver on its perceived promises, dissatisfied attendees are more prone to initiating chargebacks. Contrast that, for instance, with a small ticket restaurant, where dissatisfied customers simply won’t come back to the restaurant, but only rarely initiate a chargeback.
4. Fourth, unlike, say a in restaurant which accepts payments and delivers services daily, seminars or professional development businesses typically accept a large number of credit card payments related to a single upcoming event or seminar.  

Consequently, if the seminar or event goes poorly (or is perceived to have done), there is significantly more potential for a flood of chargebacks to be suddenly initiated related to that single event, creating increased risk for the credit card processor. In summary, as a result of these risks, many merchant account providers simply decline to accept seminar, coaching and professional development related companies.

By contrast, Soar Payments has consistently served the seminar and educational services industries since its inception. Our extensive relationships with credit card processors and their sponsor banks who have the capability to underwrite companies with elevated chargeback risk exposure, in addition to our integrated chargeback mitigation software, uniquely position Soar Payments to provide coaching and seminar merchant accounts which offer stable, effective and affordable debit and credit card processing.

Seminars & Coaching CRM Software Integrations

Enjoy Seamless Integration With Leading Seminars And Coaching CRM & Software Suites:

Soar Payments seminars and coaching merchant accounts, either directly or via a payment gateway, are compatible and integrate with the following CRM and software platforms frequently used by businesses in the seminar industry:

ClickFunnels, InfusionSoft, and OntraPort, Volusion, WooCommerce, Magento, Shopify, BigCommerce, Zoho CRM, and Salesforce.

We’re Also Compatible With Many Other CRM & Software Suites.

Soar Payment’s seminars and coaching merchant accounts can be also integrated with most other software or CRM platforms which are compatible with the Authorize.net, NMI, or USAePay payment gateways. Don’t see your preferred software? For questions about how to integrate your preferred seminars and coaching related CRM or online shopping cart software, contact our sales team.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are common questions specific to coaching and seminar merchant accounts:

• What types of seminar and coaching businesses do you accept?

  Soar Payments accepts a wide range of US based, US operating coaching and seminar businesses. These include, but are not limited to, health, wellness, real estate, stock trading, futures and derivatives, and investing seminar companies, personal and professional development coaching, business opportunities (biz ops or “bizops”), and other educational services related companies. Note, however, that each merchant account application is individually reviewed and underwritten, therefore your seminar or coaching company’s approval may have unique terms or conditions.

• What chargeback and fraud protection technology do you offer to protect my business?

  All Soar Payments clients, regardless of industry, are offered a full suite of chargeback and fraud prevention tools. Due to the unique chargeback risks faced by the seminar industry, however, we recommend these businesses utilize customized solutions.

  For example, companies who sell seminar tickets either online or over the phone need a system in place for confirming the actual identity of the person making the purchase, in order to prevent stolen (or allegedly stolen) credit card from being used. Not only does this reduce actual fraud, it prevents “friendly fraud” chargebacks from individuals attempting to circumvent the seminar companies refund policy by using the credit card industries chargeback system. To help achieve that, we offer a specialized payment gateway that uses dozens of data points to identify the purchaser, and even accepts “wet” signatures for eCommerce and over the phone transactions, and matches the identity of the purchaser to the owner of the credit card, all in real time. Thus, most chargebacks are prevented, and those that occur due to customer fraud, are effectively defeated by the business.

• Is Soar Payments compatible with my existing CRM or ecommerce software?

  Seminar and coaching businesses typically have a preferred CRM or ecommerce platform they use. Because Soar Payments works with most major payment gateways (including Authorize.net, USAePay and NMI), our merchant accounts integrate with most popular software suites used by businesses in the seminar and coaching industry including: marketing automating platforms such as ClickFunnels, InfusionSoft, and OntraPort, ecommerce platforms like Volusion, WooCommerce, Magento, Shopify, and BigCommerce, and CRM and CMS software such as Zoho CRM, SalesForce, and WordPress.

Want more information? Click here to read our extended list of our FAQ.

Types Of Seminar And Coaching Merchant Accounts

Soar Payments offer a full-array of merchant accounts to health, real estate, and investing seminar companies, and other businesses in the educational services industry. These include:

• Retail
• Mobile
• Virtual Terminal
• eCommerce

Retail Payments

A retail merchant account for seminars and coaching enables companies to accept in-person credit card payments via a traditional credit card terminal or point of sale system.

Best suited to retail businesses with reliable wired internet access, retail educational services and seminar merchant accounts typically have the lowest chargeback risk and receive the lowest merchant account pricing.

Apply Now To Accept Retail Payments

Mobile Payments

A mobile merchant account for seminars or professional development, enables businesses to accept payments via a swiper that plugs into a mobile phone or iPad.

Ideal for on-location coaching or other seminar businesses that conduct in-person sales outside of a traditional storefront, these merchant accounts have lower chargeback risk, and are priced similar to retail.

Apply Now To Accept Mobile Payments

Virtual Terminal Payments

Also called a payment gateway merchant account, seminar businesses can accept payments over the phone, via mail, or typed into a computer (without outside equipment).

Our coaching and seminar gateway merchant accounts integrate with most major CRM and software platforms. Due to increased fraud risk, Soar Payments offers integrated chargeback protection with these merchant accounts.

Apply Now To Accept Virtual Terminal Payments

eCommerce Payments

eCommerce seminar merchant accounts allow your company to accept debit and credit cards via your website’s checkout page.

Our eCommerce merchant services accounts integrate with most major CMS and shopping carts, making setup simple. Due to increased fraud and chargeback risks, however, we offer integrated chargeback protection tools.

Apply Now To Accept eCommerce Payments