First Data Shows Upticks in Card Use — of all kinds

One the one hand, we like to tout February as a “second season” to attract shoppers, after the holidays — what with Super Bowl weekend followed by Valentine’s Day. And then there’s Presidents’ Day weekend, with its traveling and “get away” plans. Add it all up, and tends to mean active customers for a wide array of businesses.

AVPS In Your Corner For Charge Disputes

Suddenly,  there are news stories about credit card disputes everywhere. Fox Business had one about consumer complaints, but those aren’t the same thing. Or rather, we might consider charge disputes a subset of overall “complaints,” which could include everything from bad service, to not crediting a payment, to not honoring a stated interest rate, and more.

A Guide to the Strawhecker Group’s Swipe Fee Graphic

The Strawhecker Group is an advisory/consulting group for us in the Payments Industry. And they’ve recently come up with a compelling infographic explaining swipe fees — what they are, and where they go.

Navigating New Sales Tax Trends with AVP Solutions

As part of our ongoing efforts to keep you updated on how saying the phrase “just charge it!” is changing for your very customers, we wanted to alert you to the Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013.  It specifies that states need to simplify their own tax systems, so they can collect sales tax from out-of-state merchants, who are selling to their citizens online.

Valentine’s Day Spending Hits New Highs in 2024

A new survey by the National Retail Federation says that American’s will spend more than $18 billion on Valentine’s Day, making it one of our “spendiest” holidays, close on the heels of Christmas and Halloween. According to the NRF, the average outlay will be around $130 a person — a $5 uptick from last year, though the “average” for men actually clocks in at around $176, while for women it hovers around $90.