Most merchant account providers will charge you a nice fat fee, but some might even give you for no cost to get your business. They know that they can always make up that cost in the transaction fees which add up to quite a lot over a period of time.

A balance must be kept. A free merchant account could go well with a small business, but if you have a much bigger biz then it is better you go in for a paid one so transaction fees are kept to a minimum.

Setting up a website which runs 24/7 is a must to go along with this. Get the entire setup ready, before you commit anything to any service provider.