ProCharge^® Desktop Merchant Success Story: An Interview with Metro Metal Supply

Metro Metal Supply in Denver, CO was launched in 2014 by Pete Kruse and Aurelia Dancause as an offshoot of their roofing business. A light gauge metal supplier and fabricator providing both custom and standard applications, they work with the construction industry to create materials for buildings of all types, including homes and offices. Metro Metal Supply serves individuals and corporations, priding themselves on offering a high level of professionalism, collaboration, and quality.

In the interview below, Metro Metal Supply manager, Taylor Aro, discusses why the company chose to partner with Electronic Payments and take advantage of the ProCharge^® Desktop solution to process payments and streamline business procedures.

What prompted you to look for a new payment processing solution?

We had an old payment terminal from our previous processor that was in place since the business first opened. When we needed to complete an update on that terminal, it would often take between 60-90 minutes. Not being able to accept credit card payments for an hour and a half was awful. Sometimes the terminal would even be down for half a day.

In trying to complete the last terminal update we did with them, there were a lot of problems. The company told us we would need to basically start from scratch, buying a new terminal and going through all the steps of a brand new installation. Given that situation, we wanted to see if there was a better option available.

Brendon, your agent partner at Summit Payments, presented us with a very tempting deal to work with Electronic Payments using ProCharge Desktop to handle our transactions.

Why did you choose to partner with Electronic Payments?

The deal we were offered included significant savings on our credit card processing costs. Coupled with the latest technology in the form of an upgraded, easy-to-use payment terminal, it was an opportunity we couldn’t pass up.

What goals did you hope to achieve by implementing ProCharge Desktop?

Saving money and having access to modern, user-friendly payment technology were the main goals. But, we were curious to see how ProCharge Desktop could benefit our business in other ways.

How has ProCharge Desktop benefited your business?

Having the ability to process contactless transactions is a huge benefit, especially with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Plus, the payment terminal is customer-facing, meaning no one in the office needs to handle someone else’s card. Customers retain complete control over the transaction and cards remain in their possession, which increases security.

Another important benefit is that we’re able to save electronic receipts on the computer. We used to keep several years’ worth of receipts in filing cabinets here in the office. When we had to search through them to find a receipt or answer a customer’s question, it was extremely time consuming. Now, we search through our digital files instantly and get customers what they need quickly. Tracking every receipt digitally has been a huge help.

What was the installation of ProCharge Desktop like for the business?

Overall, the installation went well, but we did have a bit of difficulty with our firewall. We really admired and appreciated the fact that Electronic Payments recognized the problem and went right to work resolving the issue. Within 24 hours, you had our IT team on the phone and figured out the problem. Many other companies lack that initiative and sense of urgency. Your team was so fast and accommodating in working with us. It was seamless! What’s more, we haven’t needed to call Technical Support at all since we started using ProCharge Desktop. But we like knowing the team is there for us 24/7 if we need them.

Do your customers find it easy to interact with the payment device? How are you able to better serve customers now?

It’s easy for us to push payments to the device enabling customers to complete their transactions. They’ve had no issue making payments. ProCharge Desktop is simple—we haven’t received one complaint about it yet!

With our former processing company’s device, we had to push several buttons before we could even process a sale. It took several steps to complete every transaction, which took up time we could’ve spent helping other clients. Today, it’s much quicker to serve our customers as there are fewer steps involved.

We can also go paperless now because our clients often don’t want a printed receipt. We store them electronically and if they request a copy later, we simply email the receipt to them. Our team uses the save receipts option in ProCharge Desktop all the time. With our old system, if a customer or our accountant needed a specific receipt, we spent hours looking up batch numbers and digging through files in our storage cabinets. These days, we just go into the system and drag and drop receipts instantly. If a customer calls requesting a copy of their receipt, we email it to them while we’re still on the phone. Previously, we’d have to get back to them hours later.

What pain points have been alleviated with ProCharge Desktop? Have daily operations changed?

Besides being able to go paperless, if an employee is off one day, anyone on the team can go through our system and match invoices, purchase orders (POs), and receipts. Everything is easier to track. If another staff member took a credit card payment on my day off, for example, when I return the next day, I’m able to find the invoice number on the receipt and make that invoice number our PO number in the system to ensure it all matches beautifully.

Bottom line, ProCharge Desktop saves us time since we’ve eliminated steps in our procedures—and we’re saving money on card processing costs. It’s a win-win!

What was it like training the staff to use ProCharge Desktop? How has the team adapted to the solution?

It wasn’t difficult at all. The only part we have to remember is now we start on the computer with ProCharge Desktop, rather than starting on the payment device like we did with our previous processor. We’ve retrained ourselves to enter the invoice/PO number on the desktop first, then push the amount to the payment device—it’s a simple switch.

The staff has adapted well to the new solution. They log onto the computer, click the ProCharge Desktop shortcut we have right on the desktop, and send the total to the payment device in a matter of seconds.

What does the team at Metro Metal Supply love most about the solution?

ProCharge Desktop is working really well for us, and it’s made our lives much simpler. On our old device, if someone made a mistake, even missing one single number, they had to cancel the whole transaction and start all over. Now, if an error occurs, we just close out the open window and go back to the ProCharge Desktop mainframe and it’s an easy fix. Additionally, with less steps necessary for each transaction, there are fewer opportunities for oversights.

For business owners who value simplicity, I think ProCharge Desktop is the right product. That’s what we love about it—the solution is simple and seamless!