Figure out the credit card brands that your account will work with
One of the most crucial steps in setting up your merchant account is choosing the credit card brands that your account will work with. The most popular options are Visa and MasterCard. But you may have to consider other options as well depending on the credit card brands that are most commonly used by your target audience. Ensure that the merchant account provider you are using supports the credit card brand you intend to use with it.

Learn the kinds of Services You Want
Another vital step is to determine the kinds of services your business needs. This will influence your choice of a merchant account provider. The main purpose of signing up for a merchant account in the first place is to be able to take payments with credit or debit cards. However, the setup of your account will be determined by your specific business needs. For instance, if you run a business with a physical location, then your account must be set up to take payment offline (more like a traditional POS terminal). The setup process for this will be different from if you are only taking online payments.