How Online Bid Requests Work

There is a handful of Internet services that offer to help shorten your shopping time and get you the best deal on business products and services by putting your information out to vendors willing to bid for your business. For example, you can fill out a form with BuyerZone to request bids from merchant account providers and a wide range of other business products and services. This bidding process is similar to the more widely advertised comparison shopping that other services offer consumers looking for cars and insurance.

If you've never shopped this way, you probably have questions about the process. These online marketplace services — like our partner BuyerZone — verify both your information and the credentials of the vendors who compete for your business through the marketplace. The process is secure and the vendors who work with the marketplace are legitimate. Here's what to expect once you fill out a form.

In order to use a BuyerZone bid request form, you’ll need to become a BuyerZone member. This involves a free registration in which you provide some information about your company (name, size, location). BuyerZone confirms this information before sending out your bid request — this is their process for ensuring that they pass on only serious applicants.

Scott Healy of BuyerZone describes the rest of the process: “After the Request for Quotes form is submitted, BuyerZone confirms the accuracy of the buyer's contact information and then matches the request with up to 5 merchant accounts providers. Those providers will then respond with quotes via phone and/or email,” usually within one to five business days.

What if you get no responses to your bid? It could be because your request was rejected. Healy says the main reasons your company would be rejected for a merchant account are “poor credit history and a history of high charge-back volume.” He adds, “Businesses with tangible products are less likely to be rejected than services.”