Is this considered a prohibited service?

[MyNameIsntSteve]

Hello,

I've been thinking of ways to grow my business and move from a small break & fix tech consultant to an MSP (Managed Services Provider). A lot of MSP's have recurring payment plans with their Clients. It looks like I can set this up through the invoicing on Square. I decided to take a look at the prohibited services just to make sure I'm not breaking any rules and it's created more questions than answers.

Can anyone help me figure out what these prohibited services are?

• Direct marketing or subscription offers or services
• Buyer or membership clubs, including dues associated with such clubs

Basically, one of my Clients wants me to provide all of their I.T. Solutions for her small business. I would pay all of the monthly subscription fees for Office 365, Cisco/OpenDNS and offer 24/7 I.T. support for her company and pass those fees onto her via 1 monthly payment which includes my services and includes a service level agreement. Am I venturing into a risky area with Square? I just made it through Square's verification process which took a couple days so I don't want to mess anything up. I could choose another Merchant Services provider for that portion of the business if I'm starting to head into a risky area.

Monthly service fees for this particular Client would probably be around $700/mo so we're not talking high ticket amounts yet. It's a little different if I have them do an annual plan where it is a higher ticket item - I was thinking about offering an annual plan where they would pay 10 months upfront, get 2 months free...

Thank you in advance~

[Chad]

Hello @MyNameIsntSteve! So my first question is if your name isn't Steve what is it then? 😀

I'm glad you brought this up! So a direct marketing or subscription service refers to a form of advertising where organizations communicate directly to customers through a variety of media including text messaging, email, websites, and online adverts to name a few. 

Buyers club refers to pooling members collective buying power to purchase things at a lower price. Most buyers clubs have monthly dues associated with them. 

Neither of these categories sound like they would apply to you. I recommend reaching out directly to our Support Team with how you plan to run your business. They can pass this example along to our Compliance Team and they will make the determination if this practice is okay on Square Point of Sale. 

If you have any questions please let me know! 🙂

[MyNameIsntSteve]

I appreciate you explaining the difference. Just trying to stay out of trouble 🙂

I’ll give Support a call today. 

Thank you @Chad

[Chad]

@MyNameIsntSteve when you hear back let me know how it goes!

I'm sure another seller might want to run their business in a similar fashion and your answer could be really helpful! 😀