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Podium Review

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All mentions of rate and fee costs are estimations based on publicly available information and client feedback. Actual costs may vary based on a variety of factors unique to your business.

Podium
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Payment Processing and Reputation Management

Podium is a SaaS payment company based out of Lehi, Utah. Launched in 2014, Podium focuses on simple text-based payment links for small business owners. Podium also advertises built-in services for customer engagement and reputation management through its “interaction management platform". Podium is not a classic payment provider and does not price itself similarly from our research. It focuses heavily on its reputation management services and prices itself accordingly.

Podium Point Of Sale (POS)

Podium recently introduced card readers for business owners to supplement the payment links. The stand-alone ROKT card reader allows payments from cards with chips, mobile wallets, and swiping/tapping payments.

Podium Location and Ownership

Podium’s headquarters are located at 1650 W Digital Drive Lehi, UT 84043. Eric Rea is the co-founder and CEO. Podium does not disclose its partner banks.

Podium Review Table of Contents

  • Costs & Contract: Podium does not openly advertise rates and fees.
  • Complaints & Service: We’ve located over a dozen online complaints, many accusing Podium of continuing to charge customers after trial periods or cancellation of contracts.
  • BBB Rating: Podium has an “D-” rating and has received 11 complaints and 14 reviews in the past 3 years.
  • Sales & Marketing: Podium does not appear to utilize independent sales agents.
  • Rates & Fees: How Merchants Got The Best Rates With Podium

Customer Reviews & Sentiment

Over A Dozen Complaints

Podium has a surprising amount of complaints for a company of their size and history. More concerningly, the reviews are consistently describing poor customer service and the continuation of charges long after cancelling service. There are numerous accusations that the product simply did not work and merchants were unable to contact Podium customer service for days or even weeks.

Customer Service Concerns

In addition to the numerous reports of being unable to cancel contracts, or Podium continuing to charge its customers after canceling, there seems to be a recurring theme of poor customer service throughout. Some merchants claim that after signing the contract Podium became nearly impossible to contact. There are also reports of Podium not providing adequate training for merchants and not following up with the training sessions. Overall there seems to be far too many reports of unprofessional or unethical conduct to ignore.

Podium Lawsuits

We have not found any outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints filed against Podium. Dissatisfied merchants who wish to pursue a non-litigious course of action against the company should consider reporting it to the relevant supervisory organizations and by leaving a review of your own in the comment section of this article below.

Podium Customer Support Options

Podium does not offer a dedicated customer service number. The website allows you to email support or text the sales team. Considering the numerous reports of poor customer service and the absence of any easily contactable support, it would appear that Podium has lots of potential for improvement in its customer service department.

Industry Scores & User Ratings

Online Ratings Summary
Product & Service Complaints2
Billing & Collection Complaints6
Advertising & Sales Complaints3
Guarantee & Warranty Complaints0
Delivery Complaints0

11 Complaints

According to the Better Business Bureau Podium has received 11 complaints and 14 reviews in the past 36 months. Currently it holds a “D-” rating and is not accredited by the Better Business Bureau.

Of the 11 complaints, 6 were due to billings and collections issues, 3 with advertising and sales, and 2 concerned a product or service. Podium has successfully resolved 4 of these complaints, though many have gone unanswered.

What Merchants Say

Podium has also received 14 negative reviews in the past 36 months. 13 of the 14 reviews were 1 star, while the remaining one rated Podium 2 stars. The most recent negative review echoes the same issues with customer service and cancellation that we’re seeing consistently in reviews.

Horrific customer service. Have been trying to cancel our service with them since May, and have had to deny all charges through our credit card company. They are still attempting to charge the card and we are almost in September!

A “D” Performance Overall

We agree with the Better Business Bureau’s rating of a “D” at this time.

Processing Rates & Fees

Does Not Disclose Rates

Podium does not openly advertise rates anywhere on their website. The only actual number we could locate was a figure for rates starting at 1.99% + $0.15 per transaction. This language and a lack of any concrete numbers indicates that Podium likely relies on varying rate contracts. It has also been reported by many merchants that Podium’s contract requires a 12 month minimum commitment with no option to cancel.

Actual Rates Will Likely Vary

Podium invites potential customers to use its product free for 30 days. It’s not clear if Podium presents rates for customers before or after this 30 day trial. There are also numerous reports of customers having trouble cancelling the services after this trial period expires or experiencing difficulties using it during the trial period. We were able to locate 3rd party reports of pricing in the $350-$450 per month for a business with one location as reported by a sales agent at Podium.

podium pricing information
Pricing information found on a 3rd-party website.

Negotiate Contract Pricing

We have not been able to locate a Podium merchant account contract at this time. Merchants who have recently signed up for payment services through Podium are encouraged to leave a comment below describing their experience. Merchants are again encouraged to negotiate pricing and contract terms and to read all contracts thoroughly before signing in these cases.

Employee Reviews & Sales Practices

No Evidence of Independent Sales Teams

According to job listings on the Podium website, it appears that Podium trains its sales teams in house. Typically this results in clearer contract terms up front and better overall service, but from what customers are reporting in reviews it would seem that Podium’s sales teams are not presenting the product and rates clearly.

Podium Contract Terms

Podium does not directly advertise their contract rates. They seem to heavily employ their use of a free 30 day trial, which many merchants are reporting difficulties with. Merchants find themselves unable to use the product during the trial and then are unable to contact customer service before the actual contract dates kick in. We recommend all of our readers tread carefully when agreeing to trial periods or tentative contracts.

Podium Competitors

Compare Podium to competitors that earned top marks.

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Bottom Line

Podium’s design seems to blend card payment services with the reputation management services offered by countless other software companies. However, this seems to be resulting in an expensive product that cannot compete well in either field. While it may function well for certain applications, there are a concerning amount of reports from merchants indicating their online reputation suffered from use of Podium. While it’s difficult to gauge the company from a payment provider perspective, we find the staggering amount of customer service issues and contract inconsistencies to be a major red flag. While some merchants could probably greatly benefit from Podium’s niche of services, we have trouble recommending them as a payment provider at this time. We are currently rating them 2 stars, and advising our readers to proceed with caution when dealing with Podium representatives. 

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