Most people don’t bring cash anymore when shopping. All they would bring would be cards, debit or credit. You as a business owner should take advantage of this by offering to process credit and debit cards on your store or business. There are many requirements when it comes to processing credit cards, but the first is you should get a credit card processing company. The rest of the other steps you have to take, they can help you with. Here are some of the benefits of you should accept credit cards in your business.
Legitimizes Business
Other than your products or services, having the logos of trusted banks on your window or your website will give your business credibility. It isn’t easy to accept credit cards, there is a lot of process to undertake, so being a processor means your business has gone through all the legalities the bank and the credit card processing service provider has requested of you. Customers will feel confident in your company and will more likely to buy your product or avail of your services. Accepting credit cards will establish your business as a legitimate business in your area and field of industry.
YouGov made a survey back in 2000 about online consumers and why they abandon their purchases. The results said that about 50% of consumers abandon their shopping carts when they find out that their preferred payment option is not available. This means that you should offer as much modes of payment as possible, and that includes credit card processing.
Boost Sales
There are more people who carry credit cards rather than cash, so accepting credit cards will widen your customer base. A wider customer base will eventually mean more sales for your company. A report made by FitSmallBusiness.com says that when you accept credit cards, the average order for your company’s product will increase to as big as 40%. That’s a bigger customer base for you. The more potential customer you can attract the bigger your revenues will eventually be. Another way credit card processors can increase your sales is because it is quick to transact with credit cards. Clients’ don’t like to waste time with unnecessary steps so just swiping a card will be easier for them. More often than not, people will prefer to carry cards on them rather than cash. It lessens the risk of being mugged when you don’t carry large amounts of money on you.
Level the Playing Field
A Nilson report predicts that cash payment will decline by 24% and check payment will decline by 46% in the United States by year 2018. The same report predicts that payment through cards will increase by more than 50% by the same year. This is why more and more small business owners are availing of the top credit card processing services available. To level the playing field, you should also start accepting credit cards in your business. If you do not want to be left behind by your competitors, then do what they are doing. Not accepting credit cards will make you lose out on a lot of potential sales. Sales that could go to you would go to your competitor businesses just because you don’t accept credit cards. This is solvable and it would only take you to apply for a merchant account and set up your necessaryequipment.
Encourage Buying
Having a credit card encourages buying for customers. In fact, it encourages impulse buying. When certain people get credit cards they have a compulsion to use it and buy stuff even if they have no need for it. According to the statistics gathered by creditdonkey.com, 47.4% of the people they surveyed experience a rush of exhilaration when shopping. A percentage of 31.7, almost always or frequently buy things just because there are on sale. Not accepting credit cards will make you lose out on these numbers of possible customers. Although, for some the compulsion is almost an addiction and should be stopped since some of the buyers might not be able to pay their credits. But the fact that there are people who are willing to spend money just because is the key to your improved sales. Be sure to choose the best credit card processor that can process all major credit and debit cards, because some people have multiple cards and you want to be able to process them all.
Improve Cash Flow
Because online credit card processing can increase your sales, it also means that it can improve your cash flow. Transactions using credit cards can be settled quickly and the cash will be sitting in your account immediately. This means that there is a more free flow of cash for your business. You can use the increase in your cash flow to invest in more marketing campaigns or advertisements which will further increase your sales.
Unlike checks, credit cards can be settled in just a matter of days. You can have your cash within a couple or few business day. While checks need at least five business days to be cleared. There really are lots of advantages when using credit cards. Another advantage is that the cash would be deposited directly to your bank account, so there would be less cash to deal with. This will lessen possibilities of theft or robbery in your business place. The money would be sitting safely in your account after the bill is settled.
Online Business
If you want to do business online, getting a credit card processing service is a must. More people will likely engage in your online business if you offer to have your products paid through credit card. People will doubt your legitimacy if you will ask them to deposit money directly to your account. At least with credit cards, buyers will have the protection of a chargeback if you fail to deliver their product. Get a processor that will help you set up your online business and will be available 24/7 in case you face problems. If you want to have the top credit card processing services available, you should read reviews of credit card processing companies on review sites. It will help you make a decision on which is the best fit for your business needs. You can still have a physical, retail store but online stores are the new way to shop these days, and having one can help boost your sales.
No More Bad Checks
One very big advantage of accepting credit cards is that you wouldn’t have to accept checks any longer. There are less people carrying checks anyway than credit cards. With the credit cards, you can immediately gauge if you are engaging in a fraudulent transaction. You can check the identity of the card holder. Check the expiration date on the card; check the billing address and other things you can do to ensure that your buyer is legitimate. On the other hand, accepting checks will require you to wait a certain number of business days to know if the check cleared or bounced. If it bounces, you have already lost time you could have spent more productively than waiting and you also lose money because the transaction fell through. There are ways you can get back your money, but that will require, again, time that you don’t have. Accepting credit cards is one way you can eliminate the risk of bad checks. Check out some reviews of credit card processing services to know which is currently the best in the market.
Convenience
The first reason people have for availing credit cards is the convenience of it. Just swipe it and you have a new bag or your groceries are paid. Unlike carrying money, you run the risk of robbery. It is also more time consuming to count money to pay for something that you have bought. Using credit cards will remove these risks and inconveniences. Swiping your card or entering the information will be quick and easy for the transactions you have to make. You wouldn’t have to wait for change so that saves you more time. You also get rewards and points for the credit that you put on your cards. The rewards are put there by the banks to entice consumers of getting credit cards. The rewards range from new devices to a trip to a far and beautiful paradise.
Inexpensive
As compared to the revenue that you will get from accepting credit cards, the fees and rates of credit card processing can be seen as an inexpensive expense for your business. The best credit card processing companies will offer low rates and fees per transaction. So the expense will be light on your business and you can immediately gain money once you start accepting credit cards. If you want to know which is the best processor, read reviews of credit card processing services.
There are many advantages why your business, whether it is small, medium or large scale, should be accepting credit cards as a mode of payment. The nine things mentioned above are just few of the many advantages of credit card processing. Start accepting credit cards now so you can see the money rolling in immediately.
Still confused about the best credit card processing company? Read the reviews to find out what users are saying.
John Tovar
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