Credit Cards: To Accept or Not To Accept...

[EcoArboristBill]

Thinking about setting up to accept CC's and wondering how many of you have or do accept them. If so, what type of equipment do you use and how has it affected your biz? that is to say, has it increased the number of big jobs you get, or the number of jobs you get period, has it opened the door on any specific types of contracts such as commercial or government? And what company do you use for processing? I am aware of services like PayPal but I'm not sure that would go over too well in my area, not a really techno savvy population (The YP ad is still king around here).
Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated

 

[NetreeLady]

We took them for a couple of years; Lots of expense, for very little return. Not worth the hassle, IMHO.

 

[MillerTreeMN]

i dont.

cash, or check. i only get 1-2 calls max per year asking if i take credit cards. i dont think ive lost any more than 1 job by not accepting them, i usually just explain that i dont accept CC and then the customer writes a check.

doesnt seem worth the headache.

 

[Daddy M Dawg]

If it's a must have them pay with Paypal. It's free to them to signup and may help you close sales. I wouldn't advertise VISA/MC though because their fees will cost you.

 

[Kansas]

Best thing I ever did for my business (auto repair shop) in many ways, even with the monthly costs involved you are better off than with payment by check, as the money gets put in your account faster.

Since you dont know if the check is good at the point of sale w/o calling the bank like you do with a CC.

If the CC isnt good you will see it at the terminal it will have xxx's across the dollar amount and you refuse the sale unless they can produce a suitable alternative payment. hth

Kansas

 

[coolbrze]

A person can cancel both a check & CC! I wouldn't worry about that much. I'd worry about CC fees, although a few of my buddies have gone to CC payment pages on their websites & said the fees are negligable. I've been meaning to check that out...

 

[loadthestove]

I accept credit/debit cards in my business and have never regretted it.A lot of company mechanics/parts chaser carry a company cc so I'm usually paid on the spot.
I purchased my own machine on ebay for less than $300 new.
After talking with several card companies and flatly telling them"If you cant set it up to where it doesn't cost me anything if I don't use it don't waste your time calling ".
The company I'm currently with only charges me a $7.00 dollar a month statement fee plus the usual 1.59 percent on each transaction.
With this setup if I don't use it for a month I;m not out a great deal of money
several companies wanted around $40 per month just to have their services
regardless if I used them or not.

 

[ozarktreeman]

i dont.

cash, or check. i only get 1-2 calls max per year asking if i take credit cards. i dont think ive lost any more than 1 job by not accepting them, i usually just explain that i dont accept CC and then the customer writes a check.

doesnt seem worth the headache.

:agree2:

 

[lawnmowertech37]

im in the process of cancelling my merchant acct do not get enough business anyhow to cover the costs of transaction fees associated with the small orders that i do get when i get

only use paypal as the visa card accepter and amex and discover

i save more in the process by using standard paypal anyhow

what i dont understand is this past march i was doing ok but today its a blessing if i even make $ 50.00 a week

thats how slow it is on my site and that is the only job i have is online store sales

so you know how i feel dont you

 

[oscar4883]

Anyone have any experience with a service called First Data? Recently switched banks and this is a CC service they offer. Apparently it is an outside vendor of some sort and I don not think that any hardware is involved. Waiting to hear from the representative to go over the particulars.

 

[lawnmowertech37]

Anyone have any experience with a service called First Data? Recently switched banks and this is a CC service they offer. Apparently it is an outside vendor of some sort and I don not think that any hardware is involved. Waiting to hear from the representative to go over the particulars.

i was with them for 8 years when i was doing locksmith work but i stopped doing business with them due to the high charges they were starting to charge
Quickbooks merchant services are much cheaper rates

 

[oscar4883]

i was with them for 8 years when i was doing locksmith work but i stopped doing business with them due to the high charges they were starting to charge
Quickbooks merchant services are much cheaper rates

Thank you for the info.

 

[ArborSmithNw]

Seriously, 2 words:

Airline Miles.

2 more words:

Can't afford.

If you are dealing with client contracts worth more than $500 or so, a lot of time they may not have the cash at hand to cover the costs, being able to pay it off monthly helps to lock in more deals, vs. not accepting may cut you out of their loop.

The people who hire arborists to enhance properties as a "luxury" rather than an emergency removal type, is more apt to travel due to disposable income. Those who fly regularly, earning those miles even if they have the cash is very important to them.

And like mentioned by others, you get the money quicker, the payment doesn't get returned etc etc. No such thing as the check's in the mail!

Anytime I am trying to track down a payment from somebody & they give me the ol' I will send out a check tomorrow, I always counter with: Well I can go ahead and just take a CC over the phone and earn you more rewards & save you a stamp!!

 

[ArborSmithNw]

oh, and if you do go that way, make sure you shop around. it's a very competitive business that anybody can get into, so you can really beat them up on their fees! Check with your local corner market & ask them who they use, usually they are set up on the cheap!

 

[EcoArboristBill]

Good point Arbor Smith. Reward Points could be one more selling point. And you reinforced my thought that accepting CCs could help land larger contracts. However I can see the point others are making that if you don't generate enough sales through CCs you will be loosing money. So I guess the only way to know how it will work is to try it out and see if there's an associated increase.
Any more thoughts...bring 'em on

 

[argueta]

During spring, about 60% of our customers pay with credit cards. Like someone mentioned, it is very convenient for the customer to be able to pay in payments rather than the whole amount at once, specially when its a bigger project. Our CC fees are I believe 1.59% of the charging amount. Its one of the lowest rates available. We have a wireless CC terminal that lets us take CC at the spot, that way we can see the CC went threw. Also, customers feel more comfortable seeing the CC swiped rather than giving it over the phone.

 

[BuddhaKat]

There is so much to know about merchant services. Firstly, the fees today are very low and make taking CC's very practical. Secondly, more than half of all transactions are now done with debit cards rather than credit or check. There's a ton of advantages to that for everyone. From the merchants perspective, the fees are lower and there's no chargeback risk.

And lastly, DON'T sign a long term contract or agree to any monthly minimums. They're nothing but BS!

Merchant services is actually my primary business. If someone wants to know more about how the industry works, PM me and I'll be glad to explain it in detail or answer any questions. No sales pitch. If you have questions I'm more than happy to help.

 

[Oly's Stump]

I have been taking credit cards the past 6 years through PayPal. Best thing I ever did. Customers pay right on my website. I don't pay any monthly fees and don't have to buy any equipment. I pay a small fee when someone pays me. I have been told numerous times by customers that its great. I never see the customers credit card and they trust PayPal is secure.

 

[MillerTreeMN]

I have been taking credit cards the past 6 years through PayPal. Best thing I ever did. Customers pay right on my website. I don't pay any monthly fees and don't have to buy any equipment. I pay a small fee when someone pays me. I have been told numerous times by customers that its great. I never see the customers credit card and they trust PayPal is secure.

Do you ever have problems transferring the money from your paypal account, to your bank account ?

what about the waiting period? does that ever bother you ?

i think my paypal account only lets me run a $500 per month limit

 

[RAG66]

I do not accept CC's. As someone said before, I only run into a very small number of customers per year that ask, and out of 3-6 maybe 1 has ever said they can not use my services. I would much rather deal in cash and checks. The question of a bounced check has not occured one time in 15 years. Most of my customers are usualy home to watch and full of compliment when they see what we do for a living. This being said I think it is the type of customer you are looking for or the volume of business you wish to achieve.:greenchainsaw: