Do you carry cash around all the time? Many people don’t, and even if you do carry coins and bills, it’s always possible to run out at just the wrong moment.
With an increasing shift towards in-person and digital credit card payments, it’s becoming more and more important for businesses to accept credit card payments.
In this article, we’ll look at the steps you’ll need to follow to start accepting credit card payments. We’ll also discuss how accepting credit cards can help your business grow.
Why Accept Credit Cards?
Accepting credit card payments can increase the ways your business offers for customers to make purchases, helping to boost revenue and income.
This is particularly essential for small businesses, where missing out on payments could make a huge difference to your bottom line. Being open to credit card payments can help your business look more trustworthy, which can drive more sales.
Just as getting a business credit card for your company can make it easier for you to process payments, accepting credit cards will make it much easier for customers to pay you.
“Credit cards have become the new cash thanks to their unbeatable combination of safety, security, and convenience. It’s hard to find a place that doesn’t accept credit cards these days – and that includes non-traditional businesses like food trucks, call-out services, and farmers’ markets. Embracing credit card payments opens up a world of possibilities, helping you get more custom easily, no matter your niche.”
Damian Brychcy, COO and US MD of Capital on Tap
Can My Business Accept Credit Cards?
You can start to accept credit cards regardless of what kind of business you have.
Whether you’re a sole trader, an established business, an online-only store, or a traditional brick-and-mortar shop, it’s still possible to start taking credit card payments.
While almost 55% of small businesses don’t accept credit cards, this is usually down to a personal preference rather than anything preventing them from accepting cards.
All you have to do is follow the steps below to start getting your business ready for credit cards.
Step 1. Decide What Kind Of Credit Card Payments You Will Accept
The first step towards accepting credit card payments is to look at what payments you want.
If you’re one of the 71% of small businesses that have a website, you might want to add payment options to your website to boost sales.
If you don’t have a website, then finding a credit card payment option for websites will be less of a priority.
It’s important to figure out your needs, as you don’t want to be paying for services that you won’t use, and you don’t want to limit how your customers can pay you.
Step 2. Find A Payment Processor To Suit Your Needs
Once you know what kind of credit card payments you want to accept, you’ll need to find a payment processor.
This is a company that handles all the behind-the-scenes aspects of transfers of money.
It’s their job to authenticate the payment and get the funds transferred from the customer’s account to your account.
There are many processors focusing on different client types, so it might take some research to find the right one for you.
Step 3. Compare Processing Fees
One of the biggest factors to consider when you’re looking at credit card payment processing companies is the fees.
Most companies will charge a percentage of each transaction you make, as well as a monthly fee based on your overall volume of transactions per month.
To help you find the best deal for your business, you should try to calculate how many payments you’ll take during an average month, as well as the value of each transaction.
“Fees can fluctuate significantly with financial services, and you should always do the research to find the right offer for your business. In the same way you want a specialist small business credit card for your expenses, it’s equally important to find a payment processor that caters to the needs of small businesses. By doing so, you not only ensure that your costs are manageable but also create an environment that fosters growth rather than hinders it.”
Damian Brychcy, COO and US MD of Capital on Tap
Step 4. Check Reviews
Whenever you look at paying for a new service, you should always read the reviews.
These reviews will help you check if a provider or payment processor is right for your business. This can be a good way to narrow down the different providers.
Step 5. Read The Contract Carefully
Once you’ve selected a provider, you need to make sure that you read their terms and conditions carefully.
Once you’re comfortable with the contract and accept it, you can start accepting credit card payments through the processor.
Accepting Credit Cards: Conclusion
Accepting credit card payments can help your business grow by giving customers more options and boosting revenue.
It isn’t difficult to accept credit cards once you have a payment processor that takes care of the fund transfer details. You just want to compare the different deals available.
Ella Marcotte
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