Credit card processing expenses can add up quickly and cut into the profits of a small business. This is unavoidable as one must accept credit cards if they want to stay competitive and keep their clients satisfied. While this cost is hard to avoid, one can save money on credit card processing fees by following these three tips.
Equipment: A company can either buy or rent the processing equipment. Over the long haul, one can save plenty of money if they buy the equipment rather than rent it for their business. The cost to buy the point-of-sale system is not as high as many people think. In fact, when renting a machine and paying $50 a month, one will spend more long run than if they just bought the machine out right in the beginning. Remember, if an entrepreneur thinks he or she will be in business a long time, they must buy all the equipment.
Negotiate: A savvy business owner must negotiate the terms with a credit card processing company. The best time to do this is when one signs up for services. Now, to negotiate successfully, one should have pending offers from three or four payment processing companies. When making a deal, one should try to get the payment processing company to reduce their monthly fee or percentage fee per transaction. One must realize that everything is negotiable including payment processing fees.
Software: When running transactions through software, one can cut their costs. Payment processors will routinely offer lower rates to a customer who runs an online business and only needs a software solution. In business, when trying save to money, one must avoid paying for services that they will not use. When using a program to run transactions, one can save on their monthly expenses and processing costs.
While it is difficult to avoid payment processing fees, one can decrease them drastically and with ease. For this reason, a well-informed and savvy entrepreneur should follow these three essential tips to lower their costs associated with accepting credit cards over the phone, in person and on the Internet.