A way to save money on accepting credit cards......MAYBE?

EdCaffreyMS

EdCaffreyMS

"The Montana Bladesmith"
I've been accepting credit cards for some time now, but am always looking for ways to cut costs/fees, and make accepting credit cards easier/less expensive on me, and the customer.

A few days ago Cindy and I were talking about it, and I had heard about an app for the Iphone....this morning Steve and I were talking about it on the phone, and I did a bit of research. I found this website: Top Ten Reviews
The specific one I've been looking at is #5 for the Iphone (I don't own/use an Iphone, but after looking at the website for the app I'm thinking it might be a good solution the next time our mobile phones come up for renewal)
I still need to scrutinize all the aspects, and especially the fees (hidden and otherwise), but it could be just the thing for knifemakers who take credit cards at shows.
Maybe we could put out heads together, have many sets of eyes looking over these plans/apps, and see what everyone's opinions are of them......kind of a group effort?
 
I would like to hear thoughts on this as well, I've been giving thought to how to go about taking payment at knife/gun shows.
 
I've heard some good things about SquareUp, and I know the 4Sevens booth at Blade was using a little swiping attachment on an Ipad.
 
I've looked most of them over, and I think it's going to come down to what fits each individuals needs/pocketbooks. I sent all the information to my Mrs., who is a bookkeeper by trade, and asked her to look them over and give me her opinions. One of the things that has me a bit confused about the one I listed above (#5) is that on their website, they state that the only thing you pay is the credit card percentage, but when you look at the review site, they list all kinds of charges/fees. We'll have to delve deeper into it to get the answers.

For me, I like the idea of being able to "swipe" a card while at a show, and know instantly if the card is good and the transaction went through. But on the other hand, I also take a lot of cards over the phone, and have to key those into a virtual terminal....which in the case with these apps, always seems to increase the percentage taken on the sale.

Then there is the question of having the proper smartphone, and does that smartphone require a monthly "data plan" in order for things to work? I checked on my mobile carrier's site and found that data plans can range from $10-$70 per month, on top of the other cell charges. Looks like it will be "numbers crunching" to see if switching from what I have now will save an money or not. The security/convenience is certainly there....but will it be cost effective? hmmmm? :)
 
I use the GoPayments App on my phone. It's part of the Inuit / Quickbooks company. I can take the info over the phone and enter it in the web site or I have a swiper that plugs into my phone for the shows.

They even sign on the phones screen with their finger.

Then I can send them a receipt to their e mail and or via text message. I can also print a traditional paper receipt on my computer.

$20 a month, about half of my old service.
 
Hi Les!

That was part of the puzzle that had me confused! You mentioned you pay $20 per month? The GoPayments website talks about how it doesn't cost anything unless you use it, but on that review site I listed, they have several "fees" listed. I'm just trying to figure out the "ins and outs"....mostly the fee thing. I called GoPayments a couple of days ago, and got someone who didn't speak understandable english.
 
as far as I could tell there are 2 different versions of GoPayments. The free one and the one that I got.

I believe the free one had the catch of they only charge you a % of the amount processed as long as you did a low volume per month, I want to say it was 1 or 2K..

I went ahead with the full version cuz some months I may not use it, but some months I may run 4k. You just never know and I have had troubles before running large amounts on my old service.

I also dont think that the "free" version has the web site with it, but I did not look to far into the free one.

Bottom line is if you take a CC, you will pay a % for the privilege. You have to find a service that makes it as easy to do as possible for as little maintenance fees as possible. Heck my old service charged me $30 to cancel it!
 
All of those hidden fees have always been the problem(s) with most CC merchant accounts. I was checking into the hassles of canceling my current one, and found that it requires a 90 day written notification of cancellation. When I called the "help" line to ask about specifics, and mentioned cancellation requirements, it turned into a sales pitch/plea to not cancel. I finally just had to stop the guy, and tell him that I was trying to educate myself, and that I wasn't cancelling. (At least no yet) :)

Right now I'm in a situation where I'll have to wait a few months till my cell contract renewal comes up, then I can get a phone capable of this kind of thing (at a good discount over just buying one outright). By the way, are you using GoPayment over a smart phone? If so, does it require a "data plan" with your cell provider in addition to your regular phone service?
I'm trying to find/weight all the associated costs to make the best decision I can.
 
Yeah I have it on my smart phone and I do believe that it requires data. I just got my cool guy phone with data on it and it's one of the best technology investments I have ever made. I wasnt planning on running CC over the phone when I got it, but I would have changed to GoPayments years ago if I'd known about them. Even if I had to do it all on line.
 
I know this thread has some age on it, but figured I'd chime in anyway.

Have you looked at using PayPal's Merchant service? Not the regular PayPal, but their actual business service? I used it for years and it was .5 to a full 2 percent cheaper per transaction than any other merchant account service I could find at the time. Furthermore, your Customers don't have to be PayPal users to pay with a CC.

I simply either emailed them a link to the checkout page or had the go directly to PayPal if they knew how to use it. It's been a few years since I've used it, but I'm betting their rates are still very competitive. And, you don't have to lease/buy any equipment!!
 
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