Learning and Resources

DID YOU KNOW…the ability to accept credit cards increase revenue by as much as 23 percent? And it boosts the average sale, too; in fact, customers paying with credit cards typically spend about 20 percent more than when they need to pay with cash or check.

Customers like the speed, flexibility and convenience of electronic payment. Chances are, if you don’t offer it, they’ll go to a competitor who does. So in the long run, the costs and risks of credit card acceptance are far outweighed by increased sales, improved cash flow, and enhanced customer retention.

There are other advantages, too. Cash transactions take far less time at the point of sale (POS) than checks do. Thanks to speedy online authorization, you know that sufficient funds are available in a new customer’s account – eliminating the risk of returned checks.

And have we mentioned credit card acceptance is fast? Instead of waiting for checks to clear, or for a month or two for invoices to be paid, funds deriving from credit and debit card transactions are deposited directly into your bank account, usually within a mere 48 hours. That enables faster payment cycles, which leads to improved cash flow.

The risks, in comparison, are few and far between: namely, fraud and “charge backs”, which occur when a customer disputes a charge on a credit cad. However taking a few precautionary risk management steps and offering secure payment processing solutions easily manage this risk.

When you add it all up: increased sales, improved productivity, lower costs (it is often less expensive to process credit cards and debit cards than to accept checks), more flexible customer service, and enhanced business image, it makes sense why “kingly cash” no longer rules!