I’ve come to the all-knowing brain trust seeking knowledge.

I have a small side business I run out of my home. I’ve gotten to the point that I need to start accepting credit / debit cards. Any of you have any experience with the companies that offer small readers that attach to your phone, such as Square? My cash flow can be anywhere from $200 to $2000 a month.

My intent is to have the customer using the card pay the fee, much like what is done at gun shows around here in the DFW area.

Thanks

https://squareup.com/us/en


Edited to add - Thanks everyone for the input. I knew I could come here and get good solid input. I'll have to investigate the possibility of charging a fee. My rates are so much lower than everyone else in the area, unless it's illegal or against TOS by the company, I believe I could get away with charging. As far as I know I've never lost business by not accepting credit cards, but had a customer today tell me he couldn't pick up his equipment just yet until he raised the cash. His bill is $125. I realize to some folks this is a lot of money, but he knew upfront what the charge would be. But this time I did forget to tell the customer up front that I don't accept cards.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: JohnDFW,

I use Square for my plumbing business, no complaints.

We used Clover as part of Girl Scout Cookie sales. Worked well, could even do some limited inventory management, track cash sales, etc. but since the Council arranged it, I don’t know what the fee structure is like.

I run a small business and accept cash and checks. I have not lost customers because of it, but it is not a retail business. I have no plans to change because of the fees and the issue of disputed purchases.

I think you need to look at your competition and see what they do. If you accept cash, you will get the customers who want a CASH discount.

People often balk at paying 3 percent more, and will be more likely to accept the hidden fee, {marking up your product three percent.}

I use Square, never had a problem. No minimums, no monthly fee.

I think the TOS for all processing companies says you can’t charge the fee to the customer, so instead give a “discount” of equal amount to cash/check customers.

We use Converge Mobile at my place of employment. I am not sure on backend or fee stuff, but I know the owner of the company I work for doesn't like to overpay for anything.

My big kid uses it in his hair cuttting endeavors....the square gives him information for his taxes and whatnot...he’s never complained about it at all.....which is weird for him......he also takes cash, but no checks

Depending how much you run through, I would look at Square. Portable, instant deposits now guess work. We have a different system now that I hate and doesn't deposit immediately but the savings annually was too attractive not to switch.

Square works well for me. AVOID Pay Pal Here!

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Hi John,
As a customer, not business owner I have used Square with no issues as long as you have good cell coverage.

My barber tried to use Square, but they have lousy cell coverage and it was a pain for both him and me so he gave up. It's embarrassing to watch him try to get a signal to connect while I just stand there wanting to leave the shop.

This is not a ding on Square, but on my barber not using a better cell phone service.

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I have a small biz. Lifecyclepro.com. 8 staff. Cash flow can be a challenge.


The thrust of the true answer to the question is; do you want to be paid now or wait for.....late or non payment?

One way to foil that, is to accept cc. We do and We use QB intuit, so it dove tails to book keeping. And emails receipts blah blah.

As far as fee, you work in a way that addresses that issue. Whether is a fee for travel, extra time on the clock admin what ever works to help cover it. In some states it’s not lawful to charge a fee.

We take cc. Cuz we want to be paid now.

+1 for Square. I have taken credit cards since 1990, and Square is the best I have had. Easy, multiple acceptance options, I have never had a problem.

All the cab drivers in my city use Square and they email you the receipt before you even get out of the car. If these immigrant guys can handle the tech then anyone can.

The company that used to bring me truckloads of gravel and sand etc used Square.
Driver backs into the dump spot, I hand him my card and he swipes it... it instantly sends me a paid invoice via email, then he hits dump... easy and just that quick. I have no idea what the cost to him was.

If you're doing any firearms related business,you can write off Square.

If it is gun related items you might want to consider McMillian Merchant Solutions. The only thing I know is that McMillian took Bank of America to task concerning their account which involved McMillian Firearms. Think he took out like a full page in the news paper detailing what BOA had done. As a result, he stated MSM.

Square is a anti firearm. The question is what is your average sale and monthly sales volume? These 2 figures will play in to what rates you get. There are a couple options based on these numbers. I've used a number of different companies over the years as I grew my business.

For those that care for the back story on Square: I used it in the beginning before they went firearm retard. They instituted their anti gun policy gave me 30 days to find a new service. 14 days into the 30 they cut off my service. The cut off came on a Friday night right before a gun show. Estimate my loss that weekend at approx $6k. I now have 2 cc providers so I always have a backup. I do not use Square to pay for anything except at coffee shops or nickel and dime sales which actually cost Square money.

I've used Square in the past and got payments from customers that would have otherwise ripped me off.

I run Stripe now as it's integrated into my billing system but I still have Square for those sketchy situations.

I use a company called Blue Dog for charges when needed for my FFL business. They are actually *almost* pro gun. Haven’t had any issues.

quote:

Originally posted by zoom6zoom:
If you're doing any firearms related business,you can write off Square.

Yup.....

I use EMSplus for my home based gun shop. They charge a flat 2.3%. I also got a little blue tooth receipt printer through them.