Not all businesses accept credit cards. Some small business owners think that the processing fees (up to 3.5%) are prohibitively expensive. However, they are missing the point in many ways. Accepting credit cards opens up your business to different types of customers, increases sales, and adds legitimacy to your business. Here are seven benefits for businesses that accept credit cards.
Legitimizes the Business
One of the main benefits is the legitimacy it brings to your business. If you advertise that you don’t accept credit cards, it automatically tells customers that your business is small time. As a small business, it’s good to promote success and attempt to provide the same level of service that big businesses can. That includes accepting credit cards. You can also use this as a trust signal on your e-commerce website.
Boost Sales
One of the most straightforward benefits of accepting credit cards is that it boosts sales. To put it simply, the more payment methods you accept, the more customers you can facilitate. Lots of customers make big purchases on credit cards either because they can’t afford to pay all at once or because they want to boost their credit score. If you are selling high-ticket items, accepting credit cards is essential.
Eliminates the Risk of Getting Bad Checks
If you run a service business that accepts checks, you will know the pain of getting a bad check. In most cases, you can get your money eventually. However, the process is difficult and time-consuming. If you accept credit cards, you are providing customers with a preferred payment method. More people will pay on credit cards and you will receive fewer bad checks.
Increase E-commerce Conversions
Accepting credit cards is a sure-fire way to increase e-commerce conversions. To increase conversions, you need to make the process as easy and accessible as possible. If a customer wants to pay with a credit card, it’s important to offer this service. It’s also far easier to include than you would think. Using a service like https://accreditedinterchange.com/, businesses can accept credit cards easier than ever before.
Improve Your Business’ Cash Flow
One of the biggest benefits of credit cards is that they are processed instantly, unlike checks. That means, every time a customer pays with a credit card, the money is deposited directly into your bank account. This will improve your cash flow and save you time when accounting.
Provides a Level Playing Field With Competitors
To stand a chance at competing with the other businesses in your space, you need to create a level playing field. That means removing as many potential reasons that a customer might have for choosing one of your competitors. You can safely assume that most of your competitors will accept credit cards, so you should too.
Credit Cards Are Reasonably Inexpensive
The high-end of credit card charges are around 3.5% for a business.
That might cut into your profit margins slightly but it should still leave you with plenty of profit. If you are only making a 3.5% profit or less, you should be looking at other areas to cut back on.
