Any small biz owners out there have a good credit card processing system?

I own a small bakery, where a lot of my purchases are around $2 each. My current credit card payment system charges a flat rate of .25 and then 1.8% of the purchase price. For a big order, I don't mind... but when it's only $1.95, that .25 alone is 12.5% of the total purchase price. Anyone else use a different method that would cost me less?
 

jerth6932

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheClemsonKid http:///t/392647/any-small-biz-owners-out-there-have-a-good-credit-card-processing-system#post_3487982
I own a small bakery, where a lot of my purchases are around $2 each. My current credit card payment system charges a flat rate of .25 and then 1.8% of the purchase price. For a big order, I don't mind... but when it's only $1.95, that .25 alone is 12.5% of the total purchase price. Anyone else use a different method that would cost me less?
Well the policy that I hate the most seems effective....... Cash only till they reach your comfort profit cap.
 
I'm making enough profit, it's not that. I guess it's just more annoying than anything to have to give almost 15% of a product sale as a fee on small purchases... Sadly if I went to a cash only policy i'd lose a ton of business...
 

dragonzim

Active Member
I see a lot of talk about Square, the device that you can use to accept payments from an iPhone or iPad. They charge a flat 2.75%
https://squareup.com/card-reader
 

reefraff

Active Member
Just paid a guy with square on his Android phone not 10 minutes ago. Worked really slick even though he manually entered the info. It's already posted as a pending charge on my bank web page.
 

meowzer

Moderator
Yeah...about a month ago we went canoeing.....paid that way too......To tell you the truth I was a little uneasy about it, BUT only cause I have never seen it before
I got a receipt and everything
 

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
I use square for my small furniture business and sometimes garage sales and other stuff. I like it so far. No complaints. It seems like it is worth it for me being a small business. Plus, i can take it anywhere i need to go and dont have to be in front of a registure to process transactions.
Quickbooks point of sale is expensive. I bought their system for $2500 but that also included a gift card printer. They charge 2.3% at least back in 2006-2008.
 

darthtang aw

Active Member
I own a small bakery, where a lot of my purchases are around $2 each.  My current credit card payment system charges a flat rate of .25 and then 1.8% of the purchase price.  For a big order, I don't mind... but when it's only $1.95, that .25 alone is 12.5% of the total purchase price.  Anyone else use a different method that would cost me less?
all card transactions are a minimum of 5.00. Explain it to your customer and they will understand.
 

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gemmy http:///t/392647/any-small-biz-owners-out-there-have-a-good-credit-card-processing-system#post_3488034
You are most likely in violation of the contract that you have with the credit card processing company.
Nope. That's a policy that a business owner makes. The merchant account services does not tell you how much or how little that you have to charge. People don't have to pay with a card if they don't want to. IS it up to the credit card people to tell you that your customers can only pay with cards? No.
 

darthtang aw

Active Member
You are most likely in violation of the contract that you have with the credit card processing company.
Depends on the state and the processor. There is a gas station I frequent. They have three prices for fuel, one based on cash, one based on debit, and another based on credit card transaction. It used to be in violation of most contracts 10 years ago. Now, not so much.
 
S

smallreef

Guest
I go to a bakery that is ALL CASH... they dont have a CC machine... they only take in town checks... im just sayin.. it depends on the product and if your customers can go somewhere else ... you could just get an ATM put in the lobby before you change to ALL cash, lol. Everything is just based on ease and a customers wants...
 

reefraff

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Darthtang AW http:///t/392647/any-small-biz-owners-out-there-have-a-good-credit-card-processing-system#post_3488128
Depends on the state and the processor. There is a gas station I frequent. They have three prices for fuel, one based on cash, one based on debit, and another based on credit card transaction. It used to be in violation of most contracts 10 years ago. Now, not so much.
I am surprised more people don't do that. I make more money on the cash back on my credit card than I do with 100 grand in a money market savings account. The money comes from somewhere.
 
S

siptang

Guest
How about this?
http://payments.intuit.com/products/basic-payment-solutions/mobile-credit-card-processing.jsp
I'm thinking about this as well.
 

dragonzim

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Darthtang AW http:///t/392647/any-small-biz-owners-out-there-have-a-good-credit-card-processing-system#post_3488128
Depends on the state and the processor. There is a gas station I frequent. They have three prices for fuel, one based on cash, one based on debit, and another based on credit card transaction. It used to be in violation of most contracts 10 years ago. Now, not so much.
Here in NY it is against state law for gas stations to charge more for credit card transactions. Of course they get around it by giving you discount if you pay in cash. Its all the same either way... Their discounted cash price is the same as what the guys that charge the same price no matter how you pay anyway. They are also supposed to treat debit card purchases at the pump as cash but they have started charging the credit price even though there is no fee they have to pay in association with a debit transaction
 

stdreb27

Active Member
There is absolutely a fee for a debit card transaction.
I used to frequent a bakery that only did cash, he finally (after getting tired of me Paying in pennies) told me I had an account there. Bad news for my waste line... So id run up about 20 bucks or so then pay him.
 

reefraff

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by stdreb27 http:///t/392647/any-small-biz-owners-out-there-have-a-good-credit-card-processing-system#post_3488215
There is absolutely a fee for a debit card transaction.
I used to frequent a bakery that only did cash, he finally (after getting tired of me Paying in pennies) told me I had an account there. Bad news for my waste line... So id run up about 20 bucks or so then pay him.
I think the Democrats wonderful banking reform bill removed the debit card fees to businesses. That's when the banks all started adding fees to checking accounts and such.
 

stdreb27

Active Member
They capped them. Didn't kill them. At least between merchant and businesses. Between and individual and the bank, they passed laws that required banks not charge overdraft fees unless you opt into the program.
Banks would "as a service" fund transactions that overdrafts your account. Then they'd hit you with a fee for the service... As they put it. Of course if you called em up and asked them not to fund an overdraft charge, most of em would tell you to pound sand... So the Feds passed a law saying you had to opt into that program, instead of it being sop for a bank... So banks went out and started recouping that profit somewhere else. Instead of punishing the people who were idiots spending more than they made, they started charging everyone a little something...
Of course they also added other more stringent regulations to big banks vs small banks giving a significant competitive advantage to the small banks or credit unions.
 
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