Business Questions
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jafo
Jul 1, 2019, 11:32:12 AM7/1/19
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So hello everyone.... Hasn't been much activity... Hope everyone is doing well and keeping busy..... I thought I would post this here and get your opinion....
Like many of you we all started out taking cash and checks..... It seems like it has all evolved to debt and credit cards now..... I am kind of in the same boat as most of my payments I use my card for purchases or online....
We started taking cards maybe 5-7 years ago...I started and still use Square Reader.... Its convenient, did have to pay for the reader and I got my money the next day or monday....the charge was 2.75%... I did pay for a new chip reader, but I got credit for that on waived charges...so all is well... I am able to use in the shop and when I make any deliveries or pickups and sync it to my phone/tablet and no extra charge or phone line....all is well... I don't want this to be a plug for square; I just wanted to share what I am using...
My question is for those that take cards....do you pass that cost on to your client as a "Credit Card Fee" or do you just eat it.... I have several LARGE jobs recently and they all paid by card.... Looking at what it cost me so they could earn points and just swipe it made me ponder this.... I have resisted raising my labor cost ($85/hour)... but I am charging now for EVERY hour...regardless of the piece....even the little old lady bringing in a chair...I just give estimate ranges (1-3 hours) etc.... However, as prices are going up, I am thinking about doing what body shops do.... Labor cost....and a flat materials and environmental disposable cost...say $15, or $20 per job...regardless of size.... So....I open it to you for what you are all doing and suggestions... This is been in our family since 1976....so we are well established...
Hope business is going well for everyone.
jeff
Rose
Jul 1, 2019, 2:40:48 PM7/1/19
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You might want to read this article and check with your state laws
If you also accept American Express you will need to read the fine print of their agreement. You may be going against their rules and cause yourself issues if you charge fees for credit card use.
Our policy is to offer a discount if the customer pays with cash or check. Usually half of what the credit card fee would be.
Rose
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Joe
Jul 1, 2019, 2:40:48 PM7/1/19
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Some states allow a convenience fee fro credit cards and others do not. You will have to check the laws of your state.
Joe Naiser
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Tim Inman
Jul 1, 2019, 2:46:30 PM7/1/19
to WoodFinishing & Furniture Restorer's Guide
I use Paypal for just about everything. I have heard good things about Square, too. One way or another, we ALL need to be able to take plastic.
Charging: I find that adding on for use of card just makes people mad. Tuck in an extra hour if you need to, but don't make the payment method a hassle; you might get a check that could bounce. AND that costs money for those of you fortunate enough to not have had the experience. Plus, while the bank gets paid for the bum check, you still don't have your money.
As for discounts for cash - fine if it is CASH! Not a check. When I was a young kid first starting out a customer asked if he could get a discount if he paid me in cash. I agreed; he got out his checkbook. I disagreed; he said it was "as good as cash." I agreed it might be, but it wasn't CASH and the discount was for cash.
I have been in my own businesses since 1974. Plastic has always been my friend, and I find it even more so to this day. People who have a convenient easy way to pay tend to buy more from us!!! Smile and process the plastic for goodness sakes, don't make it like you're doing them a favor for taking their money.
Tim
Joe
Jul 1, 2019, 3:30:30 PM7/1/19
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Square is MUCH better than paypal. On big ticket items, PayPal will keep a big portion of your money for 30 days before releasing it. They gave me just $500 on a $3,500 charge and didn't give the rest for 30 days! Square was just 1 or 2 days for the full amount. I also found squares's card reader worked much better. I just swipe mine. Chip readers are much more expensive to buy, especially from square, and I have heard you can use PayPal's chip reader with square, but swipe has worked just fine for me and they give you that reader,
Joe Naiser
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Tim Inman
Jul 1, 2019, 3:36:43 PM7/1/19
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I hear varying opinions of both Square and Paypal. Both positive and negative. In my experience, which is all I can report, Paypal has always paid ASAP. I mail most of my card business, so using Paypal's UPS and USPS label making feature and discounts is a big plus for me. I do not actually use the card swipers/chip readers. I do so little with them I just hand key the numbers when I need to. Yes, it costs a little more, but I don't have to buy the card readers or fool with them in front of my customers.
Long story shorter - accept plastic and use it willingly. (Don't set up for plastic with your local banks. They are thieves! The two services we're talking about here only charge for the use of the card if and when you use it. Local banks want a 'monthly' fee and sometimes equipment rental. That is ancient history folks!)
Good discussion! Thanks, Tim
On Monday, July 1, 2019 at 2:30:30 PM UTC-5, Joe wrote:
Square is MUCH better than paypal. On big ticket items, PayPal will keep a big portion of your money for 30 days before releasing it. They gave me just $500 on a $3,500 charge and didn't give the rest for 30 days! Square was just 1 or 2 days for the full amount. I also found squares's card reader worked much better. I just swipe mine. Chip readers are much more expensive to buy, especially from square, and I have heard you can use PayPal's chip reader with square, but swipe has worked just fine for me and they give you that reader,Joe Naiser
I use Paypal for just about everything. I have heard good things about Square, too. One way or another, we ALL need to be able to take plastic.--Charging: I find that adding on for use of card just makes people mad. Tuck in an extra hour if you need to, but don't make the payment method a hassle; you might get a check that could bounce. AND that costs money for those of you fortunate enough to not have had the experience. Plus, while the bank gets paid for the bum check, you still don't have your money.As for discounts for cash - fine if it is CASH! Not a check. When I was a young kid first starting out a customer asked if he could get a discount if he paid me in cash. I agreed; he got out his checkbook. I disagreed; he said it was "as good as cash." I agreed it might be, but it wasn't CASH and the discount was for cash.I have been in my own businesses since 1974. Plastic has always been my friend, and I find it even more so to this day. People who have a convenient easy way to pay tend to buy more from us!!! Smile and process the plastic for goodness sakes, don't make it like you're doing them a favor for taking their money.Tim
On Monday, July 1, 2019 at 10:32:12 AM UTC-5, jafo wrote:So hello everyone.... Hasn't been much activity... Hope everyone is doing well and keeping busy..... I thought I would post this here and get your opinion....Like many of you we all started out taking cash and checks..... It seems like it has all evolved to debt and credit cards now..... I am kind of in the same boat as most of my payments I use my card for purchases or online....We started taking cards maybe 5-7 years ago...I started and still use Square Reader.... Its convenient, did have to pay for the reader and I got my money the next day or monday....the charge was 2.75%... I did pay for a new chip reader, but I got credit for that on waived charges...so all is well... I am able to use in the shop and when I make any deliveries or pickups and sync it to my phone/tablet and no extra charge or phone line....all is well... I don't want this to be a plug for square; I just wanted to share what I am using...My question is for those that take cards....do you pass that cost on to your client as a "Credit Card Fee" or do you just eat it.... I have several LARGE jobs recently and they all paid by card.... Looking at what it cost me so they could earn points and just swipe it made me ponder this.... I have resisted raising my labor cost ($85/hour)... but I am charging now for EVERY hour...regardless of the piece....even the little old lady bringing in a chair...I just give estimate ranges (1-3 hours) etc.... However, as prices are going up, I am thinking about doing what body shops do.... Labor cost....and a flat materials and environmental disposable cost...say $15, or $20 per job...regardless of size.... So....I open it to you for what you are all doing and suggestions... This is been in our family since 1976....so we are well established...Hope business is going well for everyone.jeff
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Rose
Jul 1, 2019, 5:15:40 PM7/1/19
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We’ve been in business for 20 years. Check or cash is worth a discount if you think about what credit card companies charge as fees. However, I do all of my accounting through quickbooks and use their merchant services for credit cards, with very low fees. If you need a card reader in the office/field Quickbooks has those as well. Or, you can just key it into quickbooks.
I don’t get any type of charge when depositing money in the bank for a check/cash. I account for everything anyway so it’s the same as cash to me. In twenty years we’ve never had a check bounce.
But a good business practice is to make paying as convenient as possible. Regarding discount for paying by cash/check, it allows the customer to feel like they have won as well…just like their points.
On Jul 1, 2019, at 8:32 AM, jafo <capt....@gmail.com> wrote:
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Rose
Desert Rose Door Refinishing
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Marge Keasling
Jul 2, 2019, 9:05:36 AM7/2/19
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I am using Square and am very happy with it as well. I was only using the strip reader for about a year.
I had to order the chip reader eventually. I had a lady come in a few weeks ago with a card did not have the magnetic strip. It just had the chip reader. I was told that there will be more cards coming out without the magnetic strip, just the chip reader, so I bit the bullet.
The chip reader was $52.00, which bites, but is a necessary evil I guess. I don't like to take checks. I've been burned a few times in my 36 years in the business.
Marge
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Darrelk
Jul 2, 2019, 10:31:26 AM7/2/19
to WoodFinishing & Furniture Restorer's Guide
So, okay, we are pretty much in the same boat with the rest of you. Been taking plastic now for 33 years. We live in a very upscale community. They rarely have cash but credit cards and check books are about 90% of what we do. On in-home work I take only cash/checks and those people know that right up front. For those people bringing in the in-shop work (or we are picking it up) we just tell them we prefer checks or cash if possible but we don't penalize them for using cards. When just "talking" with a customer while dong paperwork I mention how much fraud is going on out there with plastic and the fees we have to pay to offer the service. People have literally put their cards back and went to their car to get a checkbook out. Recently I had that same discussion with a lady and she said, "You know, I just live down the road, let me go get you cash."...... Just talkin'.......
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