With credit and debit cards being the preferred choice of payment for customers these days, it’s important that ventures keep up with consumer wishes and accepts these types of transactions. Happily, with the advent and popularity of mobile payments, it’s now simple to let your customers pay with cards, as well as with PayPal accounts and other methods, at any location. It’s important to be able to accept transactions not just in a store or on an e-commerce site, but also at a client’s house, at an event, a pop-up shop, or other spot. This guarantees that businesses can generate more sales than ever.
It’s no longer necessary to pay hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars for payment systems; instead, you can have a simple merchant account set up and running through your smart phone or tablet within minutes. If you’re keen to find a well-established, cost-effective, and user-friendly mobile payment provider, read on for four of the top options in the market you should check out today.
1. PayAnywhere
A well-regarded payment solution that has been around for a while is PayAnywhere. This affordable, mobile credit card reader comes with an accompanying app and website, and doesn’t charge any set-up fees, monthly payments or hidden costs. All users have to pay to take advantage of PayAnywhere is a flat 2.69 percent fee on every transaction put through the mobile reader. Alternatively, if you use the service and find you are trading high volumes, you can speak with the organization about getting customized rates for your business.
Some of the benefits of using PayAnywhere are:
- Receive 24/7 live support
- Users all have a specially-assigned agent to look after their account
- Each business has its own unique merchant account, which is a safer setup than having one that is used by multiple firms
- The system enables customers to accept all the major credit cards that consumers want to present, such as American Express, Visa, MasterCard and Discover
- It has both online and in-app reporting options
- You can have the system’s reports emailed directly to you, automatically
- You can access copies of each receipt
- Use reports to spot sales trends
- Keep an eye on account activity and the individual performance of each employee
- Look at graphs of your top sales days
2. PayPal Here
One of the most respected brands in online payments would have to be PayPal. This tech giant has its own mobile payment system, in addition to its traditional transaction accounts, called PayPal Here. This app and mobile card reader accepts Visa, MasterCard and American Express debit and credit card payments, as well as those from PayPal accounts.
When it comes to pricing, you do have to fork out more upfront, as the cost of the card reader is USD$99. Transaction fees are lower than many other systems though, at 1.95 percent of each sale, which can work out well if you transact large volumes. In addition, PayPal does not charge any monthly fees or have lock-in contracts to worry about.
3. Square
Square is another very popular mobile payment system. Created by the co-founder of Twitter, Jack Dorsey, Square charges customers a flat-rate fee of 2.75 percent per transaction (so slightly higher than PayAnywhere), plus a one-off cost of USD$49 for its new NFC reader. The company doesn’t add monthly costs or sign-up fees to the mix, and there is no contract required to start using the system.
Square makes it easy for businesses to set up an account and start receiving payments straight away. Merchant accounts aren’t required in order to use the system (which is good for ventures which don’t want to be bothered by credit checks or an extensive application process); and funds from sales are deposited into a user’s account right after a transaction is made, which means no waiting around for access to cash.
4. Intuit GoPayment
Lastly, there is Intuit’s GoPayment reader to consider. Since this mobile payment processing system is created by the company behind QuickBooks and various point-of-sale products, it integrates easily with each one, and can save entrepreneurs time when it comes to their monthly accounting processes.
GoPayment is typically a good choice for businesses which process a large number of transactions every year. You can either pay a flat rate of 2.4 percent on each swipe or, if you trade a lot, you can pay a monthly charge of USD$19.95 and then pay the reduced cost of 1.6 percent on each transaction. In addition though, either payment plan involves an extra 25-cent fee for every sale processed.
