Do you run a business? If so, you will need to receive payment for the products and services you sell. If you don’t get paid, your company goes bust; it’s as simple as that!
We all know that technology evolves at a fast pace. Because of that fact, business owners have many innovative ways they can receive payments. Nowadays, you are no longer restricted to cash or checks. Debit and credit cards are also popular choices in the business world.
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In fact, card payments are often used more as payment methods than cash! So, what methods can you use to accept such payments from your customers? Well, it turns out there are plenty of ingenious ways. Read on to find out some of the best examples!
Fixed card machine
Perhaps the most common way to accept debit and credit card payments is with a machine. In layman’s terms, it’s a terminal that allows you to insert or swipe cards. The machine reads the card details and then contacts the payment processor.
Once the payment gets authorized, the transaction details get printed out. There are many forms of card terminals that you can use in your business. The first is the conventional one that hooks up to your telephone line or the Internet.
One variation of that device used in many places is a “chip and PIN” or “EFTPOS” terminal. Here, the consumer must enter their card’s PIN before the transaction can get approved. With such terminals, you no longer need to sign your name.
Image obtained via Wikimedia Commons
Mobile card machine
Let’s say that you sell your products and services away from the office. Perhaps you might take some stock with you to an event somewhere. You can’t always assume your buyers will have cash on them.
To solve that problem, it’s possible to use a mobile payment machine. It works much in the same way as the conventional fixed ones. The only difference is, it uses a SIM card for a dialup transaction via a mobile network.
Some people raised concerns about the security of such devices. But, today’s mobile phone networks are digital. That means there is little scope for card skimming over the air, as it were.
Of course, the only downside is that you need to be in an area with a good mobile reception! To get around that problem, some mobile card machines offer LAN ports. That means they can complete transactions over a secure Internet connection, if available.
Image obtained via Flickr
Smartphone card readers
One downside for smaller businesses is the cost of leasing card machines. An innovative way to get around that problem is by using a smartphone card reader!
The concept is quite straightforward. You attach a device to your smartphone, and it then becomes a mobile card terminal! In some cases, it’s possible to use just the handset along with an app if it supports NFC. That’s “near-field communication” in case you wondered!
As you can see from the list above, there are many options for accepting card payments.
Featured image credit: ShutterStock
