In our last blog, we revisited the topic of credit card acceptance and outlined how it makes your business better. Building customer trust, helping consumers track their spending and making transactions faster are among the top benefits. If you still own a cash-only business, it may not survive 2022! Want to know why?
Credit cards allow customers to earn rewards.
One of the top reasons so many consumers prefer to pay for their purchases with credit cards is because of the rewards programs they enjoy. With many credit cards, shoppers get so much more than just the items they shop for. Rewards programs allow people to earn points toward free purchases. Many programs are travel-related and offer such perks as airline tickets, hotel stays and car rentals for points.
As Virginia C. McGuire and Paul Soucy point out on NerdWallet.com, “credit card rewards exist to encourage you to use your credit card, and they’re very persuasive indeed. With a simple flat-rate card that pays the same amount on every purchase, you can get back 1.5% or even 2% of every dollar you spend, either as cash or as points or miles to redeem for travel or other things. Spend $1,000 a month, and you could earn $180 to $240 a year without any special effort.”
Credit card acceptance generates higher sales.
Arguably the only real reason a merchant needs to accept credit cards is the fact that sales will increase. Is this not the objective of every business owner alive? Stores that accept plastic sell more. Consider the fact that people are limited by the amounts of cash they carry around with them. In a cash-only scenario, they can’t spend more than the money in their pockets allows. A credit card gives consumers the freedom to spend up to their limits.
“When someone has a cash budget, they can only spend that amount in your store,” affirms Mandy Sleight on ZDNet.com, “But with a credit card, their spend limit is as high as their available credit. When paying cash, the average transaction is $22, while the average non-cash transaction is $112. You don’t want to lose that transaction to a competitor down the street. That $84 difference could make accepting credit cards worth it for the average small business owner.”
Credit cards give consumers security.
Credit card users feel much safer by not having to carry cash on their persons. Naturally, lost or stolen cash is usually gone forever. A lost or stolen credit card can easily be replaced. An absence of cash ensures a person that he/she won’t lose his/her money at any time. An absence of a credit card is a temporary inconvenience.
“If you lose your wallet or get robbed, any cash you were carrying is almost certainly gone forever,” McGuire and Soucy agree, “If thieves go on a spending spree with your credit cards, however, you generally won’t be held responsible for fraudulent purchases. It may take some time to sort out the resulting mess, but you won’t lose any of your money.”
Do away with your cash-only ways!
At Unity Payments, we proudly offer Canadian merchants a variety of high-quality POS terminals to choose from. You can easily and securely accept credit card and debit card payments with the Newland 910, the Ingenico Desk 5000 or the Ingenico Move 5000. To learn all about your options, please don’t hesitate to call us at 1-800-661-3761. You may also email us at info@unitypayments.ca.
