To surcharge or not to surcharge that is the question.
Last week there was a teaser about this week’s blog.
Let’s be clear. We are not big fans of surcharging. Why not? Well, you can start with 6 reasons not to surcharge when you Read This.
That said. There is a new program that is now available through TransAct to help retailers with smaller average transactions.
Think…
- Coffee shops.
- Breakfast and lunch cafes.
- Corner convenience stores.
Businesses that have many (many) transactions per day and tend to pay a lot in the simple, base process fee – even though 10 cents is not a lot, if a business has to pay it 100, or 500 (or more) times a day and it can add up. Then, by the end of the month, these smaller daily fees lead to a larger percentage of overhead expense…than other businesses, who have fewer daily transactions and/or higher average sales.
To limit exposure on credit card fees, many businesses request cash. That too comes with a risk.
1.What if the customer doesn’t carry cash, or doesn’t have enough to pay their bill because they expected to pay with a credit card?
2.What is there are mistakes in making change?
3. Or, and this is the terrible third, what about employee theft?
It happens. We all know each of these scenarios happen. Every single day.
Now, with a way to address the legal aspects that come with surcharging, there is a series of guidelines to help a business owner and management team address how to offer a cash discount, and to assess a legally compliant fee on credit card payments.
Every business is different and applying this new program has to be thought through carefully, but it might be a way to reduce overhead and improve cash flow while meeting the most stringent of local and federal regulations.
Do you want to know more now? E-mail us today to find out how this might be a good solution for your business.