Canadians love shopping. But they enjoy shopping even more when they have the opportunity to pay for their purchases with their credit cards. Research has shown that Canada is, quite frankly, a plastic-loving country. Between their credit cards and their debit cards, Canadian shoppers are proving that our nation is on the verge of becoming a cashless society. So what is your company doing about it?
Well, most businesses in Canada accept credit and debit cards as methods of payment. But there are still business owners out there who are sceptical about participating in the entire process. On BusinessKnowHow.com, Joseph Lizio writes that people carry much higher credit card balances today than they did in decades past. “Consumers prefer the use of plastic over cash,” he writes, “Cash can be burdensome.”
So what does that mean for your business? “This increasing trend in consumer credit card spending creates several opportunities for business owners,” says Lizio, “It\’s all about leveraging future cash flow. Consumers do it and so can your business.” He goes on to list a number of benefits that arise when business owners lose the whole cash-only thing and begin to accept credit and debit cards as methods of payment. Here are our favourite five.
1. It Lessens Risk And Increases Convenience. Lizio points out that when customers are able to pay with their cards, it lessens the risk of having their cash stolen. As well, it allows them to enjoy more conveniences such as not having to constantly go to ATMs to withdraw cash. “Plastic is easier to carry, easier to use,” he writes, adding that credit cards “can be used to defer payment until after the billing cycle and grace period – it\’s a time value of money thing as well as a convenience.”
2. It Encourages “NOW” Decisions. According to Lizio, “whether your products or services cost $1.00 or $1000.00, accepting credit cards help purchasers make ‘NOW’ decisions. As part of your sales efforts, you do not want consumers leaving your store or site to contemplate the purchase. You want them to impulse buy while the desire and the need remains extremely strong; no time to ‘think’ about it.”
3. It Saves You Time And Money. As Lizio points out, “once batched, funds can be deposited into your account within a day or two – saving you trips to the bank and lost productivity.” When you do away with the whole “cash only” thing, you will be able to worry a whole lot less about when you’re going to find time to visit the bank in order to deposit your earnings. Accepting credit and debit cards takes care of that work for you.
4. It Can Help You To Secure Funding. Your business can always make use of additional funding in order to help it grow, can it not? According to Lizio, if your business is in need of obtaining financing for expansion, renovations and equipment purchases, among other things, business cash advance companies will usually say “yes” when banks are turning you down for loans. Your credit card earnings allow you to leverage your future credit card sales by turning them into cash right away.
5. It’s Very Affordable. One of the main reasons that some business owners shy away from accepting credit cards is the assumption that the rates charged for doing so will outweigh the benefits. This, however, couldn’t be further from the truth! At Canadian POS Corporation, we actually offer the most affordable rates in our industry. For more information, don’t hesitate to call us at 1-877-748-2884.