Why Your Customers Prefer Credit Cards Over Cash

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“It’s just so much more convenient!” More often than not, the first sentence of today’s blog is the top response people give when asked why they prefer using their credit cards over cash when paying for their purchases. In 2019, you’re not likely to run into many people who carry a lot of cash on them. In fact, a lot of people don’t carry any cash on them at all!

As a Canadian business owner, it’s imperative that you are mindful of consumer trends. Paying for purchases using credit cards is an increasingly popular activity that is leaving ‘cash-only’ businesses in the dust. If you’re not yet convinced that you should be offering your customers payment options, consider the following reasons most people prefer credit cards over cash.

They save people from making trips to the ATM.

One of the top inconveniences caused by ‘cash-only’ businesses is unnecessary trips to the ATM. If you don’t accept credit cards, this is something you’re practically forcing your customers to do. As mentioned, most people don’t walk around with cash anymore, so if a customer is interested in making a purchase from your store, he/she will often have to go to a bank machine to extract cash.

You’d be lucky to have a customer make the trip as most consumers would simply choose to shop elsewhere. “I don\’t have much in my wallet, not even cash,” informs the Silicon Valley Blogger on WiseBread.com, “It\’s virtually empty.  So thanks to the convenience of a few cards, I\’m able to go about my day without having to swing by the ATM machines all the time.”

They eliminate the fear of loss or theft.

Once cash is gone, it’s gone. When a credit card is lost or stolen, it can be cancelled so that no fraudulent charges are accepted. Even if a perpetrator does use the card fraudulently, a cardholder can contest the charges and not have to pay for them. This sense of added security is a huge reason credit card use only continues to grow in popularity. And, as Dan Gingiss points out on Forbes.com, the security offered by credit cards is a big plus for merchants as well.

“Proponents of non-cash payment methods such as credit and debit cards, peer-to-peer services, and digital currencies like Bitcoin say they are more secure,” he writes, “It’s easy to see that by eliminating cash, a local restaurant would reduce headaches such as employee theft, counterfeit bills, robberies, expensive security equipment, and the dependency on transporting bags of cash to the bank.”

They help customers to track their finances.

It’s so much easier to keep track of what you’re spending when you receive a bill every month that lists the exact expenditures of the previous month. Credit card use doubles as a bookkeeping practice for many entrepreneurs and everyday consumers alike. By insisting on cash payments only, customers are forced to log their own spending in order to be prepared for tax time.

“I appreciate the helpful reports offered to me by my credit card companies,” notes the Silicon Valley Blogger, “It\’s just one more way I can properly track my finances.  I\’ve actually found that the reports, statements and tools I receive from these companies have been some of the best in my financial arsenal.”

Do you accept credit cards at your store? At Canadian POS, we highly recommend upgrading your POS system to the Poynt Smart Terminal. For more information about this revolutionary solution, call us at 1-877-748-2884 or email us at info@localhost.