Accepting credit cards for an artist is a big hurdle. Any small mobile business just starting out is in for many challenges. Getting paid is very important to small businesses. I was able to increase my sales by about 30% once I started taking credit and debit cards. My first merchant account was a bit expensive. Since I was a mobile artist and didn’t have brick and mortar location getting an account was hard. The company I finally went with charged me $30 per month service charge regardless of sales. In Florida there aren’t many art shows durning the summer months. So for a few months I would have zero sales but still incur a fee. Once show season rolled around I at least felt better paying the fee. There was also a per transaction fee and they charged a percentage of the sale. I had a knuckle buster imprinter, and then had to wait till I got home to key in all my sales to find out if they were valid.
Now I am using a square card reader that attaches to either an iphone or android smart phone. The card reader plugs into the phones ear jack, I enter the amount on the app I downloaded. I enter the amount of the sale, swipe the credit card. I get almost instant approval. A receipt is emailed to the customer. A day or two later I get an email saying the money is being deposited into my bank account. No monthly fees, or contracts. There is a per transaction fee and a percentage of the sale. but these are a reasonable cost for the service.
I am making no money if you click on the link. I am just trying to help out my fellow artists.
Emory Mclaughlin
