Credit Cards

[knives]

Hi

I am a new charter boat operator on Lake Ontario. We only run 6 months a year . I was wondering if any other boat operators out there would have any comments on taking credit cards vrs cash. I am not sure if my customers will be deterred because I only take cash......but credit card processing is such an expense !
any advice would be appreciated.
thanks ,
Anne

 

[cappyjon431]

Hi

I am a new charter boat operator on Lake Ontario. We only run 6 months a year . I was wondering if any other boat operators out there would have any comments on taking credit cards vrs cash. I am not sure if my customers will be deterred because I only take cash......but credit card processing is such an expense !
any advice would be appreciated.
thanks ,
Anne

We have a standard credit card machine, but we recently added PayPal's Virtual Terminal. The Virtual Terminal has many advantages for our business. We can take Amex and Discover for the same rate as Visa and MC (our regular cc machine charges us a higher rate for Amex and Discover), we can run reservation deposits when a customer supplies us with cc info over the phone, there are no expensive pieces of equipment needed (just your PC), and there are no long term contracts. You just need to decide if the $30/mo. fee is financially worthwhile.

 

[200 Bar]

Hi

I am a new charter boat operator on Lake Ontario. We only run 6 months a year . I was wondering if any other boat operators out there would have any comments on taking credit cards vrs cash. I am not sure if my customers will be deterred because I only take cash......but credit card processing is such an expense !
any advice would be appreciated.
thanks ,
Anne

Does anyone carry cash anymore...?? (other than for coffee or lunch!!)

 

[knives]

yes , I know . Thanks for the input......

 

[Jane_dives]

I think over a certain amount people feel "safer" paying with a CC. They have a better chance (chargebacks) of getting a refund if they feel the merchant's policy has been misrepresented, and if they lose their CC, they can cancel and replace it. Shop around for the best rates, including the price of the machine. You can gently steer the customer with cash discounts and over the phone surcharges. I put the stickers for the best card rates in the window, but if someone's saying they only have the Amex and they've spent 1,500 I'm not going to make them drive to an ATM. Best of luck!