As a small business owner, it’s likely that you’ll have to go to conferences, events, and expos. Depending on the business, you may be selling goods or services in person. That’s why it’s imperative that you’re always ready to receive payments in person.
Here’s an example. My roommate is a fashion designer. She recently had massive events on behalf of clients for a big fashion expo in our city. During these events, retailers are placing orders for garments. The designers, therefore, need a way to receive payments in person.
That’s not the only example either. I take copies of my book to speaking engagements. If I want to sell those books, I need ways to receive payments in person. And guess what? Not everyone has cash on them, so I need options.
Here are four ways to make sure you can receive payments in person the next time you’re at an event for your business.
Cash
The easiest way to receive payments in person is obviously cash. If someone has cash, don’t turn it down.
This works great for small items like books. It’s also one of the reasons why when I am selling books in person, I sell them for a flat $10 instead of the $12.99 list price on Amazon. Because who has $12.99 in exact change in their wallet?
But what if you’re selling something major? Like a high ticket offer, or in the case of my roommate, a ton of garments for a retailer’s inventory? Or what if people prefer to pay with credit cards? That’s when these other options come in handy.
Checks
If you’re dealing with selling to other businesses at events, there’s a chance they may have business checks on them because that’s how they prefer to do things.
Like cash, you can always accept cash in person. The upside is you can take large checks where walking around with a giant wad of cash is a safety risk. Just note that not everyone walks around with their checkbook on them
Mobile Card Reader
A popular way to receive payments in person is with the use of a mobile card reader like Square. You simply create an account with the provider, download the app and get the reader in the mail. Once you receive the reader all you have to do is insert it into the phone jack and you’re good to go.
There are tons of options out there for mobile card readers and they all have different fee structures. Make sure to do your research on these fees before deciding on a reader.
There are also other similar options such as having a mobile Point of Sale System that looks like a tablet, but they may have different fees and contracts attached to them.
P2P Payments
P2P Payments is another way for business owners to receive payments in person. We already use things like Venmo to split bills. Some of us even use it to pay our portion of the rent. So why not use it in business situations as well?
The only downside to P2P payments is that many of them don’t have B2B capabilities yet. This could mean there’s a cap on how much money you can accept. So, once again, this is a great option for small items but may not work for very large orders.
Final Thoughts
Accepting payments in person has become easier than ever thanks to technology. By having multiple options available, you won’t have to worry about people not having cash on them.
