Do you accept credit cards?

**TDIGuy04** · 10-04-2005, 03:24 PM

Do any of you accept credit cards? What kind of machine`s do you use if you`re mobile?

Thanks

**05SilverTRD** · 10-04-2005, 03:29 PM

Not a professional car detailer, but I think the Nextel phone that does it would be the best.

**TDIGuy04** · 10-04-2005, 03:38 PM

Originally Posted by greyS60

Not a professional car detailer, but I think the Nextel phone that does it would be the best.

I didn`t know they had that :wink: Thanks! I`m gonna look into that

**GregCavi** · 10-04-2005, 04:21 PM

There is always paypal but that can get tricky beucase you ahve to have a trust that the client is going to pay you. You might ask for a sum upfront if you doing paypal, like maybe half? Just an idea.

Greg

**TDIGuy04** · 10-04-2005, 05:46 PM

I`m definitely going to get a dedicated machine for credit cards, just trying to figure who will rape me less with all the fee`s.

**Brenton** · 10-04-2005, 05:51 PM

I haven`t got CC, going to set up for interac first, probably next spring.

**jaybs02** · 10-04-2005, 05:53 PM

TDI, if you check all the way down on the bottom of this page you will find other threads with a similar topic.
It`s a nice feature of the forum, just a shame it`s so low, I don`t think many people notice it

"J"

**silverline** · 10-05-2005, 09:20 PM

I accept all four major credit cards. It`s a dial-pay system through my bank (5/3 merchant svcs). I`ve looked into different types of processing equipment, and being mobile, the dial-pay system was the best bang for my buck. This is how it works: I use a "knuckle-buster" to get the imprint of the card on the receipt, then I just call an 800 number, follow automated instructions, and I`m done. Takes about 1 minute from start to finish. No expensive equipment and printers to buy, and I only pay about 3% per transaction total. Many other companies may have a slightly lower percentage rate, but most of them entail buying equipment and paying extra for monthly fees and surcharges. My advice would be to research all your options and choose what will make most sense for your situation. When I ran the numbers, I think I was going to have to process about $8,000 in credit card sales a month to justify the upfront costs and monthly charges of a nextel type system. Check with your local bank and see what they can do for you.

Matt Williams
Silver Lining Detail

**jpzapata** · 10-05-2005, 10:08 PM

I use this company for CC and checks also.(www.merchantanywhere.com) I started with a knuckl buster and have moved my way to a Treo 650. They have many options for business people like us. The rates are acceptable and their customer service is awsome. Now about what tye of hadware to use? It will all depend on your wants and needs. I have allways used Palm devices for my everyday scheduling and customer info. NOw with the integration of a phone and a Palm powered device I can now get my E-mails directly anywhere I am and also answer them in an instant. I`ts like having an office and a secretay in my pocket and now with the ability to take CC over the phone and have the customer sign right there and also see the look on his eyes is great. My recomendation is if you are considering a CC payment option check diferent comoanies, try to go with one that has no contract so that way you can see if this is something that will help you business.Try it out for six months or less and mesure out how much more is it helping you in your daily sales. I have spoiled my clients. But let me tell you something It has given me the edge over all my competition.

Check out the website and see al the diferent options they have. Also if you have anymore questions about this let me know.

**Secret Chimp** · 10-08-2005, 01:34 AM

Originally Posted by GregCavi

There is always paypal but that can get tricky beucase you ahve to have a trust that the client is going to pay you. You might ask for a sum upfront if you doing paypal, like maybe half? Just an idea.

Greg

When payment time comes and a person wants to pay me via Paypal, I ask for a print-out of their payment confirmation on the spot.

**Miami_Sunset** · 10-08-2005, 01:42 AM

:yes:

Originally Posted by Secret Chimp

When payment time comes and a person wants to pay me via Paypal, I ask for a print-out of their payment confirmation on the spot.

very good idea.

**Jngrbrdman** · 10-08-2005, 10:59 AM

I`ve been taking pay pal for a couple years. It has allowed me to charge for several high dollar jobs that I probably wouldn`t have gotten otherwise. I`m putting "Accepts PayPal" on my next round of business cards.

**mperozzo** · 10-24-2005, 03:19 PM

Actually, Costco has a great system for this. Check out www.costco.com and click on `services`. You`ll find it under business services. Great rates!!

Hope that helps... peace.

**G35stilez** · 10-24-2005, 06:32 PM

Originally Posted by Secret Chimp

When payment time comes and a person wants to pay me via Paypal, I ask for a print-out of their payment confirmation on the spot.

I do the same and I ask them to pay the Paypal percentage too which is, I believe, 1.5%.

**DFTowel** · 10-25-2005, 02:06 PM

Speaking of PayPal... did you guys know that you can set up a credit card acceptance account on PayPal. It`s just like a merchant account but does not carry all the fees and extra charges. You can tell your clients you accept Visa/MC/Amex/Discover. PayPal charges $20 month plus 2.somehting% per transaction. You can set it up on a web site and you can use a virtual terminal to enter credit card purchases. It is all in all a lot cheaper than a merchant account for small volume users.

And the best part is that the funds are instantly credited to your PayPal account, no 3 or 4 day wait like merchant accounts.

I don`t know what you would do if mobile but I`m sure there is a way to work it out.