Accepting Credit/Debit card payment???

Hello everyone,

Am wondering, what is the best way to accept Credit/debit payments from customers securely???

What method is best for customer??

I use Square…never had an issue. Use a cell phone card reader or can type it in manually for those over the phone payments.

Are people generally comfortable using it?

Square is good place to start, as there are no monthly fees so they don’t care if you do one transaction or 30 in a month.

I switched to Guardian a while back because it has lower fees and integrates with ISN. But they do have a minimum to hit every month to avoid paying fees, so you want to be confident you have enough volume before switching.

I started trying to use the free one internachi recommends and they were horrible. Charging fees for non use, and never getting a call back from the rep. I’m in a small market and usually take about one CC payment a month so I switched to Square, and love them. I also added a paypal account to my website, so they can pay on the web.

I use Square without a problem but my preference is a personal check. I tell people that right up front and most don’t mind.

I understand Square has a new reader, so if anyone has one I’d like to hear their review of it.

Bob, I have the new Square contactless (NFC) and chip reader. It works great. No problems. I just have to make sure it is charged beforehand.

Thanks Richard, the charging thing is just the type of information I was looking for.

To follow up on that a bit are they replaceable batteries (AA, AAA) or phone type batteries and is there a car charger?

The Square chip/magstripe reader has an internal battery that is charged via usb.

I also use square pay. I hate the older dongle. I usually end up just typing it in. I should look into the new chip reader.

I use Pivotal payments. Not much to report, easy to use, no issues, service has been solid, they just checked in with me this week.

I use square with no issue; customers haven’t really asked what service I use… so they must be comfortable with it.

When I started, I already had a square account from a previous business, so I used that until I was getting enough work to use ISN, after a few months of using ISN I went with Guardian through them so that things would be more streamlined. The only real problem I have with Guardian Vs Square is that generally with square, I got the money no later than 1 day later (unless it was a weekend, then it was by Monday). Guardian takes 2-3 days sometimes more. 3/4 of my customers use the credit card option. I always tell them my process when booking, and I let them know they can pay with any debit/credit card online with the link sent via ISN. They REALLY appreciate it. I kept the square for the other business that is still running, and hardly ANYBODY uses the credit card feature in that, they generally print the invoice and send me a check. Guess that’s the difference between website design and home inspections…

Marcy, what is the monthly fee for guardian?

I always took checks or cash only. If the client has to use a credit card to pay for the inspection, he/she should not be purchasing a home, IMO. I looked in to taking debit/credit cards, but fees were high when you do not take them often.

Guardian takes a smaller percentage of each transaction than square, but they also have a monthly fee. I think the highest I’ve ever paid them was $50 some bucks. They give you all the money, then at the end of the month take their fee. That’s different than square. Square takes their fee prior to deposit. Just something to be aware of.

Using Square and have the chip reader. Don’t have many calls for card payments. I keep a charge cord in the truck. Make sure you get familiar with syncing the thing. Mine loses sync after a long period of non use. Doesn’t take long to sync back up. Has to be done through the unit, not your phone. Overall, very pleased with the system. Chip reader is great.
Keep in mind…square’s fee is a percentage. And if you manually enter the card number, the fee is a bit higher. Also, the swipe tool doesn’t always play well with some phone cases, since it plugs in to the earphone jack. The chip reader is blue-toothed.