Why would I want to accept credit cards online?

We talk to small business owners all the time who say they don’t want to accept credit cards. They look at the fees involved, and all they see is 2–3% of their money being taken off the top. Why would anybody want to do that, they wonder?

Well, know this: FreshBooks is a small business too! And 100% of FreshBooks customers pay online with their credit card. It’s the same story with many of our customers, too. Trust us when we say it’s worth it.

Time and time again we’ve seen people hesitate to accept credit cards; time and time again, they’ve called us months later to gush about how their batch of invoices goes out automatically on the 1st, and 90% are paid within days. It’s pretty amazing when you think about it.

In fact, the following is a list of the reasons that FreshBooks users — real users like yourself — say they love accepting online payments.

Get paid faster

When you send your client an invoice by e-mail, they get it faster — they’re often viewing the invoice seconds after you’ve sent it. So while they’re giving it that first look, why not take their credit card number? Your client receives, views and pays their invoice in one smooth transaction. It’s less work for everyone, and money in the bank a lot sooner for you.

Save time

When you accept online payments there’s no more waiting on cheques, no more opening envelopes, no more lineups at the bank, no more manually tracking who’s paid and who still owes. Your cash flow almost manages itself, so you can spend that time doing the things you’d rather be doing.

Get more clients

Credit cards are here to stay. They’re fast, convenient, and just about everybody’s got one. If you don’t accept them, you’re forcing people to pay you on your terms — they might not like that lack of flexibility. We hear from people all the time who say they’ll only deal with companies that accept credit cards. Wouldn’t you rather be one of those companies?

Make money more often with automatic billing

This is arguably the biggest benefit. With an automatic billing–capable gateway like Authorize.Net, you can directly charge your clients’ credit cards on a regular basis! Your invoices are automatically generated by FreshBooks as often as you specify, and your clients’ credit cards are automatically charged. With automatic billing, getting paid couldn’t possibly get any easier.

Look professional

Imagine you’re buying something online. You fill your shopping cart with all sorts of useful things. When you’re ready to purchase, you go to the checkout… and there’s just a mailing address and a phone number! How likely are you to make that purchase right away?

Now imagine this instead. You receive an invoice in the mail from a company you’re working with. On that invoice is a Web address you can visit to pay online. So you pop open your Web browser, visit the address, and enter your credit card information. And that’s it! You’re done.

Which of these scenarios gives you that warm, fuzzy feeling inside? Online payments feel magical. They get the transaction completed and the money in your pocket, right away. So choose to give your clients that magical experience. They’ll come back more often, and they’ll tell more of their friends about you, too.