Posts Tagged ‘new payment systems’

Summer is the time for lemonade stands, painful sunburns and yard sales. It’s the best time to clean out those items that have been languishing in your garage or attic for the last ten years and give them a new home. But is there a better way to keep track of the money you make than that old, traditional standby: the cash box?

As it turns out, there is. You can accept credit cards at your yard sale with an iPhone, an Android phone or a simple computer with an Internet connection. It’s easy enough to use simple merchant accounts to swipe those credit cards, and you’ll be the hit of your block because, after all, who carries cash anymore?

Smart Phone

Arguably the easiest way to accept credit cards at your yard sale is by using an iPhone or Android phone and an application like SquareUp. It also works on the iPad, iPod Touch and Droid phone, and the process is easy enough for even the most technologically-illiterate user to master.

To start accepting credit cards at a yard sale, sign up for a SquareUp account. You can do this via their web site from your computer or smart phone. They will send you a free card reader and SquareUp sticker, as well as an Internet address to get you started.

From there, you can accept credit card payments for anything by giving it a name and even a photograph on the application. The card reader attaches to your phone via the audio input jack, and you’re good to go. You don’t even have to worry about losing receipts to the summer breeze because records of each transactions are sent to you via e-mail.

Internet Connection

If you’ve got a powerful router signal or a particularly long cord, you can also use your Internet connection to accept credit card payments at a yard sale. Using an existing web site or a free Google Site, you can start taking credit cards with a simple PayPal account.

Set up your Google site and decide who can view it and what template you want to use, if any. Then, go to PayPal.com and register for an account. Once it is open, you can click on the Merchant Services button in the upper task bar, then on the “Buy Now Button” at the top of the screen.

From there you will enter the specifics for this Buy Now button, including the name of the item and its description, as well as its price. PayPal will give you a unique code for your Google Site, which you simply cut and paste.

During your yard sale, you’ll need to keep your desktop computer or laptop within easy reach to process credit card transactions. Let customers know that you are using a secure service through PayPal if anyone has any concerns.

These simple merchant account solutions will allow you to accept more payments at your yard sale and keep track of transactions more easily. Of course, you might want to keep that handy cash box on hand just in case one of your customers wants to go the traditional route.

Steve Thompson

By now, most people either use Twitter to communicate online, or at least know what Twitter is. What you might not know is that Twitter founder Jack Dorsey is now out to release technology that could drastically change the credit card industry.

Enter SquareUp.com, a program operated by Dorsey’s new venture, Square, that allows users to make and accept payments with their Apple iPads. It’s billed as a simple, secure way for money to change hands, whether you are paying or getting paid. Simply download the free iPad app and enter your mailing address when prompted. You’ll be delivered a tiny plastic device to attach to your iPad that allows you to swipe a credit card, and the transaction is processed via the company’s Web site. Over time, any mobile device with the ability to access the Web could be used with Square.

So what does this mean for the credit card industry?

Low cost

Traditional credit card processing equipment can be expensive, from the card readers to the software required to operate them. Then there are the costs involved with operating a credit card merchant account. With the Square service, you pay only a few dollars for the software, nothing for the tiny “Square” device, and a small fee for each transaction.

True mobility

The Square service means that business owners are no longer tethered to their stores or offices. With their iPads, they can accomplish just as much on the road as they can from work, including processing credit card payments. Those who sell wares from stalls, at farmers markets or any other mobile area can now accept payments from anybody who has a credit card.

Not just for merchants

Square also enables individuals to pay back small debts and lend each other money quickly and easily.

Another major benefit of Square is that it cuts down on the paper used during a transaction. Receipts are e-mailed or sent to you by text message so that you can choose to print them or not as needed.

With the iPad release, Square closed its iPhone Beta phase so the iPad is currently the only device that runs the app. However even with the iPad, Square could potentially benefit regular cardholders, business owners, traveling sales professionals and anyone else for whom credit cards are part of daily life.

Steve Thompson