Preparing for a Successful Holiday Season

For many merchants, the holiday season from Thanksgiving through New Year’s generates approximately 40% of their annual sales. As the holiday season is quickly approaching, make sure your business doesn't get caught off-guard by making preparations now. Black Friday is just around the corner so don't wait until it's too late. The following tips will help you plan for a productive and profitable season without the headaches.




1. Evaluate your previous year’s performance for any big picture needs: 

• Do you have enough areas to process all types of payments? Should you add another terminal or wireless processor in a new aisle or can you create a cash-only lane? Be creative to your specific situation.
• Make sure you have enough supplies in stock, such as terminal paper; this is not the time to run out. 
• Are you offering enough payment options? Should you expand the card types you accept? Or should you add another payment option such as EPS90 No Credit Check EZ Payment Plan to bring in more customers? Remember, the more payment options you have available, the more customers are able to buy.

2. Create compelling promotions, generate traffic and increase sales:

• Promoting $5 or $10 gift card giveaways to the first 20 or more customers is a small cost to bring shoppers in. Or tie the gift card giveaway to a purchase where they have to spend $50 to get a $10 gift card. You can also make it redeemable at later date like week after Christmas or the first week of January. This promotion doesn't cost anything until the gift card is actually redeemed, so it either brings customers back to shop again or doesn't cost anything. With either promotion, the cost is well worth it as the majority of shoppers end up spending more than the card value. Just make sure you have plenty gift cards preloaded ahead of time for efficiency. 
• Utilize social media to get the word out about your promotions. If you run any other advertisements, make sure to include it there as well.

3. Make sure your checkouts run smoothly:

• Hire and train new hires now - don't wait until the last minute. Stopping the line during rush time to teach your new employees how to run a gift card transaction or how to change the terminal paper is definitely not optimal.
• Make sure your employees are capable of processing every type of payment transaction you have available quickly and efficiently as shoppers tend to get frustrated in slow checkout lines. The check out experience can make a lifelong customer or lose one so use your less experienced, seasonal holiday employees to help customers in other areas, if possible.
• Institute refund policies ahead of time so employees know the process to follow. For instance, require manager approval for refunds. And training employees to always offer store credit or exchange items first rather than simply refunding money back is a good way to keep sales.

4. Prepare yourself for the upcoming costs associated with increased sales:

• Eliminate the after-holiday bill shock by planning ahead and expecting a higher than usual payment processing cost. Tripling business over the season is really great, especially since these months typically account for more than a third of yearly sales, but save yourself some aggravation afterwards by being prepared for the higher bill as well.  Keep in mind that as your sales increase, so do the cost associated with payment processing. 
• If you think your current processing rates are too high, shop around and switch now. Typically a new merchant account is set-up in 72 hours or less and lowering your rates can save you a lot of money as your processing hits its all time high. If you're not sure about your rates or are confused over what your true processing cost are, call EPS for a free statement analysis, there is no obligation and understanding your rates is extremely important for any business owner.

Being prepared ahead of time will not only make the busy season a lot less stressful for you but will also make your customers shopping experience much more enjoyable increasing their likelihood to spend more in their current visit while encouraging return visits.

Click to learn more about how EPS90 No Credit Check EZ Payment Plan can increase your businesses profits. Or call us for a FREE statement analysis at 800-863-5995 to see how much money you could be saving on your processing cost - we guarantee the lowest processing rates or will give  free processing for a year!

Should My Business Accept Credit Cards? The Many Benefits of Merchant Services

Today's fast moving, technological driven world is quickly moving us towards a cashless society making the acceptance of electronic payment options practically a necessity as it is the preferred method for many. Not doing so can hinder your business' growth and may even cause you to lose customers.

Consider this scenario, a customer comes into your business to shop and when they go to check out, they find out that you don't accept credit and debit cards. What happens next?

A) No problem, they have enough cash (don't most people?)
B) They scramble for enough cash and/or may have to put some items back (not completely satisfied)
C) They don't have any cash, you just lost the sale.

This customer has left with a feeling of frustration rather than with a good experience. Now, where is that customer most likely to go the next time they need that product or service? If you had accepted electronic payments, not only would you have had a satisfied customer at the time, but the more likely they are to return in the future rather than going elsewhere. Therefore, the more payment options you offer, the more competitive your business remains.

Following are some of the benefits you should expect with merchant services:
1.  Builds Trust and Increases Your Credibility - By displaying acceptance of the familiar brands and logos of Visa, MasterCard, Amex and Discover cards in your window or at your cash register, you are essentially building credibility with your customers since they already trust and use those  brands.
2. Boosts Your Sales - Credit and debit cards are the ultimate in shopping convenience for customers.  Studies show businesses that accept credit cards see a huge increase in volume... often doubling or even tripling current sales. Not only will you gain more customers through acceptance, but you'll also grab impulse buyers, and have the opportunity to increase the total ticket sale through up-selling as people tend to spend more when using credit cards. The average order size of someone paying via credit card tends to be larger than someone who is paying by cash or check. More customers plus larger orders equals greater profits!
3.  Improves Your Cash Flow - Accepting electronic payments has a huge positive effect on   businesses cash flow. Even if sales didn't increase (and they almost always do) your business    will benefit by having the money from the instantly delivered to your bank account. Unlike accepting    paper checks where you have to physically go to the bank to deposit and then wait for it to clear   (sometimes a week  or more), accepting credit/debit cards improves cash flow by guaranteeing timely      and automatic deposits into your business account.
4.  Enlarges Your Customer Base - Many merchant service providers have a variety of value-added programs they offer such as rewards programs and gift/loyalty cards. We've even created an alternate payment option which helps merchants bring in new customers and increase the sales of     their existing customers. It's EPS90 No Credit Check EZ Payment Plan, which offers consumers up to $5k over a 90 day period without a credit check.

5.  Enables Globalization - Processing payments electronically extends the companies geographic reach far beyond its brick-and-mortar storefront to anywhere in the world. And credit card acceptance makes expanding your business to remote venues or online easy as well.

6.  Provides Customer Support - If a customer's credit card fails to process correctly, your business cannot only lose a sale but will most likely lose that customer as well. Providers usually offer customer services that deal with issues in a timely and efficient manner. As there are many third-party providers in the industry, it's important to use one that has 24/7 customer service and technical support departments to ensure prompt resolution of any problems that may arise.

7.  Minimizes Fraud - With today's stringent PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security      Standards) compliance requirements, exposure to security breaches and fraud can be minimized.     Most merchant service providers have security protocols in place to keep data safe and secure   including the best technology for encrypting and transferring sensitive information. Make sure the    provider is PCI Compliant before contracting with them for merchant services.
8.  Helps Manage Records - Having a merchant account increases a business' record keeping  capabilities, enabling an easy way to track financial transactions and cash flow. As you can see, utilizing merchant services not only helps your business remain competitve, but can also provide options to help your business grow.

As you can see, providing electronic payment options to your customers not only enables your business to remain competitve, but can also actually help your business grow.