Stax Pay | Page 20 Of 23

Benefits of a Subscription Based Service

In recent years, subscription based services have seen significant growth. By 2016 the market increased from $56 million in 2008 to a whopping $2.6 billion in revenue and continues to grow year over year. From Amazon to Blue Apron, subscription-based services have streamlined the process of shopping for consumer goods and services. Odds are you yourself utilize a monthly subscription service on a weekly if not daily basis.

With that said, there’s never been a better time to start a subscription service to capitalize on your customer relationships. As a business owner transitioning your retail, food and beverage, or even professional business to a subscription-style service may sound extensive and complex, but it’s actually quite simple. A subscription service provides an array of benefits to your customers as well as your business. Let’s look at some of the benefits of transitioning your business to a subscription-based service.

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Convenience Pays Off with Subscription Based Service

Done right adding a subscription service to your business model can be a powerful tool providing consistent growth in direct consumer revenue. Adding a subscription-based service can be as simple as adding the right billing system needed to support it.
One major selling point of transitioning your business to subscription-based is the convenience provided to your customers. Trips to the store are no longer necessary saving your customers time and energy by having their products or services delivered to their door. Paying a flat monthly fee also helps customers stay on budget.

How to Add a Subscription Service to your Business

A rise in consumer interest in subscription-style services provides opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses to adjust and generate customer-centric recurring revenue. When combined with tiered pricing options, great customer service, and a great overall onboarding journey, your acquisition numbers will increase over time.

Restaurant Subscription Services

Meal kit delivery services like Blue Apron and Hello Fresh have capitalized on their direct-to-consumer business model by offering add ons to their customers as well as customized options for their vegan, paleo, and gluten-free customers. Food and Beverage businesses can follow suit by offering take-home build-a-meal and custom craft cocktail kits.

Retail Business Subscription Services

Stitch Fix, an online personal styling service is a subscription-based online retail store in the United States. It uses recommendation algorithms and data science to personalize clothing items based on size, budget, and style. Your retail store can emulate this service by providing personalized styling and delivery by adding an eCommerce shopping cart to your store website.

Professional Business Subscription Services

Incorporating a subscription option for your professional service business can produce an enormous payoff as well. Instead of signing project agreements or monthly retainers with a detailed scope, try offering your services under a flat-fee subscription. This may sound counterintuitive however it has proven to provide flexibility, ability to scale, and stronger customer relationships. Stax is an example of a professional subscription-based service.

Benefits of Recurring Payments and Subscription Services

Losing revenue because your subscription billing system isn’t reliable is clearly bad for business. Providing your customers with an easy-to-use recurring payment option streamlines the process.

As important as your customer’s experience is, switching to a subscription-based model has its own set of benefits for your business. The value of a subscription provides the added ability to predict revenue through recurring sales. This consistency in revenue also allows your subscription-based business to easily calculate the lifetime value of a customer, manage inventory, offer simple pricing, and many other professional service business benefits.

With the addition of subscription-based services, your business needs a payment software that provides flexibility to add recurring payments as well as additional payment capabilities to your business. Set up recurring payments with the Stax Platform. Store customer profiles to automatically capture future transactions. Stax also updates expired credit cards for you so you’ll never miss a payment.

Our platform is a smart solution for businesses that take payments online or over the phone. With simple invoicing, recurring charges, and online bill pay, you’ll get paid faster with Stax. Request a custom quote to learn more about how our integrated payment solutions can help your business transition to a subscription business model.

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5 Easy Contact Free Ways to Collect Customer Payments

For many business owners, staying on top of cash flow and ensuring timely payments from your customers is time-consuming but also key to a smooth operation. The success of your business primarily depends on the ability to collect on-time payments from vendors, suppliers, employees, and customers. As payment technology continues to evolve, the expectation for a great customer experience does as well. This includes the payment process.

Offering multiple ways to pay; whether it’s online or on-the-go, provides a more convenient experience for your customers, and a faster way for your business to get paid. Additionally, a streamlined collection process can mean less time spent on the phone, providing less back and forth for your office staff. With a streamlined collection process for your business, getting paid on time is easier than you think. Here are 5 easy contact-free ways to collect customer payments.

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Send Electronic Invoices

Invoices are frequently used by professional services or service-based companies to request payment. Invoices can be sent via mail; however, sending paper invoices can be a time-consuming and expensive process between printing, addressing envelopes, and sending them through the mail.

Online invoicing technology, like that available through Stax, allows business owners the opportunity to streamline the collection of customer payments through a powerful online payment solution. Sending an electronic invoice allows you to email a balance due directly to your customer’s inbox, along with a convenient button to securely pay online. With more bill payments occurring online, customers have come to expect the convenience of sending a credit card payment with just a click of a button.

For the business owner, online invoices can significantly cut down on the amount of administrative work needed; plus, you can even include payment due dates on your online invoices helping you to better manage expectations with your customers.

Add a “Pay Now” Button to Your Website

For many businesses, a website is more than just a destination for potential customers to learn about the business. It’s also a potential revenue stream, allowing them to securely accept payments online from customers, without having to physically be in the office to answer a phone call.

For example, a business that requires their customers to pay a deposit prior to an event or before any work is done could add a “Pay Now” button to their website, allowing their customers to submit a payment at their convenience – including outside of normal business hours. With the right technology partner, business owners can rest easy knowing that their customer payment information is securely stored, and online payments can be collected at any time of day.

Accept Text 2 Pay Payments On-The-Go

Text payments have a 97% open rate compared to email. Once received it takes the average customer 90 seconds to respond. With fewer consumers carrying cash, more business owners are almost required to obtain payment processing technology that allows them to accept mobile payments from anywhere. With contactless payment solutions on the rise, Text 2 Pay has become a necessity for businesses that want to optimize their payment experience.

Businesses with field technicians, for example, need the flexibility of having both an online invoicing platform with a mobile payment option. Using a virtual terminal gives users the ability to create an online invoice from their office and complete the sale using Text 2 Pay. This flexibility ensures that businesses are able to close out transactions as soon as the work is completed – meaning a more reliable cash flow, and faster payments without any of the hassle. Plus, from the customer’s side – the convenience of paying right from their phone means they no longer have to wait to receive a final bill or worry about trying to remember to mail in a payment.

Schedule a Payment in Advance

Payment automation platforms allow business owners to quickly schedule payments ahead of time – ensuring that late payments are a thing of the past. Scheduling a payment in advance automatically charges your customers based on a yearly, monthly, daily, or even hourly schedule. Used frequently by businesses charging subscriptions, like a gym membership, scheduling a payment ahead of time allows you to streamline your payment process and save countless hours per month in billing your customers.

The main benefit of using a payment automation platform is that it allows businesses to securely tokenize and store their customer payment information one time, and save it for future auto-pay transactions. Plus, with card expiration notifications, business owners can easily see when a payment method is about to expire, allowing them to reach out proactively to their customers to update their card information before a transaction attempt.

Pre-authorize a Transaction

Pre-authorized payments are another way to quickly accept payments from your customers. For businesses like hotels or car rental agencies, where the final amount of the sale is unknown when the card is first swiped, pre-authorizations are a core function of doing business.

Pre-authorizing a transaction acts as a hold for funds on a credit card, and no funds will be deducted until the business processes a capture on the card. Using a payment platform like a virtual terminal allows you to easily see how much of your business’ cash flow is currently held in a pre-authorized state from your dashboard – and it can help you to plan ahead for any incoming funds.

What Payment Collection Methods Work Best For Your Business?

In today’s day and age, business owners no longer need to rely on traditional payment collection methods – gone are the days of waiting for checks to be mailed in to the office, or for customers to call in a payment. With a growing list of options for accepting contactless payments, businesses simply need to understand what options are available to them and identify options that help improve the customer experience.

With the right technology partner, business owners can rest easy knowing that their customer payment information is secure, while also freeing up time and energy to focus on what matters most – growing their business. To learn more about Stax or to schedule a savings analysis, fill out the form below.

5 Steps to Prepare and Maximize Increased Traffic After a Slow Season

As the busy season approaches, customers are getting ready to spend significant amounts of time waiting in lines. For businesses, this means that it is very important to prepare for the overwhelming influx of consumer traffic. In order to ensure that your customers have a satisfactory checkout experience, it’s essential for your business to promote efficiency and convenience. Here are 5 steps your business can take to prepare and maximize increased traffic.

Provide More Mobile POS Options

One way to prepare your business for an influx of foot traffic is by adding advanced mobile payment processing capabilities to your POS system. This gives you the flexibility to add mobile Point of Sale (mPOS) devices when needed and allows your business to process magstripe, EMV, and NFC payments through a tablet or smartphone.

Think about how Chik-fil-A has mobile terminals to manage their drive-in queues. Mobile payment systems also enable your staff to scan items and accept card payments on the spot, cutting the lines at the register. Paired with a virtual terminal, mobile payment tools can also be used to track inventory and look up items anywhere on the store floor without requiring you to walk away from your customer.

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Make The Line Seem Shorter

Usually implemented during peak shopping seasons, line-busting is a simple sales tactic that you can integrate into your business. The process shortens or in some cases completely eliminates checkout lines by removing customers from the primary line allowing them to pay at a secondary checkout area. This doesn’t always require removing a customer from the line. Meeting a customer in line and taking payments on the spot with a mobile payment device, or adding a self-ordering system is an easy adjustment.

Having the proper payment tools to be able to quickly support the primary checkout area is imperative for line-busting to work effectively. Setting aside a dedicated area stocked with carryout bags and additional stationery offers a seamless checkout experience to the customer. Having enough staff to dedicate someone to line busting, as well as the main checkout line and required in-store help is also helpful. You don’t want to find yourself short-staffed in the middle of a rush.

Set Up One Line With Multiple POS Servers

To avoid unnecessary frustration for your customers and a seamless process for your staff, setting up a multiple-server waiting line provides your customers with a smooth checkout experience. With multiple servers, customers stand in a single waiting line, and when it’s their turn, they go to the first free cashier.

There are several advantages to a single line: first, no server is idle while additional customers are still waiting. The waiting time is similar for all customers, and a single line feels fair to other people in line. Each customer can rest assured that they will all be served in the order of arrival.

Create An Engaging Scene

Long lines may be good for business, but they can also mean slow service and boredom for your customers. Creating an engaging scene can make waiting in line seem shorter. It has been proven that shoppers who have been met with personal interaction have reduced stress levels while waiting in line. Similar to Sephora, having your staff offer product samples, hand out treats, and answer questions helps to keep the customer occupied while in line.

Theme parks have done a great job of creating entertaining surroundings for long ride lines with interactive areas and videos. You don’t need the magic of Disney to create an entertaining space for your customers as they wait. Installing t.v. screens showcasing a slideshow of advertisements close to the registers takes attention away from the line and what your business has in store. Retail stores can optimize the space around the checkout line by showcasing merchandise such as novelty items or impulse buys.

Get Payment Technology You Can Rely On

Using the right payment technology for your business needs to create the best possible experience for your customers. A technical glitch can create longer wait times causing customers to abandon their purchase. When selecting new software, look for systems that are renowned for their reliability and provide short transaction times.

Optimizing your payment processing solutions also protects your business from being left behind with slow processing equipment. You can now get modern payment solutions such as mobile terminals and contactless-pay tools quickly via credible merchant services providers.

At Stax, our modern payment services focus on going beyond the ordinary. The Stax Platform allows for mobile swipe capabilities through our Stax Mobile app. You can also key in payments or add the optional mobile reader to start swiping. Our simple subscription-priced merchant services, best-in-class customer support, and industry-leading technology can help streamline and optimize the checkout experience for your customers. Contact us at Stax for a consultation today to learn how our solutions can help your business succeed.

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How a Restaurant Supply Company Can Improve Sales With a Virtual Terminal

Restaurant supply companies have been sending invoices and collecting payments the same way for decades. As more products are being purchased online, restaurant supply companies such as yours can take advantage of these growing trends by offering online payment options through a virtual terminal.

This flexibility can ease payment collection and sales processes for your growing restaurant supply companies. In fact, turning to a virtual terminal for your restaurant supply company is part of improving your overall business operations. Through its modern payment process, the payment solution can help you resolve crucial issues such as chasing down your customers for payment through its modern payment process.

Here are a few ways your restaurant supply company can improve sales with a virtual terminal.

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How Can a Virtual Payment Solution Help Improve Your Sales?

Adding a virtual terminal to your payment process is an effective way to improve your sales through multiple avenues. Apart from optimizing your current payment processes, the ability to accept credit and debit cards virtually also helps you cater to a broader audience. You no longer have to turn down restaurants that are interested in using your services but don’t have cash or check on hand. Now you can offer them the alternate method of making their payments online, expanding your client base as a result.

As a virtual payment processing platform, your virtual terminal allows you to accept and process credit card and debit card payments without the need for a full Point of Sale system or a credit card terminal. This gives your business added flexibility in collecting payments using a mobile iOS or Android device or even through a laptop so that you or your sales associates can take payments from the sales floor and outside the store or office.

A virtual terminal also helps when want to accept credit and debit card payments when you are delivering supplies to their restaurant or are visiting their premises by opening up the ability to take payments on the go using a contactless terminal or mobile payment solutions.

Virtual Terminals Add Payment Flexibility

The benefit of using a virtual terminal includes the ability to accept payments over the phone or through your website. You can manually key in payments or embed a payment form to your existing website. No matter where your customer decides to make a payment it all filters to the same solution.

Have a customer in need of a payment plan for a large equipment purchase? Maybe you want to set up monthly shipments for commonly ordered restaurant supplies. How about sending an invoice by text? You can do all these and more through a virtual terminal. No matter the scenario, you can provide a simple and convenient solution for you to process payments and your customer to make a purchase.

The flexibility helps you receive payments on time by allowing you to accept payments when and how they prefer to pay, instead of having to run after clients for cash or check payments. This saves you from a world of trouble in delays and time spent on follow-up.

Contact Us Today to Benefit from Virtual Payment Solutions

Through merchant services payment technology advancements, you can now easily make virtual terminals a part of your operation.

At Stax, we hold extensive expertise in credit card processing and virtual terminals for restaurant suppliers. Whether your business deals in food products or restaurant equipment, our modern solutions can help you optimize your operations with ease.

Our all-in-one services and technology are designed to be simple and easily fit your needs. This approach makes sure that whether you run a large-scale operation or not, you can benefit from the latest payment solutions without any issues.

You Might Also Like: The Best Credit Card Readers: Which do You Choose?

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The eCommerce Business Revolution: Navigating the Digital Frontier

When you’re running a business in today’s fast-paced consumer landscape, you may be thinking about adding an eCommerce option to your brick-and-mortar business. The truth is, you can easily have both, and doing so is a great way to boost your revenue and grow your business.

To help you compare and contrast, we’ve laid out how both eCommerce and traditional commerce can help your business thrive.

Traditional Commerce

While having a physical store as part of your business model allows you to provide personalized service and engage with customers in a sensory-rich environment, it’s important to consider the financial implications that come with it. The costs associated with brick-and-mortar locations, whether through renting or purchasing, can be substantial and impact your overall profitability.

In addition to the expenses related to the physical space, running a traditional commerce business requires hiring staff members for various roles such as sales, accounts, and management. These personnel add to the operational costs and need to be factored into your budget and business plan.

Maintaining an inventory of products is another crucial aspect of traditional commerce. While it allows you to offer a wide range of options to your target market, it also ties up a significant amount of capital in stock. It’s essential to carefully manage your inventory to ensure you have the right products available to meet the demands of potential customers.

The location of your store plays a vital role in attracting your target market. By strategically situating your store in a central and easily accessible area, you can increase foot traffic and make it convenient for potential customers to visit.

It’s important to note that traditional showrooms typically operate within specific time frames, such as from morning to evening and only on weekdays, which may limit your ability to cater to the needs of customers who prefer to shop outside of those hours.

One of the challenges in traditional commerce is the limitation it imposes on potential expansion and scalability. The physical nature of the business model, coupled with geographical constraints, may restrict your ability to reach a wider audience and explore new markets.

Considering the high overhead costs, operational complexities, and limitations on expansion, it’s crucial to evaluate alternative approaches, such as incorporating digital strategies or exploring hybrid models, to tap into the full potential of your business and adapt to the changing preferences of customers in the modern marketplace.

For traditional business owners, opening an eCommerce store presents a multitude of advantages, ranging from expanding customer reach to diversifying revenue streams. By embracing the eCommerce industry and incorporating an eCommerce store into their business model, entrepreneurs can harness the power of technology and tap into the limitless potential of the digital marketplace. Some of the most important characteristics of traditional commerce include providing more personalized service and giving the customer a chance to use all five senses before making a purchase.

A well-executed eCommerce business plan can help traditional businesses thrive in today’s competitive landscape, providing new avenues for growth, increased sales, and enhanced customer satisfaction.

eCommerce & Online Shopping

We now live in a world where many consumers use the internet on a daily basis. In fact, the growth of eCommerce has taken off with a recent boost of 25% growth in March 2020. Thousands of businesses rely on eCommerce to scale their companies, decrease costs, and increase convenience for their customers.

What’s more, the rate of product returns online is much higher compared to physical retail stores. Industry data shows that around 30% of all online purchases are returned, compared to 8.89% when purchased offline.

But regardless of how you feel about eCommerce and traditional commerce, you must strongly consider having a presence on both channels. Modern consumers typically use multiple devices and platforms to shop. It’s fairly common for a customer to research a product online then end up purchasing it in-store. And in some cases, shoppers prefer buying products through an eCommerce site then picking it up at a physical location.

Because of the prevalence of connected commerce, having both a physical and digital storefront will enable you to stay competitive.

In today’s dynamic business landscape, traditional businesses and eCommerce businesses coexist, each with its unique strengths and challenges. Traditional businesses have long-established roots in physical storefronts, while eCommerce businesses have rapidly emerged in the digital realm.

We will delve into a detailed comparison between these two business models, exploring their key differences in areas such as customer reach, operating costs, scalability, and customer experience. Let’s dive in and shed light on the distinct characteristics of traditional businesses and eCommerce businesses.

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Customer Reach and Geographic Limitations

Traditional businesses operate within a specific physical location, limiting their customer reach to the local community or visitors to the area. On the other hand, eCommerce businesses have the advantage of reaching customers beyond geographical boundaries. With the power of the internet, eCommerce businesses can access a global market, allowing them to tap into diverse customer segments and expand their reach exponentially.

Operating Costs and Overhead Expenses

Traditional businesses often entail higher operating costs due to various factors, including commercial rent, utilities, and staffing requirements. Ecommerce businesses, on the contrary, have the potential to operate with significantly lower overhead expenses.

With no physical storefronts to maintain, eCommerce businesses can save on rental costs and allocate resources towards other areas such as digital marketing, website development, and inventory management.

Scalability and Growth Potential

When it comes to scalability and growth potential, eCommerce businesses have a clear advantage. With the ability to reach a vast customer base online, eCommerce businesses can quickly scale operations without the constraints imposed by physical space limitations.

The digital nature of eCommerce allows businesses to accommodate increasing customer demand, expand product offerings, and enter new markets with relative ease. Traditional businesses, although capable of growth, may face challenges related to physical expansion and resource allocation.

Customer Experience and Personal Interaction

Traditional businesses thrive on personal interaction and the tangible experience they offer. Customers can engage with products physically, receive immediate assistance from staff, and enjoy the atmosphere of a physical store.

In contrast, eCommerce businesses rely on creating a seamless and personalized online experience. Utilizing tools like user-friendly interfaces, product images, detailed descriptions, and customer reviews, eCommerce businesses strive to replicate the in-person experience and build trust with customers.

Adaptability to Changing Consumer Trends

In the fast-paced digital era, consumer trends evolve rapidly. Ecommerce businesses are generally better equipped to adapt quickly to changing consumer preferences. They can leverage data analytics and customer insights to monitor trends, make data-driven decisions, and optimize their online platforms accordingly. Traditional businesses may need to invest additional time and resources to keep up with digital advancements and evolving consumer behaviors.

Flexibility and Accessibility

Ecommerce businesses offer unparalleled flexibility and accessibility for both customers and business owners. Customers can browse and make purchases at any time and from anywhere, providing convenience and eliminating geographical barriers. For eCommerce store owners, the ability to manage and monitor their business remotely grants them freedom and flexibility in running their operations.

Inventory Management and Stock Control

Ecommerce businesses benefit from advanced inventory management systems that enable real-time tracking of stock levels. This helps in minimizing out-of-stock situations and ensuring accurate product availability information for customers.

In contrast, traditional businesses often face challenges in maintaining optimal inventory levels and may experience stockouts or excess inventory, leading to potential revenue loss.

Targeted Marketing and Personalization

Ecommerce businesses have access to vast amounts of customer data, allowing them to implement targeted marketing strategies. With tools like personalized recommendations, email marketing automation, and remarketing campaigns, eCommerce store owners can create tailored experiences for customers based on their preferences and behavior.

Traditional businesses may find it more challenging to gather such detailed customer insights and implement personalized marketing approaches. Lower Barrier to Entry and

Cost-Effectiveness

Starting an eCommerce business requires lower upfront investment compared to establishing a traditional brick-and-mortar store. With just a few hundred dollars, entrepreneurs can set up an eCommerce store, especially when starting small with just a few products. This cost-effectiveness makes eCommerce a viable option for aspiring entrepreneurs with limited capital, allowing them to test their business ideas and gradually expand their offerings.

Competitive Landscape and Market Saturation

The eCommerce industry, while offering vast opportunities, also poses a highly competitive environment. As more businesses enter the online space, competition intensifies, and standing out becomes crucial.

Ecommerce store owners must focus on differentiating their brand, offering unique value propositions, and implementing effective marketing strategies to capture market share. Traditional businesses, although operating in a more localized market, may face less intense competition compared to the crowded eCommerce industry.

Building Trust and Overcoming Security Concerns

Ecommerce businesses must address customer concerns regarding online transactions and data security. Building trust is vital to encourage customers to make purchases and share their personal information. Implementing secure payment gateways, displaying trust badges, and providing clear privacy policies can help establish credibility.

Traditional businesses may have an advantage in this area, as they can rely on face-to-face interactions and established reputations to build trust with customers.

Both traditional businesses and eCommerce businesses have their unique strengths and considerations. Traditional businesses excel in creating personal interactions and offering a tangible shopping experience, while eCommerce businesses harness the power of technology to reach a wider customer base and scale rapidly.

In addition to the financial implications and costs associated with a physical store, there are other considerations that traditional business owners should keep in mind. One such consideration is the limited geographic reach of a brick-and-mortar establishment.

While it allows for personal interactions and local customer engagement, it may restrict the ability to tap into a broader customer base. In contrast, an eCommerce store transcends geographical boundaries, enabling businesses to reach customers far beyond their local area and tap into a global market. This expanded customer reach opens up new opportunities for growth and market penetration.

Another advantage of eCommerce businesses is the ability to leverage digital marketing strategies and data analytics. Unlike traditional marketing approaches that rely heavily on print media, billboards, or word-of-mouth, eCommerce businesses can utilize targeted online marketing campaigns.

By leveraging social media platforms, search engine optimization, and paid advertising, businesses can reach their target audience with precision and maximize the return on their marketing investments.

Ecommerce platforms provide robust analytics tools that allow businesses to gather insights on customer behavior, preferences, and purchasing patterns. These insights enable businesses to make data-driven decisions, optimize their marketing strategies, and personalize the customer experience.

Furthermore, eCommerce businesses offer the opportunity to diversify revenue streams and explore new market segments. By expanding their product offerings or partnering with complementary businesses, traditional businesses can tap into the potential of cross-selling and upselling. The digital nature of eCommerce also allows businesses to experiment with different product categories or niche markets, reducing the dependency on a single product or service.

Moreover, the scalability and growth potential of eCommerce businesses are unparalleled. Traditional businesses may face challenges related to physical expansion and resource allocation when trying to scale their operations.

However, eCommerce businesses can easily accommodate increasing customer demand, expand their product catalog, and enter new markets with relative ease. The digital infrastructure of eCommerce platforms provides the flexibility and scalability needed to support business growth without the constraints imposed by physical space limitations.

When choosing between the two models, entrepreneurs should consider factors such as target audience, industry dynamics, cost structure, and growth aspirations. Ultimately, the decision should align with the business’s goals and leverage the strengths of the chosen model.

Whether you opt for a traditional business or an eCommerce venture, success lies in understanding your customers, delivering value, and adapting to the ever-changing business landscape.

eCommerce & Online Business

We now live in a world where many consumers use the internet on a daily basis, making it an opportune time to start an eCommerce business. In fact, the growth of eCommerce skyrocketed in March of 2020 – with a boost of 25% growth as a result of the COVID-19 Pandemic, highlighting the potential for increased success. Thousands of businesses rely on eCommerce to scale their companies, decrease costs, and increase convenience for their customers.

You can attract a larger audience of customers, including new customers, by providing an eCommerce option and effectively sell online through your online store, making it an ideal choice to start an eCommerce business. With an online store, consumers can buy from your site whether they’re on their computers, tablets, or smartphones—from anywhere that has an internet connection.

With the rise of social media marketing, including Instagram marketing, incorporating these strategies can be a game-changer when you start an eCommerce business. Leveraging the visual appeal of Instagram and utilizing features like Stories, hashtags, and influencer partnerships can help you reach a wider audience and drive engagement with your brand.

While brick and mortar stores have their advantages, owning your own online store offers numerous benefits that make it an attractive option for starting a business. With an online business, you can reach a wider target market, operate with lower overhead costs, and provide convenience and accessibility to your customers.

Calculating and managing marketing costs is crucial for the success of your eCommerce business, especially when you’re starting out. Allocating your marketing budget effectively, tracking the return on investment (ROI) of different marketing channels, and experimenting with different strategies can help you optimize your marketing efforts and achieve better results as you start an eCommerce business.

Having a well-structured business is key to the smooth operation of your eCommerce store, providing a solid foundation as you start an eCommerce business and setup your online store. Defining clear roles and responsibilities, establishing efficient processes, and implementing effective communication channels within your team will contribute to better organization and productivity from the beginning.

An attractive and user-friendly eCommerce website is essential for capturing and retaining customers when you start an eCommerce business and establish your online store. Designing a responsive website with intuitive navigation, high-quality product images, and a seamless checkout process can enhance the shopping experience and drive conversions right from the start of your eCommerce business journey.

As a small business owner, selling your own products through an online store gives you full control over your brand and product offerings. It allows you to showcase your unique value proposition and build a direct relationship with your customers when you start an eCommerce business.

For a small eCommerce business, it’s crucial to prioritize efficiency and cost-effectiveness from the outset. Implementing automation tools, optimizing workflows, and leveraging technology to streamline operations will help you maximize productivity and minimize unnecessary expenses as you start an eCommerce business.

Shipping is a significant consideration when running an eCommerce store, and it becomes a critical aspect to address as you start an eCommerce business. Calculating and incorporating shipping costs into your pricing strategy is crucial to ensure profitability.

Implementing efficient shipping strategies, negotiating rates with shipping providers, and exploring options like flat-rate shipping can help minimize shipping costs and improve the overall customer experience right from the start of your eCommerce business.

Effective inventory management is vital for a successful eCommerce business, and it’s important to establish efficient practices as you start an eCommerce business. Keeping track of your stock levels, finding a reliable supplier, implementing inventory management tools and systems, and optimizing your inventory turnover rate will help you meet customer demands and avoid stockouts from the beginning.

By streamlining your inventory management processes, you can ensure smooth operations and provide a seamless shopping experience for your customers when you start an eCommerce business.

By integrating digital marketing strategies into your eCommerce business, you can effectively promote your online store, reach your target audience, and drive traffic to your website right from the start of your eCommerce business journey.

Leveraging social media advertising, search engine optimization (SEO), and email marketing can help you engage with customers and create brand awareness as you start an eCommerce business.

The use of search engines can greatly assist an eCommerce business in developing an efficient marketing strategy from the moment you start an e Commerce business.

Optimizing your website and content to align with popular search terms can improve the visibility of your own eCommerce business throughout different search engines, driving organic traffic and attracting potential customers right from the start.

In the highly competitive eCommerce landscape, it’s essential to differentiate your online store from the competition. Building a strong brand identity through compelling storytelling, visually appealing website design, and consistent branding across various channels can help you stand out and build trust with your customers as you start an eCommerce business.

Running an eCommerce business requires careful attention to your business finances. Monitoring your expenses, optimizing your pricing strategy, and regularly evaluating your profit margins will contribute to the long-term success and sustainability of your business, starting right from the launch of your eCommerce business.

By understanding your financial metrics and making informed decisions, you can navigate the challenges and seize the opportunities in the dynamic world of eCommerce from the very beginning of your eCommerce business journey.

How Opening an Online Store Can Benefit Your Traditional Business

In the digital age, traditional businesses can embrace eCommerce to unlock new growth opportunities and stay ahead of the competition. By incorporating an online presence alongside their brick-and-mortar stores, businesses can tap into the vast potential of online shopping. Let’s discover how this strategic move can transform your business.

Expanded Customer Reach and Market Penetration

Integrating an eCommerce store allows traditional businesses to transcend geographical boundaries and reach customers far beyond their local area. Online platforms offer a global market where businesses can showcase their products and services to a broader audience.

This expanded customer reach can attract new customers who might have otherwise been unaware of the business or prefer the convenience of online shopping. With eCommerce, your business can penetrate new markets and gain a competitive edge.

Cost-Effective Entry into the Digital Realm

Unlike establishing a physical store, launching an eCommerce store is a cost-effective venture. With accessible eCommerce platforms and user-friendly website builders, traditional businesses can establish their online presence without breaking the bank.

By leveraging existing resources and minimizing upfront costs, businesses can seamlessly enter the eCommerce industry and capitalize on the growing trend of online shopping.

Diversified Revenue Streams and Increased Sales Potential

Integrating an eCommerce store with a traditional business opens up additional revenue streams. By offering products or services online, businesses can attract customers who prefer the convenience of digital shopping or who reside in areas outside their physical store’s reach.

This diversification reduces dependency on a single sales channel and helps businesses navigate fluctuations in demand. Moreover, an eCommerce store operates 24/7, ensuring that potential sales are not limited to specific business hours.

Expanded Product Catalog and Enhanced Customer Experience

A significant advantage of eCommerce integration is the ability to showcase a larger product catalog. Traditional businesses with limited physical space can leverage their online store to display their entire inventory.

By offering a comprehensive selection, businesses can cater to a wider range of customer preferences, increasing the likelihood of cross-selling and upselling. The expanded product catalog enhances the customer experience, boosting satisfaction and fostering repeat business.

Streamlined Operations and Improved Efficiency

Integrating an eCommerce store with existing operations can lead to streamlined processes and improved efficiency. By synchronizing inventory management systems, businesses can maintain accurate product availability across both online and physical stores, avoiding stockouts and disappointed customers.

Automation tools can streamline order fulfillment, shipping, and customer service, ensuring a seamless shopping experience. This integration enhances operational efficiency and provides a consistent brand experience across all touchpoints.

Improved Customer Insights and Data Analytics

Opening an eCommerce store allows traditional businesses to gather valuable customer insights and leverage data analytics. With online transactions, businesses can track customer behavior, purchase patterns, and preferences, enabling them to make data-driven decisions.

This information can be used to personalize marketing campaigns, optimize product offerings, and improve overall customer satisfaction. The data-driven approach offered by eCommerce provides businesses with a competitive edge in understanding and meeting customer needs.

Increased Brand Visibility and Online Presence

Integrating an eCommerce store with a traditional business helps boost brand visibility and expand online presence. By establishing a strong online presence, businesses can attract a wider audience and increase brand recognition.

Utilizing digital marketing strategies such as search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing, and content marketing, businesses can drive traffic to their online store and engage with potential customers. A strong online presence strengthens the overall brand image and credibility in the marketplace.

Opportunity for Targeted Marketing and Remarketing Campaigns

An eCommerce store enables businesses to implement targeted marketing strategies and remarketing campaigns. Through customer data and analytics, businesses can create personalized marketing messages tailored to specific customer segments.

This level of customization allows businesses to deliver relevant content, product recommendations, and promotional offers, increasing the likelihood of conversion and repeat purchases. Remarketing campaigns can also help businesses re-engage potential customers who have shown interest but haven’t completed a purchase, maximizing the conversion potential.

Adaptability to Changing Consumer Behavior and Trends

The eCommerce industry is known for its ability to adapt quickly to changing consumer behavior and trends. By integrating an eCommerce store, traditional businesses can stay agile and respond promptly to shifts in customer preferences.

They can monitor online shopping trends, conduct market research, and adjust their product offerings and marketing strategies accordingly. This adaptability allows businesses to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving digital landscape and stay ahead of the curve.

Collaboration with Online Marketplaces and Partnerships

Integrating an eCommerce store opens up opportunities for collaboration with online marketplaces and strategic partnerships. By listing products on popular marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, or Etsy, businesses can tap into a large customer base and leverage the marketplace’s existing infrastructure.

Collaborating with complementary businesses or influencers in the industry can also expand reach, attract new customers, and build brand awareness. These collaborations and partnerships can create synergies and mutually beneficial opportunities for growth.

Market Expansion

An online store enables traditional businesses to expand their customer base beyond their local market. By reaching customers in different regions or even internationally, businesses can tap into new markets and increase their sales potential.

Enhanced Customer Convenience

Online shopping offers convenience to customers who can browse and purchase products from the comfort of their homes at any time. By providing this convenience, traditional businesses can attract and retain customers who prefer the ease and accessibility of online shopping.

Geographic Flexibility

With an online store, traditional businesses have the flexibility to operate from anywhere with an internet connection. This opens up opportunities for businesses to explore new locations, test market demand, or even operate as a remote or home-based business.

Cross-Promotion with Physical Stores

An online store can complement a traditional brick-and-mortar business by driving traffic to physical stores. Customers can browse online, make informed decisions, and then visit the physical store for an in-person experience or to complete the purchase. This integrated approach strengthens the overall brand presence and customer experience.

As traditional businesses explore the possibilities of integrating an eCommerce store, they can harness the numerous benefits it offers. From expanded customer reach and increased sales potential to streamlined operations and improved customer insights, the synergy between traditional and online business models can create a powerful combination that drives growth and success.

The advantages of opening an eCommerce store for traditional business owners are evident. From expanded customer reach and personalized marketing to improved inventory management and scalability, the integration of eCommerce into the business model presents a wealth of opportunities.

By embracing the digital revolution and incorporating an eCommerce business plan, traditional businesses can thrive in the ever-evolving marketplace, staying competitive and meeting the changing preferences of modern consumers.

Business Model

Having a solid business model is essential for the long-term sustainability and profitability of your eCommerce venture. It involves identifying your target audience, choosing the right products or services to offer, determining your pricing strategy, and outlining your marketing and sales approach for your eCommerce business.

By developing a well-defined business model, you can position your eCommerce business for success and effectively meet the needs of your customers.

With the right approach, a solid business model, effective digital marketing, streamlined inventory management, and careful financial planning, your own eCommerce business has the potential to thrive and achieve long-term success in the ever-evolving world of online commerce.

A well-crafted business model provides a strong foundation for your eCommerce business, aligning your resources and value proposition with the demands of the market. It helps you understand your target customers, differentiate your offerings, and navigate the competitive landscape of the eCommerce industry.

By continuously evaluating and adapting you can stay ahead of the curve and drive sustainable growth for your eCommerce business.

A successful eCommerce business requires a robust and adaptable business model that can withstand the challenges and opportunities of the digital marketplace.

By continually refining your eCommerce business model, you can stay agile and responsive to changing consumer preferences, emerging technologies, and industry trends. This allows you to seize new growth avenues and capitalize on market disruptions.

An effective business model also helps you optimize your eCommerce operations, from sourcing products and managing inventory to fulfillment and customer service. By strategically aligning your business model with efficient processes and technologies, you can enhance operational efficiency, minimize costs, and deliver exceptional customer experiences.

Furthermore, a well-defined business model enables you to explore innovative revenue streams and diversify your eCommerce business. It empowers you to experiment with new sales channels, partnerships, or subscription models to expand your reach and capture untapped market segments.

In the competitive landscape of eCommerce, a strong business model acts as a guiding framework for decision-making, risk assessment, and resource allocation. It allows you to set clear goals, track key performance indicators, and measure the success of your eCommerce business.

How to Start Your Own eCommerce Business

Are you ready to dive into the exciting world of eCommerce? Starting your own eCommerce store opens up a world of opportunities, allowing you to reach a global customer base and capitalize on the ever-growing trend of online shopping.

In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through the essential steps to kickstart your eCommerce business and set yourself up for success.

Step 1: Define Your Business Idea and Target Market

The first step in starting an eCommerce business is to define your unique business idea. Identify a niche or a specific product/service category that aligns with your passion and expertise. Conduct thorough market research to evaluate the demand, competition, and profitability of your chosen niche. Understanding your target audience is crucial for developing effective marketing strategies and tailoring your offerings to their needs.

Step 2: Create a Solid Business Plan

A well-crafted business plan acts as a roadmap for your eCommerce journey. Outline your goals, objectives, and strategies for achieving them. Define your product range, pricing strategy, and target revenue projections.

Include a marketing plan, financial projections, and a timeline for launching and scaling your business. A clear and comprehensive business plan will guide your decision-making process and attract potential investors or partners.

Step 3: Register Your Business and Secure Legal Requirements

Ensure that your eCommerce business is legally compliant by registering your business name and obtaining the necessary licenses and permits. Research the legal and tax obligations specific to your location, such as registering for a business license, sales tax collection, and any industry-specific regulations. Consider consulting with a legal professional to ensure you meet all requirements and protect your business legally.

Step 4: Build Your eCommerce Website

Your eCommerce website will serve as the virtual storefront for your business. Choose a reliable eCommerce platform that suits your needs, such as WooCommerce, Shopify, or BigCommerce. Customize your website with a user-friendly interface, appealing design, and intuitive navigation. Incorporate high-quality product images, detailed descriptions, and customer reviews to enhance the shopping experience and build trust with potential buyers.

Step 5: Source Products or Develop Your Offerings

Decide on your product sourcing strategy based on your business model, or develop your service offerings.

Step 6: Set Up Payment Gateways and Secure Transactions

Choose a reliable payment gateway to enable smooth and secure transactions on your eCommerce website. Popular options include Stax, PayPal, Stripe, and Square. Ensure that your payment gateway integrates seamlessly with your chosen eCommerce platform. Implement SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption to protect sensitive customer information and build trust in your online store.

Step 7: Establish a Fulfillment and Shipping Process

Develop a streamlined fulfillment process to ensure prompt and accurate order processing. Determine how you will handle packaging, labeling, and shipping of products. If you opt for dropshipping, the supplier will handle the fulfillment process. However, if you store and ship products yourself, consider partnering with shipping carriers or fulfillment centers to optimize the shipping process and reduce costs.

Step 8: Implement Marketing and Promotional Strategies

Create a marketing plan to generate awareness and drive traffic to your eCommerce store. Utilize various digital marketing channels such as social media marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), email marketing, content marketing, and paid advertising to reach your target audience. Engage with potential customers through compelling content, promotions, discounts, and loyalty programs to encourage repeat business.

Step 9: Optimize Your Website for Search Engines

Implement SEO techniques to improve your website’s visibility in search engine results. Conduct keyword research to identify relevant keywords and incorporate them into your website’s content, meta tags, and product descriptions. Optimizing your website for search engines can help your website drive traffic without spending money for advertisements. Focus on creating valuable and informative content that aligns with your target audience’s search intent. This will help drive organic traffic to your eCommerce store.

Step 10: Monitor Analytics and Refine Your Strategy

Regularly monitor and analyze key performance indicators (KPIs) such as website traffic, conversion rate, average order value, and customer acquisition cost. Use web analytics tools like Google Analytics to gain insights into customer behavior, preferences, and trends. Based on the data, refine your marketing strategy, website design, product offerings, and customer experience to continually optimize and grow your eCommerce business.

Remember, starting an eCommerce business requires dedication, continuous learning, and adaptability. Stay updated with the latest industry trends, customer preferences, and technological advancements to stay ahead of the competition and provide exceptional value to your customers.

How e-Commerce & Traditional Commerce Can Work Together

By combining eCommerce and traditional commerce shopping options, you’ll be able to expand your revenue stream while also providing customers with the convenience of being able to buy their favorite products from your business wherever they may be.

So how exactly can you run a business that thrives both in the physical and digital realm?

The first step is to ensure that your online and offline storefronts are tightly connected. Depending on your platform this could mean one of two things:

1. Integrating your point-of-sale system with your online shopping cart.

eCommerce solutions like Shopify and BigCommerce can connect to POS systems like Clover so that sales and inventory data flows smoothly from one system to the next.

This means that when someone purchases an item online, your in-store inventory will be updated so you don’t end up selling something that’s not actually available.

2. Using an all-in-one system. Some solution providers offer both online and offline systems.

Shopify, for example, has its own POS system. With this setup, you’re only using one vendor for your POS and online shopping cart, so there’s no need to integrate different systems.

The right decision depends on your technology needs and setup. If you’re happy with your eCommerce platform, then ask if they have a native online selling solution or see if you can connect the software to another POS platform.No matter which option you choose, there is one more component that you need to successfully do business online and offline.

We’re referring to your payments platform. Whether you’re transacting in-store or through an online portal, you need to be able to accept payments with ease. As such, you need a payments platform that works both online and offline and can enable you to accept multiple payment methods.

This is where Stax comes in. Our all-in-one payments platform has got you covered on all fronts, including:

Brick-and-mortar. Stax works with a wide range of credit card terminals and POS systems so you can keep the checkout line moving and serve shoppers in-store.
eCommerce. Stax integrates with multiple payment gateways to power your eCommerce store. You can also leverage our one-click shopping cart to process online orders instantly.

In short, the Stax Platform puts your entire payment experience into one easy-to-use location. Along with statements, deposit reports, and PCI compliance, each online payment you process will be accessible and accounted for within your dashboard.

With Stax, you never have to worry about having different merchant processing systems for traditional commerce and eCommerce.

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FAQs About eCommerce Business

Q: What is an eCommerce business?

An eCommerce business is a type of business that conducts buying and selling of goods or services over the internet. It involves online transactions, typically through a website or online marketplace.

Q: What are the advantages of starting an eCommerce business?

Starting an eCommerce business offers several advantages, such as a global reach, lower overhead costs compared to brick-and-mortar stores, the ability to operate 24/7, access to a wider customer base, and the potential for scalability.

Q: How do I start an eCommerce business?

Starting an eCommerce business involves several steps. You need to identify your target market, select products or services to sell, choose an eCommerce platform, build your online store, set up payment gateways, implement marketing strategies, and establish shipping and fulfillment processes.

Q: What eCommerce platform should I use for my business?

The choice of eCommerce platform depends on your specific business needs, budget, technical expertise, and scalability requirements. Popular eCommerce platforms include Stax, Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, Adobe Commerce, and BigCommerce, each offering different features and customization options.

Q: What is an eCommerce business idea, and how can it be profitable?

eCommerce business ideas refer to a concept or plan for an online business that involves buying and selling products or services over the internet. With the increasing popularity of online shopping, starting an online eCommerce business can be a lucrative venture. By establishing an online store, leveraging social media and digital marketing strategies, and providing a seamless user experience, you can reach a global customer base and generate revenue around the clock. Additionally, exploring niche markets, offering unique products, and implementing effective inventory management techniques can further enhance the profitability of your eCommerce business.

7 Benefits of Adding a Telehealth Feature for Your Practice

With a global focus on health and wellness, finding safe ways to see a medical professional has never been more important. Providing virtual options for your patients allows your practice to distribute health-related services and information through telecommunication technology on a national level.

From 2016 to 2017, the national utilization of telehealth has grown by 53%. The versatility of remote health tech provides clinical contact care, monitoring, and advice to your patients virtually. An article in mHealthIntelligence says, “Specialists are now finding that they can launch their own telehealth platform to consumers, offering their services online much like a banker, real estate agent or other business people.”

There are several advantages to using telehealth technology and digital tools that not only benefit your practice but also your patients. Here are a few benefits to taking your healthcare and services digital.

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Expands Patient Access to Care

The opportunities provided by transitioning your practice to a digital format are endless. Telehealth can be used for mid-level patient education as well as physician diagnosis, reaching a variety of people in new ways. The digital tools allow clinicians to discuss a case over a video conference or a physical therapy session to be done via digital monitoring via a live feed. Home monitoring can be maintained with an online video conference tool.

Telehealth or telemedicine allows physicians to bill for uncompensated phone calls while extending hours to capture more billable time. The use of telehealth has been proven to cut down on no-shows and improve the overall efficiency of a practice. Telehealth’s new models of care can also provide a competitive advantage by attracting and retaining more patients outside your area.

Expedites Timely Care for Patients

By the end of 2018 seven million Americans were using telehealth technology. Since then telehealth has increased access to healthcare providing expedited care to patients. In doing so patients are being diagnosed and treated earlier, improving outcomes and requiring less costly treatments.

In fact, patients with telehealth access have substantially reduced mortality rates, reduced complications, and reduced hospital stays.

Improves The Quality of Healthcare

Telehealth or telemedicine provides remote clinical services, such as diagnosis and monitoring. This tool bridges the gap when rural settings, lack of transport, a lack of mobility, decreased funding, or a lack of staff restrict access to care.

Telehealth solutions have the potential to improve hospital workforce stability while empowering local physicians through access to distant specialists that can collaborate on diagnosis and a patient’s treatment plan.

Reduces Overhead Costs for Your Practice

Using modern digital technology tools reduces the average overhead costs for medical practices. Reaching patients in new ways through phone, texting, and video chat has proven effective by allowing physicians to consult with patients remotely.

This not only saves on travel time but also eliminates the need for on-site follow-up visits, freeing up schedules to increase the volume of patients that can be seen. The use of telehealth tech has also shown a massive reduction in same-day cancellations and no-shows minimizing the wasted time for most medical practices.

Increases Practice Efficiency

Healthcare organizations that utilize telehealth technology can take a more direct approach when treating people. By enabling real-time, two-way interactive video consultations with remote patients, healthcare practices can increase staff efficiency while reducing cost. Telemedicine does this all while improving quality of care without compromising patient satisfaction.

With fewer in-person visits, healthcare staff has more time to handle administrative tasks such as patient scheduling, data entry, billing, and more. On the same note, Physicians are able to chart the patient visit during the virtual consultation improving accuracy. Virtual appointments are also quicker than in-person appointments. Studies show that an average video appointment is 12 minutes while an in-person appointment is roughly 20% longer.

Delivers Savings To Patients

Telehealth can change the current paradigm of care allowing for improved access and health outcomes in more cost-effective ways. It was reported by Regence Health Plans that patients save an average of $100 per visit when using a telehealth clinical service instead of in-person visits. The telehealth cost savings were associated with medical claims, mileage, and time spent waiting to see a doctor.

HIPAA and Telehealth

HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) was passed by Congress in 1996. It was designed to reduce healthcare fraud and abuse, partially by setting industry-wide standards for health care information on electronic billing and other processes. It requires the protection and secure handling of specific patient health information at all times.

When transitioning your business to a digital format it’s imperative that your practice remains compliant with HIPAA standards. Similar to in-person visits, the same requirements for patient privacy and confidentiality apply to visits conducted over video. The provider also has a responsibility to protect patient information. The storage of electronic files, videos, and images needs to be handled with the same care as physical documents.

Services such as Skype and Facetime, do not support HIPAA compliant video conferencing because they are not encrypted. To remain compliant with the law your digital healthcare practice should look for the following features when considering any telehealth technology.

Fully encrypted data transmission
Peer-to-peer secure network connections
No storage of video

How a Virtual Terminal Works With Your Digital Healthcare Practice

Medical professionals need to be able to reliably and securely collect payments from their patients. The use of a virtual terminal keeps customer information including payment information on file to help streamline recurring payments. Cards on file are stored securely and the system automatically keeps card information updated before it expires, ensuring you get paid every time.

The Stax Platform also integrates invoicing, allows recurring billing and in-person charges, as well as over-the-phone payments. You’re able to create, customize, and send invoices to patients to get paid on time all with flat-fee processing. This not only saves your healthcare business time but also money.

The Stax Platform is a smart solution for healthcare businesses that take payments online or over the phone. With simple invoicing, recurring charges, and online bill pay, you’ll get paid faster with Stax. Contact us today for a custom quote.

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Stax Fees vs. Stripe Fees: Which is Better?

As of 2019, there are more than 1,300 independent sales organizations registered with Visa that sell credit card processing services to business owners. With over a thousand options to choose from, how do you know which is the best merchant services company for your business and overall customer experience?

Choosing the right payment processor is vital to the success of your business.
With that said we want to help cut through the jargon and make your decision simple. In order to do so, we’ve compared Stax’ products and services with that of one of our most well-known industry competitors, Stripe.

Both Stax and Stripe offer a variety of capabilities to better serve your payment processing needs, but which one is the better fit for your business? Let’s break down the dollars and cents when it comes to Stax fees vs. Stripe fees.

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What Stripe Has to Offer

Launched in 2011, Stripe offers a software platform best suited for running an internet-based business. While the company boasts billions of dollars a year in transactions, its primary focus is businesses that transact online or via mobile app.

Stripe pricing offers a pay-as-you-go model which includes a 2.9% flat rate, and a 30 cent transaction fee per swipe in their basic package. There are several other Stripe payment fees that come into play when you add various add-ons and other services. This only applies to basic transactions using a debit or credit card. If your customers choose to pay using anything else there are additional fees that could cost you. For instance, Stripe ACH fees for checks can accrue fees up to $7 per payment.

While most of their basic merchant services are similar to Stax, their additional Stripe fees make them a more expensive option. So, the question is, how much does Stripe cost per month? Below you’ll find Stax pricing vs. Stripe pricing along with some other industry competitors listed for comparison. This scenario simulates what a typical business might end up paying in processing fees in a month for each company.

Stax	Stripe	Square	PayPal	Banks
$359	$480	$405	$405 to $547	$570

Here’s a quick summary of Stripe processing fees:

The Pros

Quick payment processing
Fraud and security protection tools
Online and mobile dashboard

The Cons

No Chargeback assistance
Primarily email customer service
Same day funding is NOT available
2.9% flat rate + 30 cents per transaction (Typically 40% more expensive than subscription-based processors)
Additional charges and Stripe fees added
Developer work is needed for the integration in most cases

As you can see, Stripe processing fees cost you over $120 more per month than if you processed with Stax.

The Way Payment Processing Should Be: Simple

Ranked as one of the best merchant services companies nationally, Stax is a subscription-based, integrated payment provider with total transparency built into its model. All businesses have access to direct cost payment processing with 0% markups, no contracts, and no hidden fees.

Stax treats our members like family. Whenever you call in with a question, issue, or just to chat – a real person answers the phone every time (no automated calls). This is the perk of working with a more customer-centric company.

With Stax, someone is ready to help answer the phone every time. We eat, sleep, and breathe payments – so rest easy knowing that you’re getting the kind of white-glove customer service you deserve.

Stax is Committed to Never Profiting Off Your Company’s Success

Here’s a quick summary of Stax’ processing fees and why we are the best payment solutions provider for your business:

No contract
0% markup
No hidden fees
Quick setup
Recurring billing
Easy to read statements
Live, U.S.-based customer service
Flat monthly subscription (save up to 40% versus traditional processors)
Next day funding for approved businesses
POS, eCommerce, mobile, and virtual terminal solutions
Can integrate with most already established POS systems

Each business is unique, and it pays to understand exactly what will work best for you as you explore your options. At Stax, we provide easy-to-use yet highly effective payment solutions to businesses of all sizes.

To learn more about our top-ranked merchant services and how they can help grow your business, feel free to reach out to us today. We will be happy to answer any questions you have and help you obtain the right payment processing solution for your needs.

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Benefits of Integrating Inventory Tracking Into Your Retail Payment Software

One of the most critical aspects of retail operations management is inventory tracking. If you’re unable to assess your product performance or fail to restock items on time, the effects can be detrimental to the success of your business.

Implementing an inventory tracking system will help your business run more efficiently and reduce the risk of a stockout. Learn more about how you can integrate an inventory tracking system into your retail payment software in order to improve your operations.

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Why Inventory Tracking Matters in Retail Merchant Services

From identifying top products to fulfilling customer expectations, paying attention to inventory tracking can help take care of crucial aspects for your retail operations. Here’s how:

It Helps You Identify the Performance of Products

By studying your inventory and product flow, you can easily assess product performance and inventory turnover. This lets you know exactly which products are moving quickly from the shelves and which ones aren’t performing as well to help you determine what needs to be moved, reduced, or eliminated.

This information can be helpful year-round but is essential during peak shopping season when you need to ensure your business is continually stocked with top-performing products. You are better able to determine which product quantities you will need for a specific season or time frame.

By keeping the right balance between when to order and how much of your customer’s much-loved products to keep in stock, you’ll be able to deliver a better customer experience and increase revenue.

Inventory Tracking Lets You Allocate Resources Efficiently

Knowing about the performance of products helps you restock on time. Using a retail merchant services solution with integrated inventory tracking lets you determine how much of your funds should be allocated towards certain retail products.

This solution also helps optimize your business expense and lets you invest in products that move quickly rather than ones that collect dust on the shelves. This improves your cash flow and increases your profits, also reducing your running costs.

It Improves Your Retail Merchandising

Optimal inventory tracking for retail shops allows you to see trends as you showcase products that may or may not need a little push from your end to sell better. This way you can see the impact of any traffic or store changes on products that show a high demand among your customers or see if inventory placement for certain products is having an effect on their movement on the floor.

This lets you manage your star products and new inline offerings in a better way. You are also able to understand what your customers demand the most, which lets you determine what kind of visual product suggestions or upsells can help you take your store sales to the next level.

It Assists in Improving Customer Experience

Putting all this effort into retail inventory tracking and management doesn’t only help you control your finances. It also goes a long way into improving your customer experience.

Preventing out-of-stock signs and showcasing products that are similar to best-selling items helps you create a positive connection with customers. You will also be able to know and understand their shopping behaviors. This improves customer loyalty as you build on their trust and enables you to attract new patrons through word-of-mouth marketing.

How Retail Shops Succeed at Inventory Tracking

Retail shops that adopt modern solutions can avoid the trap of time-consuming processes, manual data entry, and employee experience that leaves much to be desired. They’re able to cut through redundancy, enjoy more efficiency, and have happier employees who work at an improved performance level.

That’s why you must look to automated inventory tracking for retail shops to make the most out of your store operations.

Integrating Inventory Tracking Into Your Merchant Services Payment Solution

Thanks to modern technology, the moment any item moves through your point of sale (POS) terminal, your payment system can immediately interact with your inventory tracking software to update the listed quantity of products. You’re able to track and monitor the lifecycle of a purchase made by a customer, in addition to being able to itemize sales.

This helps you stay on top of product sales and performance, and lets you get a real-time picture of your inventory.

At Stax, our developer tools and API solutions can help you easily extend your custom software and web solutions to include a payment experience unique to your retail business.

To understand how our API solutions can add a robust set of retail payment processing capabilities, complete customer management, inventory tracking, invoicing, recurring billing, and more, reach out to us today. We will be glad to answer any questions you may have and offer merchant services solutions that cater to your specific needs.

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Getting Smart with Credit Card Processing Fees

Credit card usage shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Research shows that 83% of Americans have at least one credit card and are likely to use them to make purchases 40% of the time.

Convenient as they are for consumers, credit card processing fees, however, can eat away a large part of a small business’ revenue. Traditional providers charge unnecessarily high processing fees for things that don’t actually cost them any money. These are intended to make a larger profit, banking on the fact that the business owner won’t question the charge among all of the confusing line items.

All this to say, small business owners need to find the cheapest credit card processing rates while ensuring security and providing convenience to customers.

There are three main ways payment processing fees can be broken up–required, recurring, and one-off. Here is a breakdown of what to expect on your statement, and how to avoid paying more than you need to for something as essential as payment processing.

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Understanding Credit Card Processing Fees

There are a number of fees that merchants have to pay to accept credit cards which are collectively referred to as credit card processing fees. Different credit card processing companies have different rates and fees, so take the time to understand them and shop around when choosing a merchant services provider.

Transactional credit card processing fees (and their role in helping you get the lowest credit card processing fees)

Transaction fees are associated with each transaction you run for your business. They are broken down into interchange costs and cents per transaction. These come directly from the credit card companies and are considered the “pay-to-play” cost for accepting credit cards at your business. Interchange fees are non-negotiable and every company must pay them regardless of their credit card processing services provider.

Interchange rates vary depending on the type of credit card you are accepting. The more expensive it is for the credit card company to maintain the card with things like rewards, cashback, and other perks, the more costly the interchange. This means that debit cards typically charge the lowest interchange rate and business credit cards are the most expensive.

An assessment fee is a very small charge on your monthly sales. For example, Visa charges an assessment fee of 0.11% and Mastercard charges 0.095% of the transaction cost. These credit card networks set different flat-rate fees on the overall monthly sales paid using credit and debit cards of their brand. This fee goes directly to the card networks and will often appear in a merchant’s credit card bill as a separate line item called “Assessments” or “Dues.”

Apart from interchange and assessment fees, some credit card processors may charge a markup fee and this can vary depending on which provider you choose. Hence, it is very important to compare markup fees to make sure you get the lowest credit card processing fees for your business. This is a charge that you can negotiate to your advantage too.

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Recurring credit card processing fees

Most traditional payment processors make a lot of money by not only adding a percentage on top of the interchange, but also adding recurring processing fees on your monthly statement. These monthly fees are typically pure profit, as it doesn’t actually cost the processor anything in order to offer the processing services that these fees are allegedly for.

Keep an eye out for these additional fees on your next statement and you could save hundreds of dollars on your next bill.

Monthly Minimum Fee
Statement Fee
Batch Fee
Next Day Funding Fee
Annual Fee
IRS Report Fee

One-off credit card processing fees

You’re probably already wondering how many more ways you could possibly be charged for payment processing – but believe it or not, there are other ways processing service providers will try to take your money.

Some fees might not be on every single business account statement but rather triggered by individual actions. As a small business, these one-off (or incidental fees) are hard to control or predict as they are triggered for certain complicated cases such as chargebacks, special verifications, insufficient funds, etc. Also, some payment service providers may charge extra fees for using their card readers, point-of-sale systems, payment gateways, or virtual terminals.

Keep an eye out for:

Credit Card Terminal Fees
Setup Fees
Early Termination Fees
Reprogramming Fees
PCI Compliance Fees
Address Verification Fees
Chargeback and Retrieval Fees
Payment Gateway Fees

Needless to say, unexpected credit card processing fees can all really add up. Credit card processors make huge profits on the fact that the average business owner is not aware of what they are paying and why.

Factors Influencing Credit Card Fees

Before you start accepting credit card payments from customers, it may be worthwhile to understand the different factors that determine your payment processing costs.

Card brand and type

To facilitate credit and debit card payments from a customer to a merchant, card networks charge a transaction fee on every purchase. The four major card networks in the US—American Express, Mastercard, Visa, and Discover—charge a maximum of 3.3%, 2.64%, 2.54%, and 2.53% as per-transaction fees respectively, on average.

Additionally, the type of card your customers use also affects your overall credit card fees. The interchange rate is higher for credit cards compared to debit cards. The interchange rate is even higher on credit cards that offer rewards.

Type of business

A merchant category code (MCC) is assigned to a business once they start accepting credit card payments from its customers. The MCC is based on the industry that your business operates in and is used by financial institutions to determine the risk factor when calculating your interchange fee. For example, high-risk merchants operating in industries like gambling, healthcare, and travel will have higher fees.

Transaction volume

Larger transaction volumes can allow you to negotiate for lower credit card processing fees. Credit card brands and processors also offer discounts or special rates for monthly transaction volumes over a certain limit. Credit card networks often categorize businesses into different tiers based on their sales volumes with each tier having a different transaction fee. Most often, these rates favor larger transaction volumes.

Type of transaction

As credit card usage surges, small businesses are obliged to offer different payment methods to customers. The most common ones are in-person payments, online payments, and mobile payments. These different methods can affect the credit card processing fees for your company. In-person payments, for which merchants need a POS system, have the lowest credit card processing fees as it carries the lowest risk.

Credit card processing fees are higher for mobile and online transactions as security risks such as fraud are more likely. The security risks are also higher for payments made over the phone or through email, fax, or mail, and hence the processing fees are higher for such credit card transactions.

Strategies to Reduce Credit Card Fees

Thankfully, there are several strategies you can use to save money and cut down on non-essential payment processing fees. Here’s how.

Choosing the right pricing structure

Different merchant account providers have different pricing structures. Take the time to research different fee structures and choose what’s right for your business needs.

In flat-rate pricing, for example, the payment processor applies the same flat fee for any credit card payment—regardless of the brand, type, or method. This pricing structure is beneficial for new and small businesses that do not process large transaction volumes.

Interchange-plus pricing allows the payment processor to add a fixed charge on top of the interchange fee. The interchange fee varies by credit card company but the markup fee remains the same. This pricing strategy is better for businesses that handle a lot of credit card transactions as interchange plus pricing structures are more negotiable.

Under the tiered pricing structure, the payment processor categorizes interchange fees based on the risk of the transaction. The “qualified” rate category has the lowest rates as transactions in this category have the lowest risk as assessed by the processor. The “mid-qualified” tier has higher rates, while the highest rates are applied to the “non-qualified” tier which consists of high-risk transactions such as eCommerce ones.

Minimizing chargebacks and fraud

Use a payment gateway that adheres to PCI compliance guidelines to process credit card payments. This software authorizes payments by transferring transaction information between the issuing bank and credit card network. Payment gateways that follow PCI guidelines make transactions safer and less susceptible to fraud by protecting credit card information using tokenization, encryption, fraud detection features, etc.

Implementing a surcharge or cash discount program

A great way to offset your credit card processing costs is to transfer some of it to your customers. Credit card surcharging allows you to charge a certain amount per transaction when your customer pays using their credit card. The surcharge rates are controlled by national and state regulations and are capped at 4% On April 15th, 2023, Visa changed their brand rules to set the maximum surcharge at 3%. This will require merchants to lower the surcharge to 3% for all brands’ credit cards when Visa is accepted. Make sure to inform your customers about the surcharge and follow all applicable guidelines.

Another way to reduce credit card processing fees is to encourage customers to move away from credit card payments. You can do this by offering cash discount schemes where customers get a discount if they pay using cash at checkout. This works well for in-store purchases and you can create a discount plan best suited for the type of customers that you have.

Encouraging alternative payment methods

Apart from using discount programs to discourage customers from using credit cards, you can allow customers to pay via cryptocurrencies, eChecks, or ACH bank transfers. Cash and debit cards are also more economical for merchants, and customers tend to align with business owners once this is explained properly. Check with your payment processor if they support these payment modes or offer automated surcharging for different methods of payment.

Choosing the right payment processor

You need to read the fine print before signing up with a payment processor. Payment providers can often add unnecessary fees or services to your credit card processing plan that could rack up your final bill.

Keep an eye out for add-on or hidden fees such as termination fees (also known as cancellation fees), chargeback fees, statement fees, monthly minimum or annual minimum fees, long-term contract fees, etc. The best credit card processors are the ones that have transparent pricing structures and a chargeback management process to help you handle complicated and sensitive transactions.

How to Save on Credit Card Processing Fees

With Stax, your card processing statement is simple. All you pay is a monthly subscription which provides you with access to the direct cost of interchange and absolutely no extra fees. Stax takes pride in never adding hidden charges or payment processing fees just for the sake of making a profit.

In the meantime, be sure to look into the additional ways mentioned above to immediately reduce costs and increase savings.

If you have any questions on how the Stax team can help you, request a Custom Pricing Quote by reaching out to Stax. Stax will be happy to answer your questions and see how to best support your business.

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FAQs About the Lowest Processing Fees

Q: What are credit card processing fees?

Credit card processing fees are charges merchants pay to facilitate transactions made by customers using credit cards. They include transactional fees like interchange costs and cents per transaction, as well as other charges such as assessment fees, monthly minimum fees, statement fees, batch fees, and others. These fees are collectively billed by credit card processing companies and credit card networks, such as Visa and Mastercard.

Q: Who charges credit card processing fees?

There are a number of players involved in credit card processing fees. These costs are charged mainly by credit card companies, merchant service providers, and credit card networks like Visa and Mastercard. They are incurred when businesses accept payments made with credit cards.

Q: How can businesses get the lowest credit card processing fees?

Scoring the lowest credit card processing fees starts by understanding how the process works and the fee structures involved. From there, shop around for providers and choose payment partners that provide a favorable pricing structure. Stax, for example, uses a subscription model that gives you access to the direct cost of interchange, without pricey markups.

You can further lower your payment processing fees by minimizing chargebacks and fraud, implementing surcharge or cash discount programs, and encouraging alternative payment methods.

About the Latest Small Business Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program and Grant

As small businesses continue to look into ways to cover their day-to-day business expenses, many are turning towards emergency financial resources.

The Economic Injury Disaster Loan is a pre-existing financial assistance loan administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). With the passing of the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act and the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act, the declaration of COVID-19 as a disaster opened the doors for the SBA to make more EIDLs available for more small businesses impacted by the pandemic.

In the past it had been primarily used to help businesses, nonprofit organizations, homeowners, and renters repair or replace property damaged or destroyed in a federally declared disaster, and usually only when other lending resources had been exhausted.

Here is some need-to-know information regarding how this loan can help your business during this tough time.

Learn More

What Can I Use the Loan For and How Much Is It For?

The EIDL is a direct loan from SBA Disaster Assistance that has been made available to businesses impacted by the novel coronavirus pandemic. One of the benefits of this loan is the flexibility in use in comparison to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. An EIDL can be used to provide paid sick leave, it can help businesses manage increased production costs due to the pandemic, or even pay select business obligations including rent and mortgage payments. This is in addition to bills that could have been paid if the disaster had not occurred.

This is especially beneficial as businesses are able to receive both the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection loans, so long as they don’t go toward the same expenses. In addition, businesses can apply for both programs without the requirement of accepting anything that’s offered.

The loan can provide up to $2 million in disaster funds for up to a 30-year term. As part of the CARES act, small businesses and nonprofits who apply for the loan may also request an emergency grant advance of up to $10,000. Similar to the PPP loan, the EIDL advance can eventually be forgiven.

It is important to note that the small business loan amount is decided by SBA and based on the small business’s ability to repay the loan credit. Fixed rates for those seeking the emergency EIDL funds due to COVID-19 have also been lowered to 3.75% for businesses and 2.75% for non-profits.

There is no fee to apply for either loan and you can turn the loan down if you decide it’s not what you want.

Does My Small Business Qualify For the Loan?

Similar to the Payment Protection loan, EIDLs are open to any business with 500 or fewer employees. The employee count includes all full-time, part-time, independent contractors, and any other status employees.

To qualify for the business loan, your business must also meet the SBA definition of a small business. This includes:

Small businesses or non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations with 500 or fewer employees
Small businesses, 501(c)(3) veteran’s organizations, or tribal concerns that meet the SBA size standards
An individual who operates as a sole proprietor or independent contractor
An individual who is self-employed who regularly carries on any trade or business
Businesses in the food or hospitality industry (NAICS codes beginning in (72) may be eligible on a per-location basis)
Most private nonprofits

Qualifications are simple, with a few differences from the PPP loan.

Must be operating your business within the United States
You must also have been in operation before and by January 31st.
Have had employees you covered salaries and payroll taxes for on a full-time, part-time, or another basis. You can also have paid independent contractors.
Not have any existing debt obligations to the government
Must be willing to allow the SBA to review tax returns
Must show economic injury due to coronavirus (COVID-19), not other factors.
For loans over $25,000, collateral is needed in the form of a general security interest in business assets that will be used for collateral instead of real estate
For loans of $200,000 and over a personal guarantee is needed.

How Can I Apply for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan?

Small businesses can apply immediately through the SBA disaster assistance portal.

The EIDL has an application deadline of December 21, 2020. The grant is part of the EIDL application and can be requested when applying, with reports that businesses should expect to receive the grant within three business days.

While preparing an application for the EIDL loan, businesses have to fully evaluate their business needs and pay close attention to how they can build a strong application. Below are some things to keep in mind when gathering information.

Showcase your credit history positively.

This includes your time in business, credit score, financial reputation. Documents to have on hand are:

Complete copies, including all schedules, of the most recent Federal income tax returns for the applicant business; an explanation if not available
Schedule of Liabilities listing all fixed debts (SBA Form 2202)
Monthly Sales Figures (SBA Form 1368)
Personal Financial Statement (SBA Form 912) completed, signed, and dated by the applicant, each principal owning 20 percent or more of the applicant business, and each general partner or managing member

Provide evidence of your ability to invest funds and repay the loan.

Cash flow is an important factor for lenders when reviewing applications and so is your ability to pay back. This can also affect the amount you get approved for. Everything from previous debt to how and where you’ve invested funds in the past can heavily impact how much cash you have on hand to pay back the loan. A few tips to keep in mind:

Showcase successes in how you have invested capital into your company. Let lenders know that the funds you receive will bring back returns, which will ultimately allow you to pay back the loan within the allotted time frame.
Pull together documentation on your business’s payroll, mortgage, rent, and utility payments for the previous 12-month period to highlight your history.
Be sure to have your most recent IRS Form 941—Employer’s Quarterly Federal Income Tax Return.
Get a copy of your complete 2019 financials, including your business’s profit/loss and balance sheet.

For many small businesses, meeting the loan qualifications will not be difficult. Keep in mind this information is based on our current understanding of the program. You can learn more about this and other relief programs directly from the Small Business Administration website: SBA Coronavirus Relief Options. Changes can happen as more applications are being processed by the SBA and we highly encourage you to consult with your lawyers, CPAs, and Financial Advisors.

In the meantime, be sure to look into additional ways to immediately reduce costs and increase savings. If you have any questions on how our team can help you quickly save on credit card processing fees, reach out to Stax today. We will be happy to answer your questions and help see how we can best support your business.

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