Advanced… Technologically, Not In Age
No one likes change. I get it.
You are running your business, and everything works - at least the way you are used to it “working”. Why make a change if you have a good workflow? Well, if you do, then you shouldn’t change. Plain and simple. And this comes from the guy who makes his profit from businesses changing their merchant service provider; so, you know it’s good advice.
If this blog post isn’t a ploy to get you to sign up with me, then what is it all about? It is a reminder for us all to re-evaluate what “working just fine” is when dealing with our technology.
I’ll be the first person to tell you that some things used to be made better in the “good old days”. I mean, cars from my great-grandparent’s generation are still on the road. However, vehicle technology and payment technology are NOT the same thing. In the same way that you wouldn’t want to get in a car crash in a vintage car, you do not want your card number to be put through an old payment technology. Safety and security are a big deal for both vehicles and card processing. That being considered, a vintage car will still get you from point A to point B; but, in the card processing industry, an old terminal cannot do a quarter of the things a new terminal or payment technology can do. The question now is this: “Is it worth the upgrade?”
What kind of upgrades are we talking about? a little useless feature just to encourage business owners to pay for a new terminal? a new shiny touchscreen that has no real additional features besides good marketing? No. We are talking about the kind of technology that saves you money and/or time (which, as the old adage says, is money).
Who here remembers the old Manual Imprinters that were the first generation of card terminals?
Yep, those old things. Back in the day, when a customer wanted to pay with a card, you had to get out your thermal imprinter slips, put their card under it, manually write in the rest of the slip, and do the “clunk - clunk” of the Imprinter all to make a single sale.
Then, at the end of the day, you had to take all your slips, drive to your bank before they closed, wait in line for a teller, wait to have them painstakingly input each individual transaction, then wait a week for the money to hit your bank account – all the while you are hoping the teller didn’t make a mistake and the customers actually had the money in their account (which wasn’t guaranteed).
Sounds fun, doesn’t it?
Did you know that when the technology came out for actual electronic card terminals that automatically batched and authorized the funds immediately (guaranteeing the business owners would get paid), many merchants didn’t want to change from their old Manual Imprinters because “it worked just fine”. Yes, they gladly continued using the Manual Imprinters even though many cards declined AFTER the service was rendered or product was sold – and the customer was long gone. Do you know how many merchants went from a Manual Imprinter to a Terminal? Eventually, all of them. Do you know how many of them went back to a Manual Imprinter? I don’t know of any; and they sure aren’t being used today.
Did you know that according to Sage, in 2020, an overwhelming 91% of professionals state that technology enables them to focus on clients or enhances overall productivity? Additionally, according to Wolters Kluwer, this year sees 90% of small firms and 94% of large firms leveraging technology to enhance productivity, staff engagement, and overall client experience. This shift toward technology is a strategic move. That’s right, getting new technology is more about your customers experience, marketing, and your productivity than it is about your experience. If something works fine for you, great! Many business owners think that if something works, then you shouldn’t change it. But Manual Imprinters still work just fine! I keep one in my office as décor. The real question should be this: is working “just fine” helping or hurting your business?
So I hope we can agree, just because a technology “works”, doesn’t mean we should continue to use it. Especially when the technology can add amazing amount of efficiency and savings to your business. I won’t go into all the details as there are so many business types with so many different needs, requirements, and types of operations, that I will just ask this: what could make your business more efficient and more cost effective? If you can think of it, we probably already provide it, or provide something of equal value. From simple devices that a child could operate to complex integrations with cloud based reporting and QuickBooks integration, from Bluetooth mobile readers for owner/operators to grocery store multi lane POS systems, from gift cards, QRG codes, and customer funding solutions to automated recurring billing and email or text invoicing, we can make your business efficient, and cost you almost nothing.