Looking for recommendations on apps/software to send invoices to clients and allow for online payment. I'd prefer to stay away from PayPal as much as possible to avoid the fees. For those of you that accept credit cards, which service provider would you recommend?
Apps for Electronic Invoicing and Payments
- Thread starter ndbwhunter
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shooter
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Yes, PP has fees...but, the universal appeal of their service, operational flexibility, and great interface (PC and mobile) is worth it.
If there is something cheaper, it's probably not as good in the overall as PP is.
That's my 2 cents, anyway.
I use Paypal. All services will take a fee. I avoid the fee when possible by telling clients I prefer a check on site. I can deposit it on my phone and its free.
With the PayPal business account, can clients print the invoices for tax purposes. And is there a cost associated with the business account other than the fees?
No monthly fee. Just a transaction fee...around 3%. They get an email confirmation of payment that suffices as a receipt
Forgot to mention...if you process cards on site you have to buy their card reader...I think $175. Otherwise you can just use electronic invoicing via email
Dave Pitman
Well-Known Member
Another benefit of PP is that it is trusted by most people. There are other e-payment solutions popping up that don't charge a transaction fee if using debit cards or bank accounts. But, the client needs to open an account (free) and they (the clients) have likely never heard of the platform which raises red flags with some.
You can get a free card strip reader. A chip reader starts at $25. to accept payments in person.
Dave Pitman
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No fees other than transaction. You can send a link to an invoice that they can download as pdf. Or, you can download the pdf copy and attach it to an email and provide the link to pay online that way. The latter is what I do as I feel it is more professional. Some mail checks and other prefer to pay online.
Dave Pitman
Well-Known Member
That's interesting. They just sent me one. Haven't tried it yet. Does PP know it doesn't work yet send them out?
Edit: If you scroll down on that PP link I posted, they still show the strip reader option.
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Dave Pitman
Well-Known Member
I would add that here in Washington, there are still brick and mortar vendors that don't have chip readers and still use swipe if that matters.
Dont know. It was probably more like 2 yrs ago I got a notice from them stating I needed to get a chip reader by a certain date so I did. Dont think it was an industry wide thing but was a part of their updated security policies.
Also not sure if it affects all users and may be volume based. Certain times of year I could have 10k per month in transactions. I process half of my transactions on site and the chip reader is light years better than that free swiper. Half the time it wouldn't work and I had to enter the card manually.
Its the same here but whoever their bank is allows it. I like the chip readers...it harder for someone to dispute a transaction after the fact trying to get a freebee
Dave Pitman
Well-Known Member
Paypal makes it clear that the chip reader option is more secure and they hold the funds for a short time with the strip reader but they said nothing about not being able to use it.
I'll take your word for it on the benefits of the chip reader. I almost never have the customer with me on site anyway so in my case it doesn't matter. Many of my clients aren't even in the same state.
You could try it and you'll know. If it doesn't allow the swipe you can enter the card # manually through the app...but the fee is slightly higher. That feature exists for those that want to give you their CC number over the phone, which I sometimes find with elderly or electronically challenged types.
R.Perry
Well-Known Member
Obviously it depends who your dealing with, if you are dealing with a major company, most of the time you just need to wait for the check. As for individuals if you can't get a check at the time of service PP is a great way to go. In our home inspection business we demand payment at the time of service and prefer a check, no transaction fees. We charge 5% for individuals who don't pay at the time of service, and we advise them prior to the inspection that the fee will be applied. They don't get the report until the fee is paid.
I use Quick Books Online. First, my accountant wanted me on that system, because she's most familiar with it, and two, credit card processing is done by them through the invoices I create and email through my dashboard. There are fees, but in my local business community (your experience and mileage may vary), Paypal is not viewed very highly. My accountant finds it easier to do my taxes with the reports from Quick Books.
Dave Pitman
Well-Known Member
I quit giving Intuit money after I got rid of all my employees (another business). I still use an old version of QB for my business, but it predates versions that are tethered to the mother ship, which is best for me.
It's interesting to hear that PayPal is not well received in your area. Why is that do you think?
It's interesting to hear that PayPal is not well received in your area. Why is that do you think?
Here in the Washington DC region, it's considered unprofessional, that if someone uses Paypal, they are perceived as being hobbyists, too small to deal with and not serious about being a business owner. I think it's cultural. At any rate, my CPA has all of her clients using QB.
With our previous CPA they set up QB for us upon company creation (at a small err HUGE fee) and they liked the reports and RPS ( I think that's what they used) features so they could see our books quickly and easily if needed. But we changed firms and the new firm immediately suggested to get away from QB because it's a waste of money for this "type/size" of company. So we did and never looked back.
We invoice with PP if they need an electronic method of invoicing but 99% of mine pay by check and we have templates in Excel that we use for invoicing. Quick, Easy, FREE.
It's ironic that in the DC area PP is degraded as being "hobbyist" as I'm also part of a multiMillion $$ (another job not sUAS related) company and we still use PP for anything but POS invoicing. Of course as always YMMV but it works for us and has for many years now. Admittedly we have been looking at some more "integrated" options over the last few months so this may not be fact in the next year or so.
At the end of the day find the program/app that you're comfortable with, that meets your needs and budget, and that is stable and expandable. This way as your company grows (and it hopefully is) your system can grow with you and not hold you back.
We invoice with PP if they need an electronic method of invoicing but 99% of mine pay by check and we have templates in Excel that we use for invoicing. Quick, Easy, FREE.
It's ironic that in the DC area PP is degraded as being "hobbyist" as I'm also part of a multiMillion $$ (another job not sUAS related) company and we still use PP for anything but POS invoicing. Of course as always YMMV but it works for us and has for many years now. Admittedly we have been looking at some more "integrated" options over the last few months so this may not be fact in the next year or so.
At the end of the day find the program/app that you're comfortable with, that meets your needs and budget, and that is stable and expandable. This way as your company grows (and it hopefully is) your system can grow with you and not hold you back.
