Many owners turn to merchant cash advances to afford the new technology they need to succeed in the small business marketplace. However, some owners are not ready to utilize advances in payment technology.
Contactless payments, such as those being popularized by Apple, require small businesses to invest in point-of-service technology that accepts near field communication. In today’s business world, where consumers often use their smartphones for everything from social media to shopping, being able to compete with other companies by offering this form of payment can be invaluable.
According to data compiled by Statista, the value of contactless payments in North America alone reached $37 billion in 2013. However, greater flexibility for consumers isn’t the only factor business owners need to consider when it comes to payment systems.
EMV shifts liability to merchants
Plenty of business owners remain who do not fully understand the new Europay, MasterCard and Visa (EMV) requirements and how they could impact their bottom lines.
EMV should be particularly important to small business owners, as new regulations coming into effect October 2015 mean merchants will be held liable for fraudulent card activity if they do not provide chip-and-pin card terminals for consumers to use. In short, while this used to be a matter for card issuers to clear up, small businesses will now be left holding the bag if they don’t protect themselves.
This could leave the door open to major financial stress, not to mention turn away consumers focused on greater security when making payments at businesses. While liability costs may be a drop in the bucket for large corporations, such expenses could seriously damage the financial security of a small enterprise.
Small business owners concerned about the price of implementing new technologies may want to see what types of equipment leases they can use to obtain the right tools without depleting their cash reserves.
