These days, customers expect to be able to pay with plastic, but as one business owner explains, providing an EFTPOS payment facility can also benefit businesses in a number of ways.
Peter Meyer has been designing and manufacturing blinds for almost 20 years, and before that he was in retail and interior design, always keeping up with customer expectations.
Consequently, as soon as credit cards became available, he accepted them—at first using the old click-clack machine and progressing to an EFTPOS facility once the technology was introduced.
His company, Blinds by Peter Meyer, supplies upmarket, quality blinds to interior designers, architects and high-end retailers around Australia and overseas. With as much as 50 percent of Meyer’s business done through credit card transactions, having an EFTPOS facility isn’t a want, it’s a need. "Our clients have the expectation of being able to pick up the phone to pay a bill," he says.
According to Meyer the paperless office isn’t far away with the company already sending quotes via email and customers mostly paying by either credit card or direct deposit. "People just don’t use cheques anymore, it’s just a thing of the past. We still generate paper invoices but it’ll probably happen that we won’t and it’ll be an emailed invoice.
"EFTPOS is just incredibly convenient and secure for both parties," he adds. "From our point of view, we get paid straight away, it’s good record keeping and it’s very good for cash flow."
Blinds by Peter Meyer has been a member of Gift and Homewares Australia (GHA) almost since the business started 20 years ago and has been taking advantage of its member benefits ever since—not the least of which the Commonwealth Bank’s discounted EFTPOS services. "We would save our membership fee 20 times over in a year," says Meyer. "GHA gives all sorts of advantages from legal help to accommodation to car rental, but it’s things like financial institution charges where it really comes to the fore."
{mospagebreak}
Meyer was already using a Commonwealth Bank EFTPOS solution when a special rate became available for GHA members to take up the bank’s EFTPOS LITE terminal at a reduced rate.
EFTPOS LITE is a terminal designed for smaller businesses that process fewer transactions and are currently using EFTPOS terminals with more features than they actually need or for those looking to upgrade to electronic processing.
EFTPOS LITE offers online authorisation, which means fewer trips to the bank and can accept all debit and credit cards, process mail and telephone orders, and businesses receive funds the next business day into their Commonwealth Bank settlement account.
Meyer took up the offer straight away, reducing his monthly charges and eliminating features on the facility he didn’t actually need such as a ‘cash out’ function. He was able to replace a 15-year-old terminal with something that was easier to use and does exactly what the business needs, without unnecessary add-ons.
"It’s a saving that as a small individual business, I probably couldn’t have got," he explains. Which is why Meyer believes being a member of GHA is so beneficial. "We’re a member of a number of associations now, but I’d say GHA is our most important. With the relationship between the Commonwealth Bank and GHA, it gives us much more clout than we’d have as an individual business."
When asked what he’d advise other business to do when considering an EFTPOS facility Meyer says, do it quickly. "It’s just an absolute must for every business. Just imagine when you speak to a business these days and they haven’t got an email address—what does that tell you about the business? Well it’s the same thing with this. You talk to somebody who doesn’t have an EFTPOS facility and you kind of think they’re in the dark ages."
Members of Gift and Homewares Australia can take advantage of ultra low rates on EFTPOS services. EFTPOS LITE is available at $16.50 per month. For more information phone the Commonwealth Bank on 1800 730 554
