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3 Reasons Why Accountants and CPA Firms are Switching to Echeck Payments
Echeck payments have been around for a long time. However the adoption of this online payment method is rapidly growing among accountants. Impart to lower transaction costs, convenience, and quicker deposits.
Let’s take a deeper look.
Numbers speak louder than words.
Accepting echeck payments cost a fraction of credit card transactions. The average online credit card transaction cost merchants roughly 3% - 3.5%. Interchange rates, the fees imposed by the card brands such as Visa, Mastercard, Discover, AMEX, make up about 75% of payment processing costs. The other 25% is composed of acquiring banks and merchant processor fees.
In comparison, interchange rates are not applicable to echeck payments. The Automated Clearing House or ACH network in which echeck payments are transacted does not access interchange rates to transactions. The ACH network operates on a flat fee basis versus a percentage basis. As a result the fee structure for accepting echeck payments is a lot less. With this in mind, you may see 3rd party ACH payment processors tack on a small percentage. Still the overall cost of accepting echeck vs. credit card payments is considerably less.
Let’s take a look at the numbers. As mentioned the average online credit card transaction will cost you 3% - 3.5%. A $100 transaction will cost you $3.25 ( $100 x 3.25%)
$100 x .0325 = $3.25
Accepting echeck payments will cost .50 cents for the same transaction. This represents a 650% savings.
Convenience
Accountants love echeck payments because of ease of use. They are much easier to process and handle versus paper checks. With the technological advancement of payment gateways, more options are available. Online echeck payments can be captured using one of the following methods:
Electronic invoicing
Traditionally an accountant would mail an invoice to their client. In turn, the client would then prepare a check and mail it out. Now, this whole process can take minutes versus days from start to finish. An electronic invoice can be emailed in seconds in which payment can be made immediately.
Adding payments to website.
Like many other professional services, websites for accountants are designed more for informational purposes. As with many other professional services industries, accountants are migrating to website payment integrations.
Virtual terminal
A virtual terminal gives accountants the ability to accept payments over the phone. Bank information can is provided similarly to credit cards.
Recurring payments
Accountants use recurring payments for monthly fee’s that are billed on a regular basis. They no longer need to wait for payments in the mail and get paid on time.
Quicker Deposit Times
Lastly, echeck payment processing has gotten more attractive over the years because deposit times have gotten quicker. Thanks to improvements in technology, echecks can now be processed same day and deposited within 1 to 2 business days. Only a few years ago, it took 3- 5 business days to process and deposit echecks.
Easy Epayments gateway (online payment platform ) helps professional services companies including accountants to accept both echeck and credit card payments from one dashboard. We offer unrivaled features, quick processing times, and competitive prices.
See why our customers love us https://www.easyepayments.com/all-in-one-payments