Best Credit Card Processing Options for B2Bs

B2Bs are made to help other businesses thrive. In this article, we take a look at how we can help the B2B company achieve greater success by eliminating unnecessary card processing fees in a number of different situations while offering a modern suite of payment options like e-invoicing for cards and eliminating cash handling. For more information, you can book a free consultation with a payments expert.

B2B Companies

B2B is a commonly used term that refers to the business-to-business sales model. A B2B company sells products and services to other companies, whether it’s office supplies or a fancy new software. Some examples of B2Bs range from Salesforce to WeWork to Dunder Mifflin Paper Company.

The way a B2B company makes sales looks a little different from the ways of a B2C (business-to-consumer) company. Unlike B2Cs, B2Bs must not only appeal to the individual in charge of choosing the product, but they also must benefit the entire company. B2Bs can create revenue from selling subscription-based services like LinkedIn, one-time software purchases like Adobe Creative Suite, or wholesale products like pens and printer paper. With so much variation in the B2B model, it’s important to see how each type of company can save money in something as simple as credit card processing fees. 

Software

In order to improve your payment options, you should take a look at the software you’re using to make a sale. Let’s see the different types of payment software a B2B can use:

1. If you own your point of sale, business management, or payment software.

Not only is this the most affordable option, but it’s also a potentially lucrative way to process payments. In this position, B2B owners have two options: The first option is a direct integration with a provider or gateway. As opposed to a direct integration with one provider, a gateway would allow you to work with multiple providers, and is the virtual equivalent to a physical point-of-sale terminal located in most retail stores. An example of this is Panera Bread, who owns its own self check-out ordering systems. For more information on payment gateways, check out our article here. 

The second option is the most popular solution, and the one we tend to suggest–payment facilitation. Payment facilitation gives your software a more square-like experience to streamline payment processing. It essentially turns your software into a home base for all payments. For example, when you need a ride somewhere, you use Uber’s application to find a nearby driver, call him to your location, and pay him at the conclusion of the ride. Because Uber facilitates the payment in this scenario, it is considered a payment facilitator.

2. If you license software to run your business

This option applies to most B2B companies. If you license software from a vendor, be sure to ask about their payment integrations and supporting gateways to get a more holistic picture of every pricing option.

3. If you’re operating without payment software

This means your business needs either a virtual terminal or physical terminal. You can contact almost any provider to receive these terminals.

Hardware

There are thousands of payment hardware options including a wide range of point-of-sale systems and credit card machines. As a B2B owner, you get to decide which is best for your unique offering. We have our own recommendations for wireless credit card readers and consultants who can help you choose, too. 

Rates

While negotiating payment processing rates for your B2B business, it is crucial to ensure that you are paying the lowest interchange rates possible. It is a common myth that business credit cards are expensive to process - any merchant that accepts business cards can achieve lower interchange rates, given that they take the right measures. To achieve these lower rates, you must qualify for Level II or III Interchange. Qualifying for these higher levels of interchange is determined by the amount of information provided with each transaction; the higher the level the greater the discount, but also the more information that is required.  Examples of information needed to qualify for the higher interchange levels include things such as tax amount, item description and quantity, and customer code. 

Let’s pull all of these concepts together with an example. If you created a software that you want to sell to a business, you should select the payment facilitation method with fixed-rate pricing. It would be in your best interest to sell the software for the same price per company and eventually turn a profit after surpassing the costs of creating the software.

Take a look at the process through the perspective of a B2B

Let’s break this process down from the perspective of a B2B company. It’s easy to continue using the same software and hardware without examining your credit card processing fees. But you could be losing out on thousands of dollars that ultimately go to banks and credit card companies if you don’t take a second look, which is free and one phone call away with SwipeSum.

One of the most popular types of B2B companies are wholesale office supply companies, who make the majority of their revenue by sending bulk amounts of a product for large sums of money. Even 1.5-2% of these sales could add up to hundreds of dollars in lost processing fees with each order. Here at SwipeSum, we hand you your best options for saving money and allow you to get to the real work: providing your customers with your products. 

For more information on how to go about switching your payment processor, check out our recent article here.