5 ways small business retailers can deal with high EFTPOS fees

EFTPOS fees are a cost in retail since you pay your EFTPOS provider, often your bank, a fee for every transaction paid for by a card.

These EFTPOS fees tend to frustrate retailers, especially small business retailers. They eat into revenue, and they impact profitability. This is especially true for the cards that deliver a higher frequent flyer or similar points value to the shopper. Where the shopper benefits the retailer carries the cost.

While retailers can add a fee to any transaction that includes EFTPOS costs, to cover the costs for the business, in this small business retail advice from us today we share 5 ways small business retailers can deal with high EFTPOS fees. This is actionable advice regardless of the POS software you run. It’s based on years of retail experience and in the belief that the best success we can drive for ourselves in local small business retail is that built on a series of reliable small steps, rather than one big step.

Here are our 5 ways small business retailers can deal with high EFTPOS fees

• Price creep. Look at her you price items. Consider shopper psychology. Consider what people will pay for items. Consider your loyalty program and the value you give back to your shoppers. Often times, considering these factors, retailers can find some modest price increases they can achieve to bank margin that pays for EFTPOS.
• Grow the basket. Look at your shop and counter configuration. Ensure that you are doing everything possible to guide shoppers to add more to their basket than planned for that visit. Each time you help a shopper spend more than intended is margin dollars you are backing to pay for EFTPOS fees.
• Bring shoppers back more often. Run a limed based loyalty offer where benefits expire in a few weeks. Give them a reason to come back sooner, more often than they might otherwise come back.
• Buy better. Embrace settlement discounts where you can. never pass on a discount you receive to shoppers through lower prices. Use data collected and curated by your POS software to spend less on slower turning items and more on faster turning items. The faster the turn the more value you achieve.
• Review your roster. Next to occupancy cost is the cost of labour in local small business retail. Either trim the roster to reduce costs or reconfigure how labour is used to derive more value for the business.

In making these suggestions we are encouraging local small business retailers to be more active in business decisions, to take a broader view in an effort to reduce any pain felt because of EFTPOS fees.

Sure, it is easy to complain about the EFTPOS fees and look for a cheaper bank – and that may provide relief. More valuable longer term relief will come from better business management and this can be driven by deeper engagement with your POS software.

It is important that you understand the total cost of EFTPOS fees. Sometimes costs can be hidden. For example, it may be that you get a terminal for free and a promise that all fees are surcharged to shoppers, but that may have a business cost, turning off shoppers who do not like surcharged added at the point of sale.

Here at Tower Systems we make POS software for local small business retail, specialty retail. We back this with personal service designed to help retailers deal with the every day, like EFTPOS fees.