We’re just getting our coworking space set up and we’re trying to figure out the best credit card gateway and processor to use. We’re using Nexudus as our operating platform so we need one that integrates directly with that.
Since we’ll be doing, mostly, higher value transactions – like $200+ – we want to keep the volume charge below 1%.
What gateways and processors does this community find most economical, efficient and user friendly? Plus, other than straight-up costs, what pitfalls should we look out for?
Credit card processing fees are pretty standard across every provider - 2.9% + 25-35 cents per transaction is about as good as you’re going to get unless you’re doing millions of dollars a month and can negotiate.
The only real options for keeping fees down are:
payment by check, which comes with the crappy side-effect of some % of your job becoming chasing and depositing and recording checks. You do not want to do this - trust me.
ACH payment processing, which I think Nexudus supports through a number of payment gateways. Stripe, for instance, charges a 0.8% fee and a max of $5 per transaction for ACH transfers.
BUT there are two big things to know about ACH: first, it requires that your members pay with a checking account, which many prefer not to, and also requires that they have their bank account/routing info collected as part of signup which is typically less convenient than a credit card. Second, ACH payments can take 7-10 days before they hit your bank account, which is MUCH slower than the typical 2 business day wait of credit card processors.
So, it’s possible! But comes with some non-trivial tradeoffs.
Credit card processing is a cost of doing business, and has significant upsides of speed, reliability, and ubiquity. I’d consider baking those costs into your membership fees rather than introducing friction to getting paid.
When I was operating my space, I used Merchant One for our credit card transactions. I’m not sure if they integrate with Nexudus or if the will be able to offer you the rate structure that you are looking for, but they did a good job for us. The rep that I worked with was a gentleman by the name of Joseph Saka. Don’t know if he is still there, but here is the contact info that I have for him.
Joseph Saka
Merchant One, Inc.
524 Arthur Godfrey Rd. | Third Floor | Miami Beach, FL 33140
Investing in one of the reliable, fast, & easy to use processors is worth the improvement in experience for your members, and yourself. If you are really sensitive to the fees you are incurring, you can consider bumping up your prices to cover them.