How to choose the right card machine for business growth

With so many options available, choosing the right card machine for business growth can be both confusing and time consuming. It’s important that you choose the right card machine for business growth, to ensure you maximise sales opportunities and increase profit.

Our quick guide will help you to understand the three main types of card machine for business and determine which is right for your company and your customers.

The first thing to consider is:

• What do you sell?
• Do you sell from one fixed location, a number of locations, or out and about?
• How do you want people to pay you? Face to face or over the telephone?

Answering these questions will help you to determine the most important functions of a card machine for your business needs. Find out which type of card machine suits your business best below:

Countertop Card Machines

Countertop card machines operate from a fixed location such as a shop counter or reception desk, making them the perfect card machine for business owners who take payments in one location.

They can operate reliably via dial-up (using your phone line) or your existing internet connection. They’re easy to use with a small footprint which fits neatly onto most countertops, and are typically used by cafes, high street shops, convenience stores, newsagents, hotels, florists and restaurants.

To find out if a countertop card machine is right for your business, click here.

Mobile Card Machines

A mobile terminal is the perfect card machine for business owners who need to take payments on the go. Mobile card machines have a SIM card like a mobile phone and use GPRS technology to process payments.

They can be taken out and about, making them the ideal card machine for businesses such as delivery services, market traders, photographers, takeaways and builders/plumbers/electricians.

You will need a phone signal to use a mobile card machine, however many mobile card machines now come equipped with a roaming SIM card. This ensures that the machine connects to the strongest available network, to process payments quickly.

To find out if a mobile card machine is right for your business, click here.

Portable Card Machines

Sometimes, it’s more convenient to take your card machine to the customer, rather than asking them to move to a till. Similarly, some businesses have multiple points of sale around their premises, allowing customers to pay anywhere.

A portable terminal is the ideal card machine for businesses who operate in this way, making it a popular choice for restaurants, cafés, hotels and the beauty industry.

Portable card machines operate within a certain radius of their base unit, which connects to your phone line or internet connection just like a countertop card machine. The terminals use Wi-Fi technology to process payments, and can hold their charge for hundreds of transactions.

To find out if a portable card machine is right for your business, click here.

If you’ve found the perfect card machine for your business needs, it’s important that you find a reputable company to provide it. At Handepay, we’re dedicated to helping independent businesses grow by providing cost-effective card machines.

All of our card machines are certified to the latest industry standards, and come equipped with contactless functionality. This allows you to securely accept payments, whilst opening up your payment options by accepting contactless cards and payments from mobile wallets.

To find out how a Handepay card machine for business could help you grow your company, get in touch with one of our friendly advisors!