Posts Tagged ‘iphone’

Advance Your Merchant Services for Your Small Business with Mobile Credit Card Payment

The RAZR was once the biggest advancement in mobile phones in the U.S. Consumers went nuts to get the latest technological advancement. Now the RAZR is a thing of the past. If someone is seen with one of them they are often seen as outdated.

The same may be said one day for classic credit card processing terminals. You know the ones that are still connected with a phone line to a modem. Even those bulky, slow wireless credit card processing terminals are becoming a thing of the past.  Now there are companies that are developing the next age of credit card processing machines.  You may have even seen one if you have been in at an Apple Store lately!

With technological advancements such as, Pay Anywhere, it is possible to accept credit cards anywhere on your smartphone. This advancement is crucial for those who take their business on the go. Imagine a customer paying for a delivery order through an iPhone credit card processing terminal. Don’t have an iPhone? That’s fine you can turn your iPad, Blackberry, or Android into a credit card processing terminal as well. Not only is this tech savvy, it is also green! Seconds after the card is swiped, a receipt is text messaged and/or e-mailed to the customer. The best part is the fees associated with many monthly credit card processing contracts are more manageable that traditional card processing machines.

No Scary Fees

A lot of small businesses, and businesses that are constantly on the go fear that the fees of processing credit cards will out weight the extra business they bring in. It can be scary for a small business owner to commit to a lengthy contract that requires a monthly rental fee, monthly minimum fee, and the most dreaded cancellation or early termination fees. It is especially hard to compute if it will be worth it for a business to begin accepting credit cards, since there is no way to accurately predict the number of credit card sales that they will receive once they begin accepting them.

Pricing

Providers like Pay Anywhere makes accepting credit cards less scary for any business owner looking to expand their payment options. With almost none of the previously mentioned fees, a business owner has nothing to fear in trying it out. Even a freelance artist who would only use a credit card terminal a couple times a month could maybe benefit here too from this technology. No longer will you watch a sale walk away because the cost exceeded the cash in hand that the potential customer had. You may be able to get some providers to even eat the cost of the credit card reader as the provider gives that to their clients for free. At other places these could exceed the cost of 150 dollars. Try to find a provider that has no fees associated with the application process.

Some Benefits

This mobile processing technology, it is takes off, will benefit anyone whose business has them constantly traveling from sale to sale. The fear of a check bouncing for services rendered will be eliminated as you can have that customer simply swipe and sign with their debit card instead. General contractors will attract more job prospects by sampling accepting credit cards. Don’t be the one with the RAZR in 2011, be the one who had the iPhone in 2007!

We would love to hear about your experiences with credit card processing over a smartphone. Tell us about them please in the comments below.

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Posts Tagged ‘iphone’

So Maybe I was Wrong…Over 7 Million iPads Sold in the 4th Quarter of 2010

Just over 9 months ago on this very blog, I proclaimed that the “iPad is iCrap” and wondered aloud why anyone would be so dumb as to purchase one of these new fangled tablet computers.  Well, while I still think that, for me, the iPad is a non-essential gadget…I guess 7,330,000 other people in the 4th quarter of 2010 disagreed with me because all of them bought one! 

Yes, the iPad IS officially another success story for Apple, and yes it DID probably revolutionize the PC market once again for Apple, and oh yea it IS probably the hottest new gadget in the tech industry since the iPhone and iPad.  All of these things may be true but I am happy to say that not a day goes by that I wish I had one!

Another interesting tidbit that I wanted to pass along today that made me realize how massive the Interweb (my fancy name for the Internet) really is: Did you know that 70% of Facebook’s user base reside outside of the United States!?!?  Maybe this is just me being naive or maybe it is because I am one of the last Americans to NOT have a Facebook account, but this really shocked me…I mean to the point where I actually read this sentence again to make sure I didn’t read it wrong.  For some reason I always assumed that Facebook was a mostly America-centric social application but obviously I was wrong again there too!

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Posts Tagged ‘iphone’

How Did My Credit Card Go To Europe Before I Could?

A few weeks ago, I’m standing in line at Chipotle, ready to pay.  The cashier runs my card several times, each indicating a decline.  It’s getting embarrassing because not only am I holding up the line, but my friends now think I can’t afford a $6 burrito. 

In a twist of fate, I actually had cash on hand, so I paid and returned to my seat in shame.  Let me reassure everyone that I can afford a $6 burrito…in fact I can afford up to seven $6 burritos (hopefully I’ve laid that terrible rumor to rest).  The lunch banter steers away from me (which is always painful), so I’m sitting there pretending to listen while I try to remember if I paid my credit card bill.  I secretly used my iPhone and logged into my credit card site.  Everything looks good.  What the hell is going on?!

I then spend the entire Saturday working my way through several unhelpful menus and operators — and I finally reach someone from the fraud department.  I must answer a battery of questions to prove I’m truly Dojo Mike.  Then the gentlemen says “let me run through a few recent transactions”

Me: Ok

Credit Card:  Did you recently purchase $40 at [online company withheld]

Me: Yep

Credit Card:  How about $7,000 in Milan?

Me: Italy?

CC: Yes.

Me: Uh no.

Appears that I had made an online purchase that wasn’t secure.  Now a couple copies of my credit card were on an extended European vacation — spending a lot of time (and money) in Italy.  I had to cancel the card and put fraud alerts on my credit report for all three credit bureaus.  I’m also “encouraged” by the credit card company to monitor my bank accounts and online investments. 

I know online shopping is very convenient, but when security comes into question, the ill-prepared businesses can cause their shoppers quite a few headaches (and liabilities).  Clearly this is related to KikScore (as all online sites should use it to help prevent similar issues for their customers), but this truly did happen to me — and I’ll never shop at that online store again.  I’m also jealous that my credit card was able to enjoy Italy before me.

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Posts Tagged ‘iphone’

The iPad is iCrap

Let me just start by saying that I fully admit that I am a “gadget guy”.  I love having the latest gadget that can make my life easier and/or more efficient.  Let me also start by saying that I think that Apple is a great company that has made some innovations over the last decade that have single-handedly advanced technology and changed the way people live their lives.

Let me continue by saying that I believe that the newly released iPad from Apple will not be nearly as successful as the iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch, or even the iMac.  There is no place in my life for the iPad…believe me, I looked…I just do not have a need for a device of this size at this price with it’s current capabilities.  Everything that I can think of that I might want to do on the iPad I already do on either my smart phone or my laptop.  I would also argue that my smart phone or my laptop are more appropriately equipped to do those things as well.

If I wanted to send an email while I was on the train I would go straight to my smart phone…it is more compact and can connect to the Internet through a mobile hot spot or a cellular connection.  Why would I want an iPad to do this?  Not only does it only connect to the Internet through a wi-fi signal (unless you add a data plan from AT&T for a monthly cost) that I may not be able to get on the train, but it is also the size of a text book so I can’t hold it in my pocket.

If I wanted to work in Microsoft Excel I would use my laptop because the screen is larger and I can easily edit the spreadsheets using a full size keyboard and the processing power of the latest laptop chip set.  Why would I want an iPad to do this?  The screen is smaller so I would have to scroll all over to find things, I have to type out letters using a smaller touch screen keyboard, and the processing power isn’t that of my laptop.

Sorry Apple, I really tried but I just can’t legitimize throwing down $500 (and up) for the iPad just so I can read an eBook in color, assuming that I would even rather do this on the iPad than on the Kindle from Amazon that also already has received rave reviews, is $240 cheaper than the iPad, and is already readily used and supported in the eBook industry.  I hope all of you Apple supporters out there don’t hate me for saying these things…remember, Apple has had other minor failings in the last decade, the Apple TV player (iTV must have been taken) from a few years back comes to mind, so it isn’t unheard of.

Again, this is just one person’s opinion, let me know if you think I am wrong!

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Posts Tagged ‘iphone’

My Favorite iPhone Apps: Business Related (generally)

I won’t get into the Smart Phone wars…Google vs. Sprint vs. Apple.  I own an iPhone.  The phone aspect is truly horrible…unless you enjoy the excitement of wondering whether you’ll get through an entire conversation without have the call drop on you.  But the Apps on the iPhone are great.  As I was on a business trip, I was noticing how often I used certain Apps to get through the day. 

There are plenty of other reviews of Apps for business uses.  A good one is the one done by Inc. — they list out 10 very good business Apps, inlcuding Jott (which transcribes your notes that you verbally take).  Thought there are other lists, that shouldn’t stop me from sharing.  And as you’ll see, mine include some fun ones (as all business and now play make Jack…wealthy, but really no fun).  Here we go.  My favorite (mostly business related) Apps:

1.  WSJ/CNBC — This is a bit of a cop-out…having a tie on the first choice.  But there is a reason.  The Wall Street Journal is a great App, but you have to be a subscriber to access it.  So if you don’t subscribe, CNBC’s App is a great alternative.  Of course, they both keep you up on the latest business news.

2.  WordPress:  A great App for mobile blogging.  I don’t mobile blog as much as I should, but I’ve done it a few times on this App and it is really slick.

3.  Touchlytics:  This App lets you track your site traffic/visits…just ties into your Google analytics account.  They have a good lite version of this App.

4.  iVideoCamera:  I was going to buy a iPhone 3GS — mainly for the video capability.  But then the new iPhone comes out later this year…what to do?  I found this App and for $.99, I have video capability and can instantly share it on our blog, YouTube and Twitter.

5.  AroundMe:  I have the Chipotle, Starbucks, and Target Apps, but if you need to find other stores (it’s hard to imagine that you would need to) you can find it easily on AroundMe.  You can also find a Chipotle on AroundMe.

6.  RingCentral:  Once you have a RingCentral account, you can manage your calls and call out from your RingCentral 800 number. 

7.  TweetDeck:  There are a lot of Twitter Apps, but this one, in my opinion, is the best.

8.  TextsFromLastNight:  Not a lot of business function, but it makes any meeting very tolerable.

Send us your favorite and we’ll reconsider this list.

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Posts Tagged ‘iphone’

Small Biz Thankful List

In honor of the day, we are doing our KikScore Small Business Thankful List.  These companies, tools and sites have been helpful for us or other start-up businesses we work with.  Clearly this isn’t an exhaustive list (and feel free to add your own in the comments).  So, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, we here at KikScore are thankful for:

1.  MyBusinessAssistant.com — helping out small businesses manage their, well, their business — via their virtual assistant service

2.  Shustir.com — creating a unique online marketplace and community for new and small businesses.

3.  Design2Print — did a great job on our marketing gear.

4.  Freeconference.com — Free and Conference, need I say more.

5.  WordPress — allowing small business to create an inexpensive way to spread the word.

6.  Twitter/Facebook — I’ll start talking about it soon enough, but social media has been wonderful for KikScore and Small Business in general.

7.  YouTube — allowing Small Biz to create and distribute their own commercials without buying a slew of server space.

8.  Google — providing research resources that 20 years ago would have cost thousands of dollars.

9.  iPhone — providing Small Biz a reasonable excuse for dropping calls (and it’s a pretty handy tool).

10.  oDesk — providing some relief to our development team, with providing a marketplace for Tech contractors.

11.  Minnesota Vikings — because Small Businesses love a winner (okay, i’m throwing that in there to see if anyone is actually reading this).

12.  MicroSoft BizSpark — providing KikScore and a lot of startups, a lot of free software (we really like groove…check it out)

Here’s hoping you’re having a great holiday…we’re most thankful for our readers and customers.

Team KikScore

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