VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Jen Gosnell]

Hi you guys,

I've been mining some of the old threads for info on payment options so that I can have at least one set up other than check. I have come up with a few additional questions regarding PayPal and/or Squareup, which seem to be the two most popular options.

1. Anyone use Paypal invoicing templates? Or integrate Paypal invoicing from Quicken? Does that work well?

2. Do you add the ~3% fee to your invoice as a line item? Bundle it in with something else? If you do expose the fee to the customer, what do you call it? I know some folks simply treat it as a cost of doing business (which of course must be reflected in the level at which you set your fees in the first place - probably a cleaner approach, but I'm looking for what works well for folks).

3. Is Paypal the only decent non-wire solution for international payments? I noticed Squareup is spotty or not capable when it comes to international credit card payments.

4. In a not-too-old thread I noticed Jeff Kafer comment that Squareup is "easier for customer" - really? Why, just because they can simply read you a CC# over the phone and not have to maintain a paypal acct, or some other reasons?

I think that's it. Have I missed any other obvious options? I thought I would also see if/how my credit union offers competitive rates for credit card processing, but if that's impractical, it's seemed to me that PayPal and Squareup were the ones to choose from.

Thanks!
Jen
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[Yonie]

Jen, Paypal is a good option since most people either know about it or already have an account. The services they offer are reliable and I have never been snubbed (important note: I have only paid through Paypal, never received payment).

Is the 3% charge a fee they take for handling business transactions? In that case I reckon it could be filed as an administration/handling fee. You could always label it as "Paypal fee".

For international payments, it is reliable and universal. Safer than many alternatives, for sure. I have heard of few clients who aren't using it or are not, at least, familiar with it.

Am only filling in my personal experience here. Am positive that Paypal has its downsides as well.

*Edit* Bottom line is; it's bloody more streamlined than SWIFT and IBAN.

[Jeffrey Kafer]

[Jen Gosnell]

Yonie, thanks for the international perspective on PayPal.

Jeff, thanks - your points 1-3 I had considered and tend to agree with, but I had no idea about #4. What a great pain in the @$$ that would otherwise be to work around, or impossible even, without an alternative option.

Nothing to lose by using both PayPal and Square, it seems - either it's a matter of preference, or one may compensate for the other's shortcomings.
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Skype: jen.gosnell
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[todd ellis]

i say offer options - paypal, google checkout, squared up - whatever. i will say that some people do not like paypal (for whatever personal reason) and taking a CC# over the phone with squared up is easy & fast - they get a receipt emailed (or SMS) to them instantly. ALSO - there are a FEW countries paypal does not service - serbia, for example. if i had squared up at the time i was dealing with those (very nice) folks the transaction would have been much quicker.
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who's/on/1st?

[Bish]

My invoice of choice is Freshbooks, but most of my customers seem to prefer a Paypal invoice (some don't care and will just raise a check against an on-line invoice... they just want a paper trail). As far as the charges are concerned, I treat this as the cost of doing business. To me, adding the fees seems as irritating as someone wanting to charge me extra for paying with a credit card. I figure this cost into my overall plan rather than make that $300 invoice $309.

Cheers
Peter
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

[todd ellis]

oh - and i also have a couple of clients who only accept F invoices - no html - so keep that in mind too. you never know what gremlins lurk out there until you change something!
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"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?

[Ed Gambill]

I am developing a new business, On Hold Logic it’s an Information On Hold service company. To insure that my clients will have no problems with BMI regarding performance of the music, I will be paying for the performance rights directly to BMI. It’s a small amount and actually will save them money. I will just factor in the cost to keep it simple.
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www.SaVoa.org No. 07000 Member AES

[Lee Gordon]

Bish +1

Whenever someone requests a PayPal invoice, that's what they get. Some clients get theirs by good old fashioned US Mail, and for others I have sent invoices in the form of JPGs (considerably smaller file size than F) and no noe of those has yet asked for the F instead.
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Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice

[Bruce]

Yes, some countries don't allow PayPal payments. In those cases they usually use a wire transfer. My bank charges $12 to handle those so if the payment is $400 and up then it's cheaper than PayPal.

I usually send PayPal invoices from their website so all the linkage they need is right there. The client does not have to belong to pay by credit card. There's a teeny tiny link on the invoice that says something like "Not a member?" and if you follow that anyone with a major card can send you money.

Most companies and working individuals just absorb the fees (about 3%) as a cost of doing business. You don't charge for electricity or Internet service fees even though they're part of every job.

B
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VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

[Kristin Lennox]

A question for frequent Paypal users:

If you do a job for $300, and they Paypal you $300, but you really only get $291... as you track your income (if you track your income), do you note that you earned $300 or $291...?

90% of my jobs are paid through old-fashioned checks in the mail, but for the occasional Paypal payment that I receive, I'm wondering how best to notate it.
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[bobsouer]

Kristin,

I note that I received $300 (to use your illustration) and then in the deposit note the PayPal fees (in my case I use Bank Service Charges) as an extra item in the reconciliation of the deposit.
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Be well,
Bob Souer (just think of lemons)
The second nicest guy in voiceover.
+1-724-613-2749
Source Connect, phone patch, pony express

[Jeffrey Kafer]

I note the $300 as paid in full against the invoice. Then at the end of the month, I combine all paypal fees into a "bank charge" cost. Similar to what Bob does, but I don't do it for every transaction, I lump them all together as a monthly expense.
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Jeff
http://JeffreyKafer.com
Voice-overload Web comic: http://voice-overload.com

[bobsouer]

I'll note that the reason I do it transaction by transaction is because using Quickbooks Online, I electronically reconcile my PayPal account (as well as my business checking and savings accounts) and the reconciliations won't balance correctly if I don't deal with each individual transaction. (The net amount deposited into PayPal is what comes through in the electronic reconciliations, not the gross amount.)
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Be well,
Bob Souer (just think of lemons)
The second nicest guy in voiceover.
+1-724-613-2749
Source Connect, phone patch, pony express

[melissa eX]

Don't forget, PayPal and other fees are a business tax write-off.