Today a Cash-Based Business is Still the Preferred Method of Payment by Business Owners

Believe it or not, your business and your customers both benefit when you work with paper money. Plastic requires more bookkeeping, shop owners must wait a few days to get their money, and the processing fees reduce profitability margins.

Paper money is actually more secure. Of course, you can lose it, but it cannot get hacked like a credit card can. Customers are vulnerable to credit card system crashes  which can be followed by a loss of sales.

Did you know…

  • 40% of in-person payments are made with physical cash
  • $2.36 trillion is what U.S. consumers spend in cash annually
  • 50% of transactions under $10 take place in cash
  • 47% of cash transactions are made from $25,000/year households
  • $59 is the average cash on hand across all age brackets

Money Saved with Cash-Based Business

Running a cash-based business also reduces credit card fees that can be as high as 4% of the total transaction. That adds up to tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars every year.

While the convenience of swiping a card may be attractive to a customer, the merchant is the one who will have to eat the fees or pass them onto the consumer.

A cash-based business only has a few recurring costs, which may include deposit fees, however, business owners are able to mitigate these based on the lending relationship they have with their financial institution.

Your customers also benefit when your business is cash friendly. Consumers without traditional bank accounts can buy your goods and services. Would it surprise you to know that approximately 1 in 10 adults are ‘underbanked’, which means that they do not have a bank account, nor any means of paying for purchases electronically. This is a huge, cash-only demographic which cannot patronize a cashless business.

If your business is not in a highly affluent area, you might reconsider going cashless. Even companies that are located in the so-called “upper middle class” neighborhoods still attract customers from all walks of life—including those who don’t have a bank account.

While cash-only businesses still run the risk of unknowingly accepting counterfeit money, that risk can be mitigated by using a smart safe that’s equipped with counterfeit detection technology. These types of safes are far more accurate in detecting phony money than a counterfeit detection pen.

Accounting Made Easier

It’s much easier to manage the books for a cash-based business than one that accepts multiple forms of online payments. Credit cards, electronic wallets, and even Bitcoin present more accounting challenges.

A cash-based business eliminates dealing with disputed credit card charges. Just one substantial financial loss can take weeks to resolve and will negate any benefits received from accepting online payments or electronic wallets.

Save More Time

Another benefit of a cash-based business is that the funds are available the day after they’re deposited into the safe under the counter or in the back room. A smart safe, such as American Security’s CashWizard Smart Safe can help save even more time by streamlining the cash management processes which are highly prone to human error.

The time it takes for manual counts is significantly reduced as a cloud-based safe not only keeps track of daily cash volumes, but also provides comprehensive reports and analytics. Smart safes offer valuable insights that will help owners make savvy business decisions.

Choose American Security for Smart Cash-Based Businesses

Although the digital age of credit cards and online payments is all over the map, cash is still king. With a smart safe in your cash-based business, you will save time, money, as well as enjoy the peace of mind that your hard-earned money is safely stored in a highly secure safe. Find out more about American Security  CashWizard smart safes  for your business.