A cash discount program is a great way to attract further custom and gain repeat sales.
For those of you who don’t already know, a cash discount program is basically a way of offering discounts on products for people who pay in full or make a purchase within a certain time frame. This can be anything from 7 days to 30 days depending on which company you choose.
There are many different companies out there offering these programs, but they don’t all offer the same benefits. Some will offer you more than others, so it’s important that you do your research before choosing one.
That’s where articles like this one come in. First, we’re going to cover what to look for in a cash discount program before giving you a quick run through of some of the best cash discount programs out there. This will help you decide which might be best for your business.
Please feel free to scroll ahead to any section that jumps out at you. Here goes!
Best Cash Discount Programs: What You Need To Consider?
The Best Time Frame For Your Business
The first thing you need to consider when looking into a cash discount program is how long you want to offer them. Most businesses offer them for between 1 week and 3 months.
However, if you’re starting up, then you’ll probably only have a few weeks to get customers signed up with you. So, if you’re new, then it makes sense to offer longer periods.
However, if you’ve been around for a while, then you may find that you lose a lot of potential customers by offering too long of a period.
That’s why most businesses offer their cash discount programs for 2-3 months. It gives you enough time to build up a good customer base without losing too many customers.
How Much Do They Offer?
Next, you should think about how much money you’d like your customers to save. If you’re planning on offering a large amount of money off, then you’ll definitely need to start small.
Otherwise, you could end up losing a lot of money.
If you’re just getting started, then you can always increase the amount later. Just remember that you don’t want to go overboard because you need to attract those customers to make repeat sales.
Which Payment Methods Are Available?
This is another big factor to take into account. If you only accept credit cards, then you won’t be able to offer a cash discount program.
However, if you also accept debit card payments, then you’ll be able to offer both options.
Does The Company Charge Any Fees?
Another issue that you need to think about is whether, or not, the company charges fees.
There are lots of cash discount program companies out there that charge monthly subscription fees. These can range anywhere from $5-$50 per month.
It’s worth considering whether, or not, you want to pay for something that isn’t providing you with any real value.
The Best Cash Discount Programs On The Market
Topcashback
Cash back is an easy way of attracting new customers. All you need to do is sign up to Topcashback and link your bank accounts to the site.
Then, whenever someone buys something online using your affiliate links, you’ll earn a percentage of the total payment.
You can choose to receive all your earnings via PayPal or direct deposit into your bank account.
National Processing
National Processing offers a great cash back program. They give 5% cash back on everything that’s bought. Plus, they offer a low flat rate for processing transactions.
They also offer a no hassle returns policy, so you don’t have to worry about anything going wrong.
Payment Gateway
Payment gateway is one of the biggest names in the industry. They allow you to set up your own merchant account, which means that you can process your own credit card transactions.
They also offer a free trial for anyone who wants to see what it’s like working with them.
The downside is that they tend to charge higher rates than other providers. But, if you’re comfortable managing your own merchant account, then this is the service for you.
PaymentCloud
Paymentcloud is another popular provider. They offer a similar service to National Processing. You get 5% cash back on every transaction that you process.
However, you don’t need to open a merchant account. Instead, you use their system to process your own credit card payments.
There are some downsides, though. For example, you can’t use PayPal as a method of payment. And, you also need to keep track of each individual order. This can become quite time-consuming.
Shift Processing
Shift Processing is another option. It’s very similar to National Processing. In fact, you can even use the same software.
But, instead of paying a fixed fee, Shift Processing will charge you based on how many transactions you process. So, the more money you make, the cheaper it gets.
This makes it a good choice if you’re looking for a flexible solution.
Host Merchant Services
If you’d prefer to work directly with a company, then Host Merchant Services might be right for you.
They provide a simple interface where you can manage your own merchant account.
Plus, they offer a 30-day free trial period. After that, you only pay a small annual fee.
With Host Merchant Services, you can accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover cards.
Plus, you can take advantage of their fraud protection services.
Wrap Up
So, I believe we’ve given you some real food for thought here. We’ve given you the highlights of 6 of the best cash discount programs out there, their fee structure, and what they have to offer.
And if you use that together with our guide on what to consider when choosing one, you’ll soon have the perfect cash discount program for your business.
You may wish to try out the ones with a free trial period in the first instance, so you can assess the customer take up of the program, to judge whether it’s worth continuing with.
Paul Martinez is the founder of EcomSidekick.com. He is an expert in the areas of finance, real estate, eCommerce, traffic and conversion.
Join him on EcomSidekick.com to learn how to improve your financial life and excel in these areas. Before starting this media site, Paul built from scratch and managed two multi-million dollar companies. One in the real estate sector and one in the eCommerce sector.