Author: Jena H. Casbon, author of The Guide to Private Patients and The Guide to Creating a Web Presence for Your Private Practice
1. Cash How to Get Started:
Pro's
Con's
Why I Use Cash "I only accept cash! I had problems with checks bouncing in the past and then trying to collect payment from clients, even with their signature on 1 of my forms from the start of therapy. I don't accept credit cards/paypal, etc.--too expensive!" ------------------------------------------- Francine Pickus Babylon NY 2. Checks How to Get Started:
Pro's
Con's
Fees: No fee; unless you have a monthly checking account fee from your bank My Experience with Checks: Judith S. Harper MA CCC SLP • All of my clients pay by check or cash. I do have an account set up for PayPal, but none of my clients have asked to pay by credit card. 3. PayPal www.PayPal.com How to Get Started
Pro's
Con's
Fees:
Why I Use PayPal Lisa Scott, owner, Accentuate • I have used Paypal for a couple of years now and find it easy and convenient to use. Since I also work with foreign clients on accent reduction, their automatic money conversion is a great feature for me, and the invoicing is very easy to use. I also have a Paypal debit card and payments are credited to my account and available for use immediately. The only delays I've ever experienced were when a couple of clients in other countries had a delay in getting their credit card approved for use through Paypal. www.losemyaccent.com 4. Square www.SquareUp.com How to Get Started
Pro's
Con's
Fees: 2.75% for all credit cards Why I Use Square: Melinda B. Croft, Accent On Speech, Corvallis, Oregon http://www.accentonspeech.us/ "I use Square for credit card payments, it is a little reader that attaches to your iPad, iPhone, or Android smartphone. You swipe, charge, and they sign on the screen with their finger! Then a receipt gets sent to their phone or email. No membership or sign up fees, just 2.75% rate is charged for each transaction. www.squareup.com 5. Quickbookshttp://payments.intuit.com/products/quickbooks-credit-card-processing-services.jsp How to Get Started
Pro's:
Con's:
Fees:
Why I Use Quickbooks Jordan Sadler, MS, CCC-SLP • I use the Merchant Services offered through QuickBooks. The fees are comparable to Square but I can do it from anywhere - so if I'm at home at night I can look at my staff's attendance form online and go ahead and process all the credit cards for the day. I also love it because I can do it from within my invoices - click Receive Payment and the credit card option and then it uses the stored credit card info in the system. I just add the CVV and it's processed *and* immediately applied to the invoice so that I can email that out marked Paid. It's worth fees for me to have this all happen so smoothly and the money hits my bank in a day or two. I was hugely tempted by Square, I've seen it in use and it's a terrific system, but we see so many clients in their schools (without their parents) where I don't have physical access to their credit cards and I wouldn't want my staff having to run cards. It would only work in my office if I were present and so were the parent. On Accepting Cash vs. Credit Cards: Kayle Shulenberger • I found accepting credit cards helps with cash flow. So many don't write checks anymore..I sure don't! Jordan Sadler, MS, CCC-SLP • Yes - huge cash flow benefit! It's made a big difference. Now that I accept credit cards, about 80% of my clients are paying that way. "But I Don't Want to Pay The Fees!" Yes, many of the electronic formats have additional fees - but they are minimal compared to dealing with bounced checks or non-payment. Also, electronic formats are automatic! No need to go to the bank. Everyone is always complaining about not having enough time - electronic methods can help that. You may find that the convenience is worth it. Oh, and don't forget - the fees are tax deductible! Jena's Perfect Solution Freshbooks + Check + Outright "I personally have found that creating invoices in Freshbooks, then automatically sending the bill to patients via PDF or snail mail works best for me. The clients then send me a check or bring it to their next session (there is also a PayPal option). They keep the invoices for their records and I keep the invoices for my records. Freshbooks tallies everything up and keeps track of whether or not people have paid. It also sends reminders for late payments and or late fees. My account is integrated with Outright, so that I know exactly how much income, expenses and taxes I need to pay each year. This system works smoothly for me." - Jena H. Casbon, MS CCC-SLP Final Take-Aways: #1: Offer Payment Options Your goal is to get paid. Being flexible about the forms of payment you accept only help that. Think about it: when you go to the grocery store, the beauty salon, a restaurant, etc. you pay via different formats according to your circumstances that day. #2: Experiment to Find What Works for You (and them!) I've presented you with some options that you may or may not have heard of. Research them. Contact the companies. Try it out! See what works for you and your patients. Don't feel pressured to use or try all of the. Ask your patients what they are interested in and if they would like to pay via another method. You may be surprised at their answer! #3: Do Whatever It Takes to Get Paid Enough said.
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