Taking payments for merch

FarleyUK

Hey all,

One of my bands are going to start selling merch at our gigs, and I was curious how those of you that already do this handle card payments?

I know there are multiple providers out there, so curious who everyone uses.

We will potentially be moving it all to an online store, but we want to test the waters first before doing that.

ScreamingDave

You can buy a card reader really cheaply from loads of outlets.  I got one from Toolstation for my business.  You do get charged a percentage commission, though, and sometimes you have to wait a while for the funds to hit your own account. 

We use SumUp, but I couldn’t vouch for it being the best.  It’s a last resort for us, so we don’t use it much and just accept the occasional hit.  

Bear in mind, it’s illegal to specifically pass on the transaction charge to the customer, i.e. to charge a person paying by card more than a person paying cash

OilCityPickups

We use IZettle ... very good, very easy 

mike257

I've used Zettle for this for years with various touring bands - it's owned by Paypal these days so tied in to their infrastructure.  If you're only going to be selling in the UK, it's ideal.  The app is easy to use and the reporting functions are pretty good to keep track of what you've sold and when. If you've got a fairly recent Android phone with NFC capability you can use the app to take payments without a card reader - I can just have someone tap their contactless card on the back of my phone to pay. 

26.2

Yeah Zettle for me