If you are new to EFTPOS, navigating the options of EFTPOS technology, costs and providers can be daunting as you try to find the best payments solution for your business in New Zealand.
Accepting payments through an EFTPOS solution is an important part of any business. That’s why small business owners want an easy-to-use solution prioritising reliability and stellar support.
While an EFTPOS machine isn’t quite as important as choosing your spouse, it’s best to make the right choice the first time around. This saves you any hassle with switching systems in future.
Whether you’re new to EFTPOS or looking to switch providers, read on for our comprehensive guide to finding the best EFTPOS solution for a small business in New Zealand.
1. Choosing the Right EFTPOS Provider for Your Small Business
With numerous EFTPOS providers in New Zealand, understanding all the available alternatives can take some time. You might even be tempted to just go with the cheapest option you find, but that might come at a cost down the road.
To keep things simple, we’ve got a cheat sheet of 7 simple questions to ask. They will put you on the right track to finding the right EFTPOS provider for your business.
7 Questions to Nail for Finding the Best EFTPOS Provider for Your Small Business
- Am I Getting the Right Guidance?
- What if I Need A Hand With My Payment Solution?
- Safe and Secure: Will I Be Compliant and Up to Date With the Latest Features?
- What POS Integrations and Other Perks Can I Use?
- What Contract Term is Best?
- Fee-ling the Pinch: What Am I Really Paying For?
- Am I Partnering With a Well-established Business?
Am I Getting the Right Guidance?
An EFTPOS solution is an ongoing utility for your business. It’s a combination of a reliable product, prompt service and accessible support, often for an extended period of time. This makes good service an important consideration when choosing a provider.
This includes having all the information you need to get started, an easy set-up and experts to answer your questions through your payment journey.
Prompt support, equipment replacement, security compliance and value-adds are some more key considerations when choosing your EFTPOS provider. Make sure you ask plenty of questions to get you started on the right foot for your best EFTPOS solution.
What If I Need a Hand With My Payment Solution?
The “best EFTPOS” is the one you want to set and forget, and not have to worry about too often. For peace of mind, you want to be sure that when and if you do require support with your EFTPOS solution, it will be accessible, quick and hassle-free.
Smartpay offers 24/7 support, 365 days a year with all our EFTPOS solutions. Your calls go to a New Zealand help desk, where our experts aim to answer all support calls in under four minutes. They also resolve eight out of 10 (80%) of support requests on the first call. How’s that for good service?
Our support also includes machine replacements sent out the next business day if our technical support team cannot resolve your issue on the phone. You can learn more about our commitment to service here.
Safe and Secure: Will I Be Compliant and Up to Date With the Latest Features?
EFTPOS machines handling your business transactions need to be kept secure. This is done with regular software updates that meet industry regulations. Out-of-date hardware should also be replaced with a compliant machine.
The good news is that providers like Smartpay release and allow these updates to be downloaded remotely. This means little to no disruption to your business.
Smartpay’s in-house tech experts work around the clock to keep our terminals secure. They also deliver product improvements and new features to help keep your business on its A-game.
What POS Integrations and Other Perks Can I Use?
Like any other great piece of tech, your EFTPOS solution can be customised to best meet your needs.
Popular features like contactless payments, tipping and POS integrations add to your customer’s experience and help you serve them more quickly. More happy customers means more money in your pocket.
We have developed an extensive range of features and POS integrations built entirely in-house (no middle-men here!). Even better, we also include a variety of these features at no added cost in our EFTPOS solutions.
What Contract Term Is Best?
Depending on your business, you may need EFTPOS for the long term or shorter durations such as a day or week. Are you a seasonal business with uptake only a few months a year? Then seasonal rentals may work best for you. Look for a provider that offers flexibility in its contract terms, ideally with savings attached to each option. Smartpay offers solutions like Long Term Rental, Short Term EFTPOS Hire and Low Cost Tap & Pay.
HANDY TIP: LONGER TERM = LOWER MONTHLY COSTS
Payment solutions are a lot like relationships: Long-term commitments can be a great thing. Committing for a longer term can help your business reduce (or completely eliminate) monthly rental costs, as most providers will offer cheaper pricing for a longer contract period.
Fee-ling the Pinch: What Am I Really Paying For?
EFTPOS costs should be easy to understand and transparent. That means no hidden fees or charges. Your provider should clearly guide you on the costs involved in accepting EFTPOS payments.
These include the EFTPOS rental and third-party costs like the payments network and your merchant bank. Third-party merchant service fees can really bite if you accept contactless and credit card payments.
For Smartpay Low Cost Tap & Pay customers, things are slightly different. We are the provider for your EFTPOS machine, your merchant service facility and acquirer, meaning you pay a predictable, low rate each month for contactless debit and credit Visa and Mastercard transactions (T&Cs apply). This makes understanding the costs of your EFTPOS machine a whole lot more simple. Even our long term rental product has no set-up fee and a simple monthly cost after you score the first 12 months free (T&Cs apply)!
Am I Partnering With a Well-established Business?
From a business’ perspective, EFTPOS should be as simple as possible. However, there’s no shortage of behind-the-scenes complexity.
That’s why you want a provider who understands and takes care of the boring stuff. This usually comes with experience. Ask yourself if a provider has been around in the New Zealand payments landscape and has the know-how to back up their services.
Consider a well-established provider with scalability and bandwidth to provide 24/7, country-wide support with minimal disruption. This means in-house capabilities to support their terminals and a large team of locally-based experts for technical assistance.
2. Choosing the Best EFTPOS Solution and Machine for Your Small Business
Depending on your business, your payment set-up might be totally simple or fairly complex. Maybe you just want to accept payments simply while on the go. Or, perhaps you’re after a hybrid solution of in-store payments but also for a market stall on weekends. Maybe you’re a bustling coffee stand near a busy office area where most of your customers prefer to tap their phone to pay.
Your provider should empower you to tailor your payments solution to what’s best for your business. You should also have the chance to upgrade your machine with additional features as your business grows.
8 Questions to Nail for Finding the Best EFTPOS Machine for Your Small Business
Understanding how you want to take your payments will get you the best EFTPOS machine from the start and prevent you from having to make changes later on, so consider the following:
- From Counter to Curbside: Where Will I Use the EFTPOS Machine?
- Link Up: How Will I Connect the EFTPOS Machine?
- What Payment Methods Do I Want to Accept?
- POS Partners: Should My EFTPOS Machine Be Integrated With My POS?
- What Other Features Would Be Useful?
- Plug and Pay: How Easy is the EFTPOS Machine to Set-up and Use?
- Swiping Safely: How Will My Transactions Remain Secure?
- Follow the Money: How Can I Track My Transactions?
From Counter to Curbside: Where Will I Use the EFTPOS Machine?
Where you do business will answer a lot of questions about how you want to set up your EFTPOS machine.
If you are an on-the-go business, a mobile EFTPOS terminal with a SIM card will allow you to take payments pretty much anywhere. If you run a restaurant, you might want to take payments table side. A portable machine with a Wi-Fi connection will serve you well. For a retail store, a hardwired EFTPOS machine could get the job done.
Some modern EFTPOS machines allow you to enjoy the best of all worlds. Smartpay’s Android terminal is a touchscreen mobile device that comes with plenty of bells and whistles, allowing you to switch between Wi-Fi, SIM and hardwired connectivity.
Once you know where you and your customers are while taking payments, it brings you to the next question—how will I connect my terminal?
Link Up: How Will I Connect the EFTPOS Machine?
You have three main options when it comes to connecting your terminal to start accepting payments:
- Mobile SIM card (4G) – Great for on-the-go businesses such as a van or food truck. This is also a great option if you do not have stable internet at your location. Terminals using these connections rely on cell phone networks. Make sure you’ve got mobile coverage in your area for a reliable connection!
- Wi-Fi – Perfect option for portability when you have an existing, stable internet connection in your place of business. As a backup, you can also create a hotspot from your mobile so you don’t get caught out.
- Plug-in (LAN) – This involves using an Ethernet (broadband) cable to connect your EFTPOS machine to the internet. This is most suited to brick-and-mortar shops with computers or point of sale (POS) systems at the counter. Make sure your cable is long enough to reach the EFTPOS terminal. Use an extension cable if the router is more than 1 metre from the payment station.
HANDY TIP: MORE CONNECTION OPTIONS = MORE RELIABILITY
Consider a machine that connects using more than one method to connect to the internet like Smartpay’s Mobile EFTPOS solution. This gives you a back-up if a connection method becomes unavailable.
What Payment Methods Do I Want to Accept?
Your customers expect flexibility and options to pay how they want. Deciding which payment methods you want to accept, and identifying which payment methods are popular with your customers, are important steps in finding the right EFTPOS solution for you.
- Contactless payments with cards and smart devices are the new expectation. If you don’t offer this convenient payment method, you risk losing out on customers.
- Accepting credit cards also offers more flexibility and buying power to customers. Credit card payments can be especially important for businesses with big-ticket items.
Smartpay provides New Zealand businesses with the ability to accept all these payment options. We also have a number of ways to help businesses deal with the greater costs these payment methods can incur.
Smartpay Low Cost Tap & Pay means that you could spend less on merchant service costs. We function as your acquirer, providing a single, consolidated rate across Visa & Mastercard contactless debit and credit transactions and a simple monthly bill each month with speedy seven-day settlements into your business bank of choice. It’s easy and fast to get set up with this solution!
POS Partners: Should My EFTPOS Machine Be Integrated With My POS?
Point of Sale (POS) systems are widely used in many industries including retail, hospitality and hair & beauty. POS systems enable small businesses to better manage their sales, inventory and staff.
By integrating your EFTPOS machine with your POS, accepting payments is streamlined. This means less manual errors, easy reconciliations and faster transactions. Basically, integrating your POS and EFTPOS systems is a no-brainer. Smartpay integrates with some of the most popular POS providers in New Zealand and we are continuously adding new integrations.
What Other Features Would Be Useful?
Depending on the nature of your business and industry, you might want to consider adding some extra features. Here are a few ways payment features can add value to your business:
- For hospitality businesses, a feature like tipping allows customers to add gratuities to their bill through your EFTPOS machine.
- Smartpay terminals can be configured to accept Mail Order/Telephone Order (MOTO) transactions. This means businesses can accept payments without the card being physically present.
At Smartpay, we continuously roll out new features to help you future-proof your business and provide an exceptional customer experience every time.
Plug and Pay: How Easy Is the EFTPOS Machine to Set-up and Use?
To make it easy for you and your staff to use day-to-day, the best EFTPOS machines are intuitive, user-friendly and versatile. This includes taking payments, processing refunds and changing paper rolls easily.
Activating new features remotely on the EFTPOS machine with minimal disruption is also important for flexibility. It makes it easy to update your system as your business grows and changes.
Smartpay EFTPOS terminals come ready to use out of the box. They are pre-configured and require no set-up or long wait times for installation. Everything you need to get started is included in the box along with the terminal. Our in-house experts are always available to answer any questions about using the EFTPOS machines. Our website also provides various resources for help and troubleshooting.
Swiping Safely: How Will My Transactions Remain Secure?
For compliance with payment security regulations, your EFTPOS machine should receive regular software updates rolled out by your EFTPOS provider. These should be done remotely with minimal intervention or disruption to your business.
Hardware upgrades are also sometimes necessary. These will be rolled out by your provider as necessary and in line with industry regulations.
With Smartpay, you never have to worry about being compliant. Our in-house tech team regularly rolls out remote software updates that apply automatically. Just keep doing business knowing your transactions are safe.
Follow the Money: How Can I Track My Transactions?
Your payment transactions can provide insight into ways to grow your business. Keeping track of things like slower days, loyal customers and high-performing locations can unlock your business potential. It can also determine some areas that require improvement.
The best EFTPOS machine provides these insights and data in real time. Smartpay Low Cost Tap & Pay customers can access the Smartpay Hub, which offers insights into sales, revenue, customer loyalty and other important information. For Long Term Rental customers, this is available through Worldline Insights.
Tap Into the Best of EFTPOS With Smartpay
You’ll know you’ve found the right EFTPOS provider and solution when they help you understand all this information. They’ll be curious about your business and will work to tailor their solution for you.
At Smartpay, we pride ourselves on making your EFTPOS journey easy and stress-free. From our range of mobile EFTPOS machines with long-lasting battery life to our carefully designed EFTPOS solutions, we offer the tools and services you need for streamlined and simple payments. Our payment specialists have helped thousands of Kiwi businesses get the best EFTPOS solution for them. Make the smart choice and talk to us today about getting started.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is the Cheapest EFTPOS Solution for Small Businesses?
The cost of an EFTPOS solution can vary greatly based on numerous factors. Depending on your industry, the types of payments you accept and the overall turnover, there can be different costs associated with accepting payments. This makes finding a definitive answer to this question a bit tricky.
Smartpay’s EFTPOS solutions are designed to help your business save time and money while giving you a feature-rich range of terminals and features to accept payments in a way that best suits your business.
What are the Benefits of EFTPOS Machines for Small Businesses?
There are oh so many benefits of EFTPOS machines for small businesses, such as:
- The added convenience of being able to accept debit card, credit card and contactless payments. These days, customers expect to pay with their preferred method, which is increasingly shifting to card and smart device methods.
- A streamlined transaction process, allowing you to get through your queues more quickly.
- Reducing the headaches and security concerns that can come with handling large amounts of cash in your business.
What are the Benefits of Integrating EFTPOS and POS Systems?
Just a few of the benefits of integrating EFTPOS and POS systems are:
- Reduced human error as transaction totals are automatically communicated between systems.
- Serve your customers more quickly with reduced checkout times.
- Integrated systems easily share data back and forth, allowing you to generate the reports and insights you need for better business.
