SumUp

No matter what anyone says, starting a new business is daunting. Where do I get customers from? How will it make money? What do I use to manage my accounts? The question list is endless, but there is one easy answer to a Question about payments, lets ‘Sumup‘ this review. Let me explain by using my own business, as an example of how Sumup can help any small business.

Cavemanreviews is part of a growing business portfolio and everything that I do here is currently free because I love writing reviews. However this may not stay like this, so I may need future options? The other parts of my business is public speaking mainly about mental health training (Carl Jones or S.L.A.P. Technique) and also from my book sales (Caveman Principles). These are my bread and butter, sales businesses, it is my passion and I love working on them. When I first started out, I attended fares, seminars, speaking gigs and events. I had a box of books to sell and dealt only in cash. Although I sold books, people would always ask if I took card and after a while I realised that I was losing sales. Also when I invoiced clients, it never felt professional and there was no way to check they had paid (apart from checking bank accounts against invoices) it was a lot of hassle.

I wanted to sell more books and services, I realised the only way to do this was to be able to take card payments. I looked at loads of options, most were willing to give me a card machine but I had to pay an annual charge to use it. As my events were sporadic and there were months where I had no bookings and could not sell my books in person, I did not want to be tied into any contract. The solution was to find a card reader that did not charge me any kind of subscription or monthly charge but was a more ‘pay-as-you-use’.

What I did not know

Having found Sumup, I purchasing a card machine from a Sally’s beauty shop. It was only a £30 outlay but the website (http://r.sumup.com/referrals/n6AkO) promised no monthly charges. Instead they only took a small percentage (1.69%) from every payment. That meant if I sold a book for £10, after charges my bank was to be credited with £9.83 (17p to use the service).

To me this was all I needed, until I logged into the online Sumup so I could set up and use the new card reader machine. Then I realised just what I was getting. The website is amazing, with so many features and all for free as part of signing up! Then when I downloaded the app (for Android) linked it to my new online account, I had my very own point of sale. With the new card machine that linked up via bluetooth to my phone I was sorted. Using my phones data connections, it all worked perfectly.

Back to the online account, with all my business details now entered, I got my own on-line shop after I entered my products in my very own catalogue. I sahe my online store and they process all the payments (https://caveman-store.sumup.link) and I get the money in my account for just doing my thing. The other bonus is that I can use it for all my sales, including the cash ones. The sales reports are clear and all link into the accounting software that runs in the back ground or I can export it, it really is simple, easy and perfect for my business.

Another plus, when I need to send an invoice for a speaking event to a client, there is an option for me to tailor and send a professional looking invoice. That not only accepts and manages payment but allows managing of any outstanding accounts. There are loads of other professional apps and links but these are the big ones for me.

Using the card reader

As the Sumup card reader links to my phone, it has its own battery and providing my phone has a data connection (Wi-Fi or 4G) it all works in unison. After set up, to use the device it is as simple as switching it on, opening the Sumup App on my phone. Then from the app, I can either select an item that comes across from the catalogue I have created on line and it populates the fees, it feeds to the card reader, my customer taps their card and it is all done, or I can use the manual entry, enter an amount and use the exact same process.

What else?

Having used Sumup for over a year, it has given my small business a level of professionalism, for a fraction of the cost. I am sure that if I were to link all these separate services into one package from different suppliers, there would be a huge service cost outside of having a Sumup account.

I cannot help but be pleased with finding the Sumup service. There is one last bonus, that should a service user refer new business, they get a £20 referral fee. Now I hope you would use my very own link – http://r.sumup.com/referrals/n6AkO if you feel that this review has persuaded you to give this a go!