BluePay Blog

Most credit cards in the U.S. still come with magnetic stripes on the back — reserved for “swipe-and-sign” transactions. However, magstripe cards are easy to clone, making them prone to fraud and abuse. Signatures offer little additional protection, which is why the major credit cards have recently dropped this verification requirement.  In recent years, the payment industry has encouraged customers and businesses to shift from magstripe technology in favor of:

Topics: EMV, Mobile Payments, Payment Technology, PCI Compliance and Fraud Prevention, Small Business Tips, Payment Trends

There are already tons of month-long observances celebrated during March, including:  National Celery Month  National Kidney Month  Youth Art Month  March is also National Credit Education Month — a 31-day stretch of the year during which Americans are encouraged to:  Clean up their finances  Fix their credit scores  Climb out of debt  Does America really need an entire month dedicated to credit awareness?

Topics: Small Business Tips, Awareness

One of the most significant payments trends in 2019 is mPOS. If you have a physical retail space or a pop-up shop, or work in a service-oriented business where you can offer on-site payment as a convenience, then you’ll want to know what the rise of mPOS means for you. 

Topics: Due.com Partner Posts, Mobile Payments, Payment Technology, Payment Trends

When you launch a store or restaurant, managing inventory is relatively straightforward. As items come and go, you can track everything using nothing more than a simple spreadsheet.  Yet, this inventory management system isn’t sustainable for long:  It’s incredibly time-consuming to track inventory and update records by hand.  You have to “eyeball” when stock is getting low — this can be hit or miss.

Topics: Software and Payment Integration, Small Business Tips

As a small business owner, no two days are the same. You’re constantly putting out fires, and you’re expected to wear many hats while doing so.  Against this backdrop, it’s nearly impossible to fall into a regular routine.  Even still, many entrepreneurs manage to bring order to their workdays by deliberately carving out time to build daily habits. The most successful business owners choose keystone habits that help them grow their operations and generate ever-higher profits.

Topics: Fun Posts, Small Business Tips

With technology continuing to advance, it’s critical to stay informed about what’s on the horizon so you can start thinking about whether the emerging options are a strategic fit for your business. And, while you may just be in the midst of adopting more cloud-based technology to run your daily operations, you may want to press pause while you consider the recent appearance of what is called edge computing. 

Topics: Due.com Partner Posts, Payment Technology, Small Business Tips

Valentine’s Day may not receive as much fanfare as other shopping holidays like Black Friday. Though according to the National Retail Federation, this annual celebration (on Feb. 14) brings in nearly $20 billion for retailers and restaurants across the country.

Topics: Mobile Payments, E-Commerce and Online Payments, PCI Compliance and Fraud Prevention, Fun Posts, Payment Trends

The concept of “consumer credit” dates from 3500 B.C. Mesopotamia. Yet, what most of us would recognize as a “credit card” didn’t come along until 1950 — courtesy of the Diners' Club.  This earliest form of plastic wasn’t even plastic. It was cardboard, and you could only use it at select restaurants.  However, the credit card has evolved substantially over the years. Politicians had to step in occasionally to help make the credit card industry fairer and more transparent.

Topics: Payment Trends, Awareness

Introducing a new product or service is one of the best strategic approaches to growing a small business. It’s a way to hold the interest of your existing customer base while reaching out to new audience segments that may now be interested in what you have to offer.  Although you may think the most challenging aspect to adding a product or service is to do something unique that stands out in the market, even more difficult is often setting the price for that introduction.

Topics: Due.com Partner Posts, Small Business Tips

A point-of-sale (POS) system is the mix of hardware and software that allows you to process payments for goods and services at the checkout counter. Historically, getting started was prohibitively expensive, which is why only the biggest retailers could afford a POS.  Though as with all technologies, POS systems became better, faster and more affordable — allowing smaller retailers to begin using them.

Topics: Payment Technology, Small Business Tips, Getting Started with Payments, Consideration