Accepting secure online payments for your accounting firm

Key quotes:

• "Not only do credit card transactions cost you money, but they can expose you to dangerous security risks that may compromise your company’s operations and stability."
• "But if you know how to accept credit card payments in a safe and efficient manner, that will go a long way toward establishing your firm as a successful player in your industry."
• "As with any payment method, there are some potential disadvantages and risks; for example: The pros of accepting credit cards typically outweigh the risks, but your company needs to understand what it’s getting into."
• "It’s not as simple as deciding you will accept credit card payments, period."
• "Regardless of how you accept credit card payments, you need to make sure you’re doing so safely, securely, and efficiently."
• "It’s not enough to select the best software/equipment and avoid storing payment card data."

Key quotes:

• "Your clients are consumers, too, yet only 15% of solos and 12% of small firms are currently offering online payment options for clients to pay their fees."
• "If you aren’t offering clients the option to pay legal fees online, it might be time to start."
• "If a solo attorney or small firm wants to be modern, efficient and business-focused, offering online payment as an option to their cleints is an easy and effective place to start."
• "For instance, by giving you the option of requesting online eCheck payments from you clients instead of credit cards, Headnote can lower your fees to only 1.5% per transaction."
• "Some states have recently updated their rules to allow attorneys to pass off transaction and administrative fees for processing online payments to their clients under certain circumstances."
• "The benefits of accepting online payments outweigh any associated fees, especially considering the value of the time you’ll be saving by streamlining this non-billable AR work."

Key quotes:

• "Pricing: Setup fee: N75,000 MasterCard/Visa (local): 1.5% of transaction amount (subject to a maximum of N2,000) Interswitch Verve (local): 1.5% of transaction amount (subject to a maximum of N2,000 MasterCard/Visa (International): 3% of transaction amount; no cap International Gateway Monthly Charge: N5,000 Interswitch is an Africa-focused integrated digital payments and commerce company that facilitates the electronic circulation of money as well as the exchange of value between individuals and organisations on a timely and consistent basis."
• "Pricing: Setup fee: N1500 (with Corporate Affairs Commission Certificate) and N2500 (with Government issued Identity cards) Verve Card/ Naira MasterCard: 2.5% Visa (Vpay) integration: 2.5% International Payments( USD Debit/Credit Card Visa and MasterCard): 4.5% (No Gateway Fees Applicable) Withdraw Funds:1% + 120 Naira Just like the name suggests,with SimplePay all you need is an e-mail address and a bank account to securely, send and receive payments online."

Key quotes:

• "ACH is essentially an online direct from bank payment, so most law firm clients are more comfortable paying their legal bills with ACH rather than credit card."
• "With Headnote, clients can pay direct from their bank via ACH with just a few clicks, a process as easy, seamless and secure as paying with a credit card."
• "The entire process takes just 30 seconds and doesn’t require the client to wait for microdeposits, open a Headnote account, or take any action outside of making a few clicks to submit payment."
• "Client friendly: Law firms that work primarily with corporate clients are likely used to accepting payment via direct deposit instead of check or credit card, so accepting payments via ACH makes total sense."
• "While they don’t have the necessary available balance available on their credit card to pay their entire legal bill, they do have the funds available in their bank account."

Key quotes:

• "eCheck payments are essentially an online direct from bank payment, so most law firm clients are more comfortable paying their legal bills with eCheck rather than credit card."
• "eCheck payments offer benefits to both attorneys and clients, mostly in the form of price, speed, security, ease of use, and compliance with IOLTA and the ABA Rules of Professional Conduct for accepting online payment."
• "Headnote offers an eCheck payment option that mimics the experience of paying via credit card, made specifically for attorneys and their clients."
• "Clients can pay via eCheck in under 30 seconds and are not required to create a Headnote account, wait for microdeposits, provide their bank account information, or take any action outside of making a few clicks to submit payment."
• "Paper checks also take longer to process once they are deposited into a firm’s bank account than online payment options."
• "Traditional eCheck payment processors require clients to provide bank account and routing numbers to enable payments, which can make some consumers anxious."