Square credit card reader for android. opinions!

[AnnieJoCreations]

Has anyone actually used the square credit card reader? I am doing my first outdoor market in june and i just signed up for square. do you like it? Do you have a certain amount that customers have to buy in order to use it? Any feedback is greatly appreciated!!!

[Former_Member]

I have one that I have used for the past year. I believe it has really increased my sales. Many people have debit cards and are always excited to see that I take debit or credit.

I accept a charge for any amount. My least expensive item at fairs is $5. I would rather make $5 and pay the charge cost than have the person walk away without buying.

I went to an art walk last month which was only three hours in the evening. I sold over $100 and half of it was credit or debit.

I have had no problems with it at all. If it is over the weekend the money is usually in my bank account by Monday afternoon.

[Former_Member]

More than two years now on Square. I total up ALL sales in square, cash or charge. I tell the customer the total and let them decide how to pay.

This will automatically add the Taxes onto my sales for me, and allow me to generate reports when I need to give the state money for sales tax. Cash and credit transactions are all in one place.

I did just request a Paypal here device. not that I don't like square, but so I can sell some bigger items on craigslist, and want to allow people to purchase with a credit card. This way I can keep my accounts separate from Business and personal sales.

[Former_Member]

I use PayPal and Square with my Android. They both work very nicely.

[Former_Member]

Great tip spry! I will start using square with my android next month!!

[AnnieJoCreations]

Thanks everyone! Sprywhimsy, what a great idea!

[dcbijou]

I have a square and paypal reader - I love using square so much that I haven't needed to use the paypal reader yet! Definitely helps having at least one when selling at a fair/market - people are more inclined to buy more than one item (or something a little more expensive) if they see you take cards. My least expensive items are around $5-6 dollars, and I'll take cards for that if that's what the customer prefers. Plus I like that you can set it up to calculate sales tax, so I don't have to mess with a calculator.

[PrettyMuchArt]

We love using square. And it's generally new enough to customers that they love it too. Better check into it before you set a minimum purchase amount, i think if you take credit cards you can't do that. You have to accept any amount.

[Former_Member]

I have square but with my ipad. I had a shopper opt for using a cc this weekend and when i went to enter her address to send the receipt to her her email address was prefilled in...cool but kinda freaky... She said she had bought via square before and i guess the system remembered her.

[SageNThymeDesigns]

I did have some challenges with a new update from Square, which invalidated my account for unknown reasons- unfortunately I discovered this Friday night before a 2 day show. Paypal here works well too. I think you should get any and all of the options to accept credit cards, just in case one is causing a problem- then you have a backup.

I normally prefer Square, but the issue still has yet to be resolved, so I've been using Paypal more recently.

[villageneedler]

I have both but I find Paypal works better for me. I have trouble with square and the connection when I do inside shows

[Former_Member]

KilnGoddess from KilnGoddess says
and when i went to enter her address to send the receipt to her her email address was prefilled in...cool but kinda freaky...
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It's a great feature. And be ready to explain it to the customers because some do get freaked out.
Explain it to them this way. The Square system remembers if you have used that particular card before. This way you don;t have to enter your e-mail or cell phone every time you use it. This is a great advantage if you are making a lot of purchases in one day at a show. The last thing anyone wants to do is enter all that info over and over again on a cell phone keyboard

[TheSpokesMan]

I love my square reader. I've had a couple of people kind of freaked out about the idea of swiping a credit card with your cell phone, but for the most part it has been great.

[TheSpokesMan]

OH! I just thought of an idea. Having a little pamphlet / brochure about square and what info can been seen. I know you can only see the last 3 digits of their card and only part of their email or phone #. Just a thought...

[RoyGBivandCO]

love my square! used it 12 times over the weekend!

[Former_Member]

I LOVE my square. It works great with my Android phone (HTC Evo). I do what sprywhimsy does and total it up on my phone because it adds tax automatically.

I'm so glad I got it because I've had a few customers almost walk away because they thought I only took cash... So so glad I have the square.

Some tips:
-Always make sure you have the latest version the night before your fair. I tried downloading mine the update the morning of on my way to the craft show once and it about killed my phone. Thank God my boyfriend had a car charger.
-When I swipe, I keep the phone on a flat surface and hold square down flat. I get better swipes this way. I see some people hold their phone in the air while trying to swipe and it takes them a few tries.
-If you decide to carry it with you everywhere (which I do) keep it in a zipped area in your purse.
-I've read some people buy a stylus so people can sign using that instead of their fingers. I don't have one but that's because they cost money. Lol.

[Former_Member]

OH! If your show offers free wi-fi, consider using that instead of your mobile connection. It's usually faster and doesn't kill your phone as fast.

[Former_Member]

Another vote here for Square! I love it!

[TheEnchantedWren]

I love my Square. And, yes, Kilngoddess, it remembers customer info. I know I've gotten sales I otherwise would not if I only accepted cash.

[deltamoonsoap]

Rose that's a good tip about swiping, I"ll have to try that!

usually folks know what it is now so it's not so scary to them, and for sure they'll purchase more if they know they're free to spend money with you! I actually have it right one my sign with the price, so they can see that credit/ATM cards are welcome.

[PrairiePrimitives]

Love my Square!

My phone is a Motorola ATRIX 4G.

[SweetPix]

Does the square/PayPal work with iPad?

[Former_Member]

Pia from SweetPix says
Does the square/PayPal work with iPad?
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YES. Works even better on the ipad. I have all my items preloaded into quick icons in Square on the ipad. This way I can just tap the items they purchase and it totals it up for me.

A note about getting a Stylus. it is a great idea. Women with long fingernails can not sign on a touch screen. It needs to be flesh not nails. You can pick up a stylus at Walgreens for $5. They may be plastic, but they have the same tip that you would get on one of the expensive metal ones at a place like staples.

[Former_Member]

To get a good swipe with the square I find rotating the little square device around in the ear jack so it is backwards helps.

[Former_Member]

This thread popped up at such a great time for me. I just signed up for my PayPal Here reader for my first *real* flea market. It's encouraging to hear that people tend to get more sales using these card readers vs. just taking cash only.