At our second webinar this week celebrating Small Business Month we provided insights on how digital payments could potentially impact micro and small businesses. In a nutshell: Canada has a strong and flourishing small business community that is integral to the growth of our economy, however these businesses face many challenges. Annually, thousands of small businesses don’t survive.
One of the main reasons businesses fail is because they are unable to successfully manage cash flow. In order for businesses to have positive cash flow owners need to know they can access funds quickly, have certainty that they will be paid and that their funds will not be held. Small business owners need to get paid and make payments in real time with good funds. They need to keep transaction fees low, so as not to take away from their revenue and profit margins, and be able to make payments safely and securely.
Small businesses have historically relied on cash and cheques despite the transformation happening in the payments space that make it easier to accept non-cash forms of payment. Although cash and cheques may be considered ‘outdated’ methods of payment, they are still perceived to be more convenient, cheaper and safer. However cash and cheque payments are fraught with challenges making them less convenient, costlier and unsafe. Small business owners can leverage many tools to help make sending and receiving payments easier; and thanks to new technological innovations, the number of viable tools available to small business owners is growing quickly.
Interac e-Transfer and its enhanced user features offers micro and small business owners with a convenient, cost effective and secure method of sending, requesting, and receiving money ensuring they are paid quickly and have visibility into the payments being made.
Here are some publications that discuss some of the trends we covered:
- Key Small Business Statistics: Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada Small Business Branch
- 7 Ways to make your company more successful in 2018 (and beyond,) BDC
- Payments Pulse Survey: Small Business Edition
- How can payments modernization benefit Canadian businesses, Payments Canada
- Reality cheque: Will paper cheques soon be a thing of the past for small business, CFIB
- The Gustavson Brand Trust Index 2018
To learn more about how Interac e-Transfer can help your business, please speak with a rep at your Financial Institution. For additional information and for a list of financial institutions offering Interac e-Tranfer Autodeposit and Request Money, visit:
