More than half of all U.S. small businesses — 55 percent, or nearly 15 million firms — do not accept credit card payments, according to the Intuit Small Business Survey. The survey suggests those businesses are missing out on a combined $100 billion in annual revenues by denying cards.
The number is perhaps easier to swallow on a per-firm basis; $100 billion divided among 15 million companies is roughly $7,000 a year. But both the aggregate dollar amount and the sheer number of firms who don’t take cards suggest there’s a tremendous business opportunity for the companies aiming to turn smartphones into payment terminals — a roster of companies which includes Intuit, and its GoPayment swipe readers.
On the other side of Intuit’s payment acceptance research, it’s worth noting that nearly 20 percent of businesses don’t accept cash — and that checks are apparently the most frequently accepted payment type, at an 86 percent acceptance rate.
A blog post at Intuit’s GoPayment website features an infographic that details the remaining findings from its survey, conducted in collaboration with Decipher Research.
Access the blog post here.
