27 Feb Rochford District Goes Digital to Support Local Small Businesses
Technology company Square is offering business owners in Rochford District a special offer to get them started with card payments. The initiative has been set up to enable small businesses in the area to start accepting cards and encourage people to continue to spend their money locally.
Square came to the UK two years ago to provide an easy and affordable way for local businesses to take card payments for the first time. Square will provide eligible businesses across Rochford District with a free credit and debit card Reader and free processing credit for their first £1,000 of transactions, along with dedicated training and marketing support. The initiative kicked off at The Rochford Breakfast Briefing at Apton Hall.
Recent research by Square showed 62% of businesses had increased their overall takings by between 1% – 25% once they began accepting card payments. With the lack of banks in more rural parts of the district and the closure of Rochford town’s high street banks, access to cash is more difficult for shoppers and business owners alike. By increasing opportunities for card acceptance, Rochford District Council hopes that business owners can spend less time travelling to the bank and spend more time growing their businesses.
By signing up, local businesses will be able to accept contactless, Chip & PIN, Android Pay and Apple Pay, get paid on the next business day, with no monthly fees or minimum use required. Business owners will pay just 1.75% on payments made in person and 2.5% on sales made over the phone, online or by invoice, after the first fee-free £1000 worth of transactions.
Rochford District Council’s Portfolio Holder for Enterprise Cllr George Ioannou said, “Embracing new technologies are key to the growth of local business communities. We’re working in a flexi-world where businesses are going to where the customer is so having the right tech to do the job is key.
“We have a vibrant independent business community so this new method of making payments being offered by Square, can only benefit the district’s local economy”.
To learn more visit: https://squareup.com/go/rochforddistrict
