Businesses say that getting paid and getting paid on-time is one of their biggest headaches. That’s consistent across industry, across business type and across business size.

That’s one of the primary reasons that businesses are increasingly turning to tools like text-to-pay: they want to get paid faster.

What is Text-to-Pay?

Kenect launched text-to-pay in 2020 and it immediately took off. Today, thousands of businesses are collecting payments via text.

Basically, businesses can easily send a text to a customer with invoice information. The customer then inputs their credit card information and texts back. It’s that simple.

Text-to-pay is simple, and it works.

97% of businesses who use text-to-pay KEEP USING IT! Why? Because, among other reasons, it allows businesses to get paid faster.

Our data indicates that businesses that use text-to-pay get paid 85% faster than businesses who don’t. Yes, you read that right. You could get paid 85% faster if you text than if you don’t. And we believe this data is conservative and not at all a stretch.

How is that Possible?

Most businesses collect payments either in-person via a card swipe, via an emailed invoice, or perhaps via a card swipe over the phone. Let’s look at each example:

- Card Swipe – If the person is not in a store in a retail environment, the customer has to be notified that their product/service needs to be picked up/is ready. They need to physically come to the business, stand in line, and swipe a card. If you’re lucky they’ll come that day (albeit in a few hours). If you’re not lucky that person may not be able to come until tomorrow or the next day.

Take a service department at an automotive dealership; once a card is ready, they have to call the person to come get it. Maybe they show up that afternoon, maybe not. Either way it’s several hours AT BEST, before the card is swiped and the business gets paid.

- Email Invoice – Many service companies send email invoices to be paid.

This is fine. It’s probably better than making someone come in and swipe a card. But emailing invoices is still wildly slow and ineffective.

Emails from businesses are opened an average of 12% of the time. And even when someone opens an email, they RARELY take action on that email immediately. Generally, they open it in the morning and perhaps take action on that email in the afternoon or perhaps the next morning.

Point is, you lose time.

Compare this to texting where 98% of all text messages are opened within 3 minutes and 95% are ACTED ON immediately. You’ll generally get paid within minutes of texting an invoice.

- Collecting credit card information over the Phone – This is awful and not secure. You shouldn’t do this. How many SMBs have sticky notes of CC numbers stuck to screens or countertops. It’s bad.

Compare this text-to-pay where no one at your business is able to see or access the CC information. It’s completely secure.

Text-to-Pay is Better

The businesses that use text-to-pay love it. They simply love it. They love sending a text and getting paid immediately. They love getting paid 85% faster.

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