Picture a pottery table at a weekend market. Someone is holding a mug, two people are waiting behind them, and the card reader is still in the car. That sale doesn't need a website. It needs a phone that can take a tap.
When small businesses ask me about payments, they usually start with the tool. I'd rather start with how the money actually changes hands. Most of the work I've done fits one of three patterns, and each one has a simplest setup.
Three ways of selling
Face to face: Tap to Pay. A pottery studio I've built for sells at markets. With Tap to Pay through Square or Stripe, the phone itself works as the card reader, so there's nothing to charge or pair. On Square's free plan, in-person payments cost 2.6% plus 15 cents (KORONA POS). On a $40 mug, that's about $1.19.
One price, many people: a payment link. Everyone pays the same entry fee for a track meet. You don't need a cart, a catalog or customer accounts. You need one link that you can put in an email, on the meet page and in a team group chat. Square charges 3.3% plus 30 cents for online payments on the free plan, so collecting a $25 entry costs about $1.13.
Custom amounts, billed over time: invoices. An interior designer bills each client a different amount, often a deposit and then a final payment. An invoice holds the line items, the due date and a pay button. Square charges the same 3.3% plus 30 cents for invoices, which comes to $99.30 on a $3,000 invoice. At that size, ask your processor whether clients can pay by bank transfer, which is often cheaper. Also look at the paid plans: Square's Plus and Premium plans bring online and invoice payments down to 2.9% plus 30 cents.
When a full checkout earns its keep
A full storefront with a cart makes sense when you have lots of products, people buy without talking to you first, and inventory has to stay accurate. A studio selling online between markets needs one. A track meet doesn't. If you build a checkout for a job a link can handle, you're just adding upkeep and more things that can break.
A quick way to decide:
- Is the buyer standing in front of you? Use Tap to Pay.
- Does everyone pay the same price? Use a payment link.
- Is the amount different for each client? Send an invoice.
- Are strangers browsing many products? Then build the checkout.
On small sales, watch the flat fee. Thirty cents is more than 1% of a $25 entry, and that adds up across a full meet.
The right payment setup is the one that fits how money already moves through your business.
