One of the biggest challenges that any fledgling business will face is trying to move money overseas. You might not think this would be an issue for US based businesses, but what happens when you want to hire a contractor to complete the job? If that contractor is in the US, you’re fine, but if that contractor is outside the US you’re going to experience some frustration with online payment processing. Here are some of the challenges, and advice on how to overcome them.
Rates
Most flat fee merchant processing that will move money to different countries charge a flat fee to do so. That ends up hurting you as either a business owner or as a contractor. It reduces the amount of cash in your pocket, and hurts your revenue. Flat fees aren’t all bad, but variable fees adjust based on the type of payment or transfer, which is a better way to transfer money and save.
Locales
Believe it or not, most credit card services won’t send money to every country, just the major ones. If your contact happens to live outside of the zones covered by your payment processor, you might not be able to pay that freelancer promptly (or at all). You might face steep fees, and your freelancer might withhold work that’s been done. Location is very important, so be sure to choose a digital wallet that allows for truly international transfers.
Final Thoughts
While the always-online economy is getting better, there are still challenges to paying freelancers and international businesses for services you receive. As long as you choose a good payment processor, with affordable rates and service almost anywhere, you should have little to no trouble paying for the services you need.
