Tag: Best

Get the Best First Credit Card to Build Credit

Are you looking for a first credit card to build credit for your business? Your business credit does not come about by accident. You will have to build it – and business credit cards can be a huge help in getting you where you want to be.

Fortunately, there are choices out there. But keep in mind, a lot of them will hinge upon your personal credit scores. Good FICO scores will help you get a good first credit card to build credit for any company. But don’t worry – we also have some choices for when your personal credit is less than stellar.

The Very Best First Credit Card to Build Credit for a Business

We investigated a lot of company credit cards for you. So, here are our selections for the best first credit card to build credit for a business.

Per the SBA, company credit card limits are a massive 10 – 100 times that of personal credit cards!

This reveals you can get a lot more funding with corporate credit cards. And it likewise shows you can have personal credit cards at stores. So, you would now have an additional card at the very same stores for your small business.

And you will not need collateral, cash flow, or financials to get business credit.

Benefits

Benefits can and do differ. So, make sure to pick the benefit you would like from this choice of alternatives. There are a lot of ways to start building credit with business credit cards. So, open your mind and consider the myriad of possibilities.

First Credit Card to Build Credit for Fair to Poor Credit, Not Calling for a Personal Guarantee

Brex Card for Startups

Take a look at the Brex Card for Startups. It has no yearly fee.

You will not need to provide your Social Security number to apply. And you will not need to provide a personal guarantee. They will take your EIN.

But keep in mind, they do not accept every industry.

Also, there are some industries they will not work with, as well as others where they will want added paperwork. For a list, go here: https://brex.com/legal/prohibited_activities/.

To determine creditworthiness, Brex will check a business’s cash balance, spending patterns, and investors.

You can get 7x points on rideshare. And get 4x on Brex Travel. Also, you can get triple points on restaurants. And you can get double points on recurring software payments. Get 1x points on everything else.

So, you can have bad credit scores (even a 300 FICO) to qualify. Amazing!

Find it here: https://brex.com/lp/startups-higher-limits/

First Credit Card to Build Credit Suite

Establish business credit fast with our research-backed guide to 12 business credit cards and lines.

First Credit Card to Build Credit for Fair Credit

Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business

Have a look at the Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business. It has no yearly fee. There is no introductory APR offer. The regular APR is a variable 24.49%. You can earn unlimited 1% cash back on every purchase for your business, without any minimum to redeem.

While this card is within reach if you have fair credit, beware of the APR. Yet if you can pay on schedule, and in full, then it can be a good deal.

Find it here: https://www.capitalone.com/small-business/credit-cards/spark-classic/

First Credit Card to Build Credit with No Annual Fee

No Annual Fee/Flat Rate Cash Back

Ink Business Unlimited℠ Credit Card

Have a look at the Ink Business Unlimited℠ Credit Card. Beyond no annual fee, get an introductory 0% APR for the first 12 months. But after that, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%.

You can earn unlimited 1.5% Cash Back rewards on every purchase made for your company. And get $500 bonus cash back after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening. You can redeem your rewards for cash back, gift cards, travel and more via Chase Ultimate Rewards®. You will need exceptional credit to qualify for this card.

Find it here: https://creditcards.chase.com/business-credit-cards/ink/unlimited

First Credit Card to Build Credit Suite

Establish business credit fast with our research-backed guide to 12 business credit cards and lines.

First Credit Card to Build Credit with a 0% Introductory APR – Pay Zero!

Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

Check out the Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express. It has no annual fee. There is a 0% introductory APR for the initial one year. But afterwards, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%.

Get double Membership Rewards® points on everyday business purchases like office supplies or client suppers for the initial $50,000 spent per year. Then get 1 point per dollar afterwards.

So, you will need good to excellent credit scores to qualify.

Find it here: https://creditcard.americanexpress.com/d/bluebusinessplus-credit-card/

American Express® Blue Business Cash Card

Also check out the American Express® Blue Business Cash Card. Note: the American Express® Blue Business Cash Card is identical to the Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express. However its rewards are in cash as opposed to points.

Get 2% cash back on all eligible purchases on up to $50,000 per calendar year. But after that get 1%.

It has no yearly fee. There is a 0% introductory APR for the first twelve months. But after that, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%.

So, you will need good to excellent credit to qualify.

Find it here: https://creditcard.americanexpress.com/d/business-bluecash-credit-card/ 

First Credit Card to Build Credit for Cash Back

Flat-Rate Rewards and No Yearly Cost

Discover it® Business Card

Take a look at the Discover it® Business Card. It has no annual fee. There is an introductory APR of 0% on purchases for one year. But then the regular APR is a variable 14.49 – 22.49%.

You can get unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases, with no category restrictions or bonuses. They double the 1.5% Cashback Match™ at the end of the first year. There is no minimum spend requirement.

You can download transactions| quickly to Quicken, QuickBooks, and Excel. Keep in mind: you will need great to excellent credit scores to get approval for this card.

https://www.discover.com/credit-cards/business/

Bonus Categories

Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card

Take a look at the Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card. It has no yearly fee. There is a 0% introductory APR for the initial 12 months. Afterwards, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%. You can get a $500 one-time cash bonus after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening.

You can earn 5% cash back on the initial $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on web, cable, and phone services each account anniversary year.

Get 2% cash back on the initial $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gasoline stations and restaurants each account anniversary year. Get 1% cash back on all other purchases. There is no limitation to the amount you can earn.

So, you will need superb credit to receive this card.

Find it here: https://creditcards.chase.com/business-credit-cards/ink/cash?iCELL=61GF 

First Credit Card to Build Credit Suite

Establish business credit fast with our research-backed guide to 12 business credit cards and lines.

Boosted Cash Back Categories

Bank of America® Business Advantage Cash Rewards MasterCard® credit card

Take a look at the Bank of America® Business Advantage Cash Rewards MasterCard® credit card. Get an 0% introductory APR for the first 9 billing cycles of the account. Afterwards, the APR is 13.74% – 23.74% variable. There is no annual fee. You can get a $300 statement credit offer.

Get 3% cash back in the category of your choice. So these are gas stations (default), office supply stores, travel, TV/telecom & wireless, computer services or business consulting services. Get 2% cash back on dining. So this is for the initial $50,000 in combined choice category/dining purchases each calendar year. After that get 1% after, with no limits.

So, you will need superb credit to qualify.

Find it here: https://promo.bankofamerica.com/smallbusinesscards2/ 

First Credit Card to Build Credit with Flexible Financing

The Plum Card® from American Express

Have a look at the Plum Card® from American Express. It has an initial yearly fee of $0 for the first year. After that, pay $250 each year.

Get a 1.5% early pay discount cash back bonus when you pay within 10 days. You can take up to 60 days to pay without interest when you pay the minimum due by the payment due date.

So, you will need good to superb credit to qualify.

Find it here: https://creditcard.americanexpress.com/d/the-plum-card-business-charge-card/ 

Business Credit Cards for Jackpot Rewards That Never Expire

Capital One® Spark® Cash Select for Business

Take a look at the Capital One® Spark® Cash Select for Business. It has no yearly fee. You can get 1.5% cash back on every purchase. There is no limit on the cash back you can earn. And earn a one-time $200 cash bonus once you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first three months. Your rewards will never expire.

Pay a 0% introductory APR for 9 months. Then pay 14.49% – 22.49% variable APR afterwards.

So, you will need good to exceptional credit to qualify.

Find it here: https://www.capitalone.com/small-business/credit-cards/spark-cash-select/

The Very Best First Credit Card to Build Credit for Your Business

Your outright ideal first credit card to build credit for your business will depend upon your credit history and scores.

Only you can pick which features you want and need. So, always make sure to do your research. Because what is outstanding for you could be devastating for another person.

And, as always, make sure to establish credit in the advised order for the best, quickest benefits.

The post Get the Best First Credit Card to Build Credit appeared first on Credit Suite.

The Best Credit Card Processing Companies (In-Depth Review)

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There are many touchpoints along the customer journey. The transaction is of course one of the most important, if not the most important.

So, the way in which you accept payments matters for both you and the customer. You need to have the right software and/or hardware in place to make sure transactions are simple and secure for both parties. 

Not only that, as a business owner you need to know that you’re not shelling out cash on inferior services or unnecessary additional fees.

Therefore, this post will cover everything you need to know about choosing the right credit card processing company. Plus, I’ll introduce my top picks for a wide range of businesses of different sizes and with different needs.

The Top 10 Credit Card Processing Companies

  1. Square
  2. PayPal
  3. FIS
  4. Stripe
  5. Payline Data
  6. Fiserv
  7. BitPay
  8. Adyen
  9. Dharma Merchant Services
  10. Fattmerchant

How to Choose the Best Credit Card Processing Company for You

Here are some key elements to consider when choosing the right credit card processing company for you:

1. Fees

Look at the payment terms and fees carefully. Different companies offer different pricing models and things can start to get a little complex.

Firstly, there are interchange fees, which is the percentage taken by the company on every transaction made. Full-service credit card processing companies also take a monthly fee. There may also be additional costs, such as setup or monthly minimum fees.

2. Accepted Payment Methods

Nowadays, you need a payment processing company that accepts more than just debit and credit cards. Digital wallets like PayPal, Google Pay or Apple Pay have become extremely popular. 

3. Customer Experience

When shopping, customers want the entire experience to be quick and easy. This is particularly important in e-commerce where the checkout process needs to be streamlined. 

In fact, a long and complicated checkout process is the number three reason why consumers abandon their carts in 2020.

It’s also vital that the payment gateway is secure because obviously we’re dealing with sensitive data here. So, look for elements such as PCI compliance and encryption.

4. User Experience

Of course, you or your staff are going to be the ones actually using these systems. Thus, the software, apps and/or hardware need to be user-friendly.

Furthermore, with tech, there’s likely to be a glitch or an issue at some point. This means that you need a credit card processing company that offers superior customer support. The reason being, the longer your payment processor is down, the more sales you lose.

Now you know what you need to consider when researching credit card processing companies, let’s take a look at how they work.

The Different Types of Credit Card Processing Company

There are two main types of credit card processing company. Here’s the 411:

Credit Card Processor

A credit card processor is the go-between that takes care of transactions. The processor takes the funds from the customer’s account and deposits them in your merchant account. It also ensures that the transaction information is correct, the customer has sufficient funds and notifies the payment gateway that the transaction was successful.

Full-Service Credit Card Processor & Merchant Account

Full-service providers do the same as credit card processors but also provide a merchant account, meaning you don’t need an additional merchant account with a bank. These providers tend to offer lower interchange fees but also charge a monthly fee and additional fees, such as the above-mentioned setup fees and so on.

Depending on the size of your operation and the volume of payments you receive, you’ll have to calculate which type of credit card processing company is going to keep costs low overall. Look for companies that are transparent and straightforward about the way in which they operate and take fees.

#1 – Square — The Best for Ease of Use

Square is a hugely popular, low-fee credit card processing company for online and brick-and-mortar stores.

Its POS app is rich in features and easy-to-use. Square is also known for providing an exceptional, frictionless range of POS systems:

Bonus: you can get the software and Square Reader for free.

The beauty of Square truly lies in its simplicity. The company offers a transparent, straightforward pricing model: 2.6% + 10¢ for every tap (mobile payment), dip (chip card) or swipe (magstripe card) on the POS and 2.9% + 30¢ for e-commerce transactions.

Other benefits include active fraud prevention, end-to-end encryption, a quick sign-up process and live phone support.

Essentially, Square is an easy-to-use all-rounder that would be an excellent choice for a wide range of businesses.

#2 – PayPal Commerce Platform Review — The Best for Individuals & Low-Volume Sellers

You’re no doubt familiar with PayPal (unless you’ve been living under a rock), but you may not be as familiar with its commerce platform.

With the PayPal Commerce Platform you can take payments online, in-store, on-the-go with an iZettle card reader, by QR code, over the phone and via social shopping links:

If you’re a solopreneur or small business just starting out then the platform is a fantastic choice for you. PayPal offers a flat-rate system where you only pay for the processing services you use.

The other great thing about PayPal is that it’s a highly recognizable and trusted brand. Therefore, advertising the fact that you accept PayPal payments could lead to more conversions.

Overall, the PayPal Commerce Platform is a secure, user-friendly and low-cost solution for beginners, individuals and low-volume sellers.

#3 – FIS — The Best for Small Businesses

FIS (formerly Worldpay) is a global banking software provider that offers payment processing solutions for large enterprises, small businesses and e-commerce stores.

However, this company puts most of its focus on small businesses, serving a range of industries including grocery, retail, restaurants, personal and professional services: 

And this is where FIS really shines as they work directly with small businesses to give them competitive terms and rates. You must contact FIS for a quote.

FIS also stands out as a great provider because of their superior 24/7/365 customer support. Furthermore, their software integrates with 1000+ POS systems which is great if you don’t wish to purchase one of their smart terminals.

FIS is the choice for you if you own a small business and want a customizable solution.

#4 – Stripe — The Best for Internet Businesses

Stripe was designed with a range of online businesses in mind, including e-commerce, mobile commerce, subscription services, marketplaces and other platforms. So, if you’re primarily a web-based business then Stripe is the choice for you.

What also makes it the best choice for online businesses is that the company provides tons of pre-built integrations and ready-made checkout forms for major e-commerce platforms, subscription services and the like:

There’s a simple pay-as-you-go pricing model of 2.9% + 30¢ with no additional monthly or setup fees. 

Stripe is also one of the most technologically-advanced solutions out there with its dedication to improving the platform and machine learning models for intelligent optimizations.

If you’re looking for a competitively-priced credit card processor that will integrate easily with your online business, choose Stripe.

#5 – Payline Data — The Best for High-Risk Merchants

Payline Data offers in-person, online and mobile payment solutions for companies of varying sizes. 

It’s the best option for high-risk merchants that struggle to get approved for accounts elsewhere. Thanks to its partnerships with major banks and premiere support team, Payline Data is able to simplify high-risk account management.

Payline Data’s pricing model is a little more complex than other options with setup, monthly and other additional fees involved. Take a look:

However, you can work out exactly what your monthly costs will be using their payment calculator tool.

Another advantage of using Payline Data is its integrations with major POS, shopping cart and accounting software providers, along with developer APIs for a customizable solution.

As long as you consider the costs carefully, this could be the simplest and cheapest option for those looking for a high-risk merchant account.

#6 – Fiserv — The Best for High-Volume Retailers

This company provides a convenient, secure and reliable payment processing service as well as end-to-end accounting services, if you require them.

What makes Fiserv the best choice for high-volume retailers is the fact that you can negotiate favorable interchange-plus pricing and terms. Or you can opt for flat-rate pricing via its Clover platform.

Having recently merged with international payment processing leader First Data, Fiserv is also a great option for those who operate globally. 

Seven out of the ten largest digital merchants trust Fiserv. Plus, retailers can accept a range of payment methods that are popular around the world, such as Alipay.

Fiserv is the right choice for more experienced, high-volume and global retailers.

#7 – BitPay — The Best for Accepting Crypto

Though technically not a credit card processing company, BitPay is a forward-thinking payment processing company for those who want to add crypto into the mix.

Owned by Shark Tank powerhouse, Mark Cuban, BitPay allows you to accept a range of cryptocurrencies online, via email and in-store. 

The way it works is simple – the customer gets an invoice, they pay in crypto at a locked-in exchange rate, BitPay converts the payment into your local currency and you receive the payment in your account the next day:

Due to the nature of crypto, you can accept payments from around the globe without having to worry about fraudulent purchases. What’s more, BitPay promises a flat rate fee of 1% and no hidden fees. 

So, if you’d like to expand your reach and gain access to the crypto market, BitPay is for you.

#8 – Adyen — The Best for Growing Enterprises

Adyen isn’t for newbies. It counts the likes of Uber, Virgin Hotels, Hunter and Spotify among its customers. So, it’s perfect for growing enterprises that are ready to take their business to the next level. 

You can benefit from transaction optimization to help you get the most revenue from your sales, as well as in-depth reporting on the platform to better understand your customers and aid growth:

Fees vary depending on the payment method used. Yet, Adyen provides a transparent list of all fees for each payment method on their site.

Other benefits include data-driven security, fraud prevention and access to a dedicated team of payment specialists who will provide you with expert advice.

Overall, if you’re focused on growth, Adyen is the perfect partner.

#9 – Dharma Merchant Services — The Best for Quick Service Payments

Dharma is a low-fee credit card processor that specializes in retail and quick service transactions. In other words, if you own a restaurant, bar, fast food joint or other quick service business then this is a great choice for you.

The company offers a low fee of 0.15% and $0.07 per transaction above interchange for storefronts and restaurants:

Plus, the virtual terminal and app are free. The e-commerce rate is slightly higher at 0.20% + $0.10.

With Dharma, you also benefit from exceptional customer service. If you’re new to credit card processing you can get a free consultation and ask all of the questions you need to. Plus, they offer 24/7 tech support.

Choose Dharma if you own a quick service business and need support along the way.

#10 – Fattmerchant — The Best for Professional Services

Fattmerchant provides a range of smart payment processing solutions, but really nails it when it comes to professional service providers.

The reason being, the platform offers the ability to send invoices and retrieve recurring payments quickly and easily. There’s also the option to create payment links and even buttons to take payments for subscription services.

The platform has features which will speed up your business processes through automation, e.g. automated payment reminders:

Fattmerchant offers a different pricing model to many other credit card processing companies. There’s a flat rate subscription fee starting at $99 but 0% markup on interchange and no pesky additional fees.

Essentially, Fattmerchant’s software is a fantastic choice for a range of businesses, but especially for those in professional services or that take recurring payments.

Summing Up

Naturally, there are several criteria to consider when choosing a credit card processing company. Often it will depend on the type of business you run and the volume of payments you take.

Furthermore, some options are better suited to smaller businesses or beginners while others provide more advanced solutions for experienced, higher-volume companies.

Above all, you want a company that offers transparency, security, strong customer support, great software and hardware and the right pricing model to suit your needs.

Now it’s over to you to explore these top providers further and make the right choice.

The post The Best Credit Card Processing Companies (In-Depth Review) appeared first on Neil Patel.

Best Accounting Software

Disclosure: This content is reader-supported, which means if you click on some of our links that we may earn a commission.

82% of businesses fail because of poor cash flow management and subpar accounting practices. Yikes. It’s no secret that accounting is hard — and there’s a reason people spend their entire lives learning how to do it well. 

But there’s good news. 

You can avoid becoming a part of this statistic without heading to university to get a Bachelor’s (or Master’s) degree in accounting.

Enter… modern-day accounting software. It exists to help even the smallest businesses improve their bookkeeping processes, save time, and make fewer costly mistakes. 

Plus, understanding your numbers can lead to smarter business decisions and improved overall business health/performance as well.

However, choosing the best accounting software isn’t easy, thanks to the thousands of options on the market. Which one offers everything you need without a slew of confusing features you’ll never use? 

If you’re not sure how to answer that question, you’re in the right place. This article covers how to choose the right software, the different types of software, and my top five recommendations. 

Let’s get started!

The top 5 options for accounting software: 

  1. FreshBooks – Best for freelancers and solopreneurs
  2. QuickBooks – Best accounting software for small businesses
  3. Zoho Books – Best for businesses with 50+ customers/vendors
  4. Sage50 Cloud – Best desktop accounting solution
  5. Wave – Best free accounting software

How to choose the best accounting software for you 

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all accounting solution for every business in every industry. Furthermore, the size and complexity of your business play a role as well. 

Because of this, it’s critical to understand your budget and software requirements before making any decisions. To help you out, these are the criteria I considered when creating this list. 

Feel free to use them as you go through the process of making your final choice. 

Number of clients, vendors, and users

It’s important to consider the number of clients and vendors you manage because certain plans limit the number you’re allowed to have. So be sure to pay close attention to the limitations of each plan before making your final decision. 

Furthermore, you need to know how many user accounts you need as well. Some of the basic plans included in this list limit the number of users to one or two. 

So, you may need to upgrade to an advanced plan to accommodate your needs if you need more than that. 

Mobile accessibility

Make sure the software you choose offers a mobile app so you can manage payments, invoices, and cash flow on the go. It may not seem like an important feature now, but you never know when (and where) you need to access your accounts or send an invoice.

Client management

The best accounting software includes intuitive features that let you follow up on invoices and a portal where your clients can pay you. With internal client management tools, revenue and accounting are centralized in one location to simplify the process. 

Plus, it’s easier on your clients. 

Billing and invoicing

Most accounting software includes invoicing functionality but in different capacities. Some offer highly customizable invoices while others are easier to use with fewer customization options. 

Furthermore, the software you choose should make paying invoices as easy as possible for your clients. Some other billing and invoicing features to consider include:

  • Automatic payment reminders
  • Payment due dates
  • Late fees
  • Recurring invoices
  • Ability to save client information
  • Payment processing options
  • One-click payments

Lastly, consider the payment processing fees associated with each software. Most charge a set percentage plus a small fee for credit card transactions and 1% for ACH transfers. 

Receipt management

Many modern accounting tools make it easy to categorize and store digital versions of your receipts. All you have to do is snap a photo of your receipt and attach it to the associated expense in your account. 

However, not every software includes this. So, if this is something you’re interested in, be sure to choose an accounting software with receipt management capabilities. 

Banking

Connecting your bank accounts and credit cards to your accounting software makes account reconciliation a breeze. It also reduces the chances of human errors when making manual entries. 

However, not every software offers this capability on basic plans (but all of my top recommendations do). 

So make sure you opt for a software that includes this functionality.  

Integrations

It’s important to consider the tools you’re already using to run your business. Why? Because the best accounting software for you integrates seamlessly into your tech stack with minimal hassle or headache. 

So before you get started, make a list of everything you need and the tools you already use. 

Then, make sure the top contenders on your list include your full requirements and the necessary integrations. 

You can even schedule a call with a sales rep for each accounting software to walk through your list of requirements to make sure they can handle everything you’re looking for. 

The different types of accounting software

When it comes to accounting software, you have several options. Some of them are better than others, but the best choice for you depends on your situation. 

So let’s walk through your options before we dive into my top recommendations. 

DIY spreadsheets

Spreadsheets are a free, DIY option if you’re on a tight budget. They work okay if you’re just getting started and have a limited number of business transactions. 

However, they’re not a long term solution and they leave a lot of room for human error. 

If you’re looking for a free option, I highly recommend Wave as an alternative. 

Cloud-based accounting software

Most modern-day accounting software is cloud-based, making it easily accessible from anywhere with an internet connection. 

And it’s usually billed on a monthly basis, scalable, affordable, easy to use, and built for small to midsize businesses. 

Every option on this list falls under this category. 

Database accounting software

This is a type of highly secure accounting software specific to enterprises and large businesses. 

It’s very expensive and requires an in-house team of engineers and/or financial specialists to install and maintain. 

Because of that, I didn’t include this type of software in my research. 

Now, let’s dive into my top accounting software recommendations based on the size of your business and your specific needs. 

#1 – FreshBooks Review — The best for freelancers and solopreneurs

If you’re a freelancer, solopreneur, or small business, FreshBooks is a great accounting software to consider. To date, they serve more than 10 million businesses around the world. 

And the software complies with double-entry accounting standards, providing you with more in-depth insight into your finances and business transactions. 

FreshBooks specializes in invoicing, but the tool also includes small business features, like:

  • Time and expense tracking
  • Recurring invoices
  • Automatic payment reminders
  • Automatic late fees
  • Multiple currencies
  • Project management
  • Client proposals
  • Tax calculations
  • Reporting and analytics

Furthermore, your account dashboard includes a birds-eye view of your business’s financial health. It shows outstanding invoices, total profit, revenue by source, expenses, and unbilled time all in one centralized location. 

Plus, you can manage your books on the go using their robust mobile app. 

And the software integrates with over 200+ business tools like Shopify, G Suite, Stripe, Zoom, Squarespace, and Gusto. So, you don’t have to worry about incompatibility with most of the tools you already use. 

But like most accounting software, FreshBooks charges a transaction fee of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction for credit cards and 1% for ACH transfers. However, these fees are pretty standard across the industry, and you don’t have to worry about any additional hidden costs. 

Their paid plans start at $6 per month for up to five clients making it very affordable for freelancers, solopreneurs, and small business owners alike. 

However, FreshBooks can scale alongside your business with other plans, including:

  1. Plus — $10 per month for up to 50 clients
  2. Premium — $20 per month for up to 500 clients
  3. Select — custom pricing for more than 500 clients

Sign up for a free trial to take FreshBooks for a test drive today! Alternatively, you can save 50% off your first three months. However, you have to choose one offer or the other. 

#2 – QuickBooks Review — The best accounting software for small businesses

If you’re running a small business or starting a new business from scratch, QuickBooks is a popular choice — and for a good reason. In fact, over 5.6 million users around the world trust them for their accounting needs. 

From small businesses to self-employed individuals, QuickBooks offers an array of excellent accounting solutions to match your needs. 

Furthermore, you can choose from cloud-based, desktop, or POS system deployment, depending on your situation. However, I highly recommend the cloud-based solution for most businesses. 

Plus, the online software integrates with apps like PayPal, Square, and Shopify to simplify cash flow management in one centralized location. 

With their online solution, you can easily access your account anywhere globally with an internet connection. Plus, you can use the mobile app to take pictures of your bills and receipts rather than filing a heap of paper receipts in your office. 

You also get access to features like:

  • Customizable invoices
  • Income and expense tracking
  • GPS mileage tracking
  • Automatic sales tax calculations
  • Bank and credit card integration
  • Expense categories
  • Standard reporting

And you can easily upgrade to an advanced plan if you outgrow the basic plan or need more advanced features. Some of their advanced features include 1099 management, inventory management, and time/attendance tracking. 

So regardless of what you need, there’s a plan to suit your needs. 

The cheapest plan starts at $25 per month. And you can add payroll services to your plan, starting at an extra $45 per month + $4 per employee per month with more advanced options available.

Furthermore, QuickBooks charges $0.25 + 2.9% for invoices, 2.4% for swipes, and 3.4% for keyed payments per transaction. Alternatively, they charge 1% for ACH transfers. And you can save up to 40% on transaction fees if you charge more than $7,500 per month. 

Like FreshBooks, QuickBooks offers a 30-day free trial OR 50% off your first three months. 

Get started with QuickBooks today!

#3 – Zoho Books Review — The best for businesses with 50+ customers/vendors

If you manage many clients and vendors, Zoho Books is one of the most affordable accounting software to consider. Their cheapest plan includes up to 50 billable clients, and they also have packages for up to 500 billable clients as well.

So, you don’t have to worry about exceeding your monthly limits. 

Furthermore, Zoho Books includes access to powerful features like:

  • Tax compliance tools
  • Custom quotes and estimates
  • Automatic payment reminders
  • Vendor and expense tracking
  • Inventory management
  • Automatic bank feeds
  • Time tracking
  • Customizable invoices
  • Role-based access
  • 40+ integrations

Zoho Books also offers an intuitive mobile app for managing your accounts on the go. With the app, you can track your mileage, reach out to customers, track your time, create invoices, and more. 

Each plan also includes a private client portal for accepting payments, unlimited phone and email customer support, free SSL encryption, and open rest APIs to connect with third-party applications. 

Furthermore, Zoho offers a wide range of other business tools that integrate seamlessly together. Running a subscription-based business? Or need advanced inventory management? Maybe you need extensive expense reporting for your team. 

Odds are, Zoho offers what you need. You can bundle tools together to save money and create a custom business management system for your business. 

I highly recommend starting with the Basic Plan ($9 per month) and upgrading to an advanced plan when and if you need to. The Basic Plan includes up to 50 contacts, two separate user accounts, and five automated workflows to simplify your accounting processes. 

Zoho’s advanced plans include:

  • Standard — $19 per month for up to 500 contacts
  • Professional — $29 per month for more than 500 contacts

All of which are very affordable for businesses of all sizes. Furthermore, you can add extra users and 50 auto-scans for $2/month and $5/month, respectively. 

Sign up for a 14-day free trial to see if Zoho Books is right for you today!

#4 – Sage 50Cloud Review — The best desktop accounting solution

Sage 50Cloud is a desktop accounting application seamlessly connected to the cloud. So, you get the speed and reliability of a desktop software paired with the flexibility and remote accessibility of using the cloud. 

Furthermore, Sage offers cloud-based accounting software, so you’re not limited to the desktop application if that’s not your thing. However, their desktop solution is where they really shine. 

You can securely access your accounts anywhere, anytime, allowing you to work when you want and how you want. So, you’re not limited to your desktop computer despite the benefits of using desktop software. 

Plus, as the #1 rated accounting solution for small businesses, it includes features like:

  • Cash flow management
  • Flexible invoicing
  • Recurring invoices
  • Pay Now functionality
  • Accounts payable + banking
  • Automatic reconciliation
  • Advanced inventory management
  • Job and project costing
  • Payroll processing

As you can see, Sage 50Cloud includes a robust set of features you typically have to pay extra for with the other options on this list (i.e., payroll). 

And with those advanced features comes an advanced price tag. 

So if you’re looking for basic accounting software, you’re better off going with FreshBooks or QuickBooks. However, if you need these advanced features, pricing starts at $50.58 per user per month. 

Their paid plans include:

  • Pro Accounting — $50.58 per month for simple accounting
  • Premium Accounting — $78.25 per month for advanced features
  • Quantum Accounting — $131.66 per month for all features

However, you can save a bit more by choosing an annual plan and paying in advance. Additionally, you can subscribe to Microsoft 365 for an extra $150 per year. 

You can try Sage’s cloud-based accounting software free for 30 days with no installations and no credit card required. After that, you can purchase Sage 50Cloud if it’s a good fit for your business. 

Get started today!

#5 – Wave Review — The best free accounting software

If you have a tight budget or need a simple accounting solution, Wave is an excellent choice. It’s an award-winning finance software for entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes. 

Plus… their accounting features are entirely free with no hidden fees or monthly payments. However, they charge a standard transaction fee of 2.9% (3.4% for American Express) + $0.30 for credit cards and 1% for ACH transfers. 

You can also add payroll services starting at $20 per month. But accounting, invoicing, and receipt scanning are all free forever. 

This free accounting software includes features like:

  • Unlimited income and expense tracking
  • Unlimited collaborators and accountants
  • Double-entry accounting system
  • Powerful reporting and analytics
  • Bank + credit card connections
  • Tax categories
  • Recurring invoices
  • Automatic payment reminders
  • Unlimited receipt scanning
  • 2-business-day payouts

Plus, you get unlimited email support, as well. And if you’re wondering how Wave stays in business, it’s through their transaction fees and payroll services. So, yes. The software really is free forever, with no hidden fees. 

Furthermore, you can download Wave’s mobile app to access and manage your accounts on the go from anywhere with an internet connection. 

Sign up for a free account to get started today!

Summary

I recommend FreshBooks (for freelancers and individuals) or QuickBooks (for small teams). These two solutions are suitable for most users. They’re incredibly affordable, easy to use, and scalable. Plus, they include all your essential accounting features.

And if you’re on a tight budget, Wave is an excellent free alternative. 

However, the best accounting software for you depends on what you need and what you can afford. So, feel free to use the characteristics we talked about as you go through the process of choosing the right software for your business. 

What’s your favorite accounting software?

The post Best Accounting Software appeared first on Neil Patel.

The 5 Best SEO Companies of 2020

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Anywhere you find a cube of sugar in the open, you’ll find ants. 

Today, the SEO service providers’ industry, valued over $65 billion, is like a cube of sugar. It’s why you’ll find countless SEO companies scrambling for a piece of that sugary cake. 

And where does that leave you, a business owner eager to reach Google’s top pages, generate qualified traffic, and drive sales?

Insanity!

With all this confusion, I sense you came here pondering: 

  • How do I filter vetted SEO companies?
  • How can I find a top SEO company that doesn’t need ads to rank its website organically?

You’ll find the answer to those questions here. 

And that’s not all. 

You’ll also see the SEO companies that go beyond vanity metrics and deliver real business results.

The 5 Top SEO Companies in The World

  1. Neil Patel Digital (best for SEO content marketing)
  2. Voice SEO (best for Voice search) 
  3. ReachLocal (best for local SEO) 
  4. FATJOE (best for backlinks’ acquisition)
  5. OuterBox (best for eCommerce SEO) 

In the past, you could hire any Tom and Harry to stuff keywords into a page or website you wanted to rank, and it’ll make its way to Google’s 1st page.

Not anymore. 

In short, the constant evolution of SEO has reached a tipping point where ranking alone doesn’t guarantee business results—qualified traffic, leads, and sales. 

To get the most out of any SEO investment today, you need a holistic strategy. 

And a holistic SEO strategy must blend your website code, information architecture (IA), and content marketing with context to not only make your business discoverable online but valuable to customers.

Take this guide you’re reading, for example. If it wasn’t valuable to you, would you still be reading?

You’re experiencing excellent SEO execution at play here. 

Done well, it drives relevant website visits. But most importantly, it uses high-quality content to engage and convert visitors into leads and customers.  

I’m confident the best SEO companies we reviewed below will do no different. Hire any of them, and you’ll attract and convert visitors into leads and customers.

#1 Neil Patel Digital – Best For SEO Content Marketing 

Yeah, we’re tooting our own horn, and it’s not because charity begins at home. 

We’ve earned our place on this list. 

First things first, Neil Patel Digital was founded by hardcore marketers who walk the talk, and not some random wannabe. If you type “SEO strategies” into Google from anywhere in the world, you’ll find well-crafted content by our Co-founder, Neil Patel, on the 3rd and 4th organic positions: 

And that’s but the tip of the iceberg. 

We generate millions of organic search traffic—about 3.5 million to be precise, to my blog. No ads, only through SEO-optimized content marketing:

As you can see from the snapshot above, through these efforts, our Co-Founder has accumulated more than 1.7 million organic keywords with over 3 million websites across the globe linking back to his content pieces. 

To build a rock-solid SEO content marketing company you can rely on, I also partnered with other marketing veterans to form Neil Patel Digital:

Together, the executive team here in Neil Patel Digital has garnered over five decades of hands-on experience. And this excludes other top-level, in-house marketing managers. 

In short, SEO-optimized content marketing is one of the prime reasons customers, from startups to enterprise brands, trust Neil Patel Digital to deliver top-notch search engine optimization strategies: 

If you’re just starting with search engine optimization or seek better results, it’s best to start with content marketing. 

Content is the bedrock that drives all other online marketing campaigns. 

It’s how you got here; it’s how your customers will find you, too. 

And not only is SEO-optimized content marketing Neil Patel Digital’s core offering, but we’ve also developed battle-tested programs we can bet our life on: 

Since you’re still here, get your free consultation with Neil Patel Digital here. 

#2 Voice SEO – Best For Voice SEO

No, this company didn’t name themselves Voice SEO for the fun of it. They’re the #1 ranked voice SEO company by TopSEOs. 

And that’s for a reason. 

Voice SEO took it upon themselves to study the trends surrounding how people use spoken commands—instead of typing words to query the search engines. From there, they discovered the ever-increasing use of voice search and positioned themselves as the go-to company for voice SEO.

If you own any of Siri, Google Echo, or Alexa devices, or you know someone who does, that should give an idea of the growing importance to optimize your website for voice. 

But, if you don’t, I’ll quickly let you in on it. 

Over 31% of smartphone users across the world use voice technology at least once weekly. Another research projected 50% of all online searches in 2020 to be voice-based. And by 2022, over 55% of households are expected to have voice search-enabled devices. 

These stats all point to one direction: The time to optimize your website for voice search is now. 

And that’s where Voice SEO, as the name suggests, comes in. 

This company started as a small team of SEO experts focused on putting their SEO skills to good use, helping businesses like them to grow. 

Through this intense passion for excellence, Voice SEO followed the highest standards in the industry, particularly in voice search engine optimization. 

Although there are no client testimonials to their name, they have garnered accreditations, which shows they know their onions to deserve a place on this list: 

#3 ReachLocal – Best For Local SEO 

ReachLocal is the go-to company for strategic local SEO executions. And their experience, results, and high-value partnerships speak for itself.

Founded in 2004, their expertise in the local SEO niche has generated over 201 million local leads for about 19,000 clients worldwide. 

With offices in five continents, they’re a Google Premier Partner, and Bing Ads Certified specialists, and others. ReachLocal proudly partners with Google, Yelp, Yahoo!, Bing, and Facebook to help businesses optimize their local search engine optimization strategies and drive in-store customers. 

Local SEO Companies, a domain that vets and ranks top local SEO practitioners, ranked ReachLocal as the best for local SEO strategies. 

And not only that, across several review sites, this company’s experience and attention to detail have seen them receive 4.5/5-star ratings from happy customers: 

#4 FatJoe – Best For Backlink Acquisition 

Search engines interpret the relative importance of your web pages and websites as a whole, using the number of backlinks pointing to them. 

In order words, the more backlinks you acquire, the more the search engines see your site as authoritative. 

And the more it’ll rank your site over those of your competitors for competitive keywords. 

When it comes to acquiring backlinks for SEO, FATJOE comes highly recommended by us. They’ll help you generate high-value backlinks, and you can rest assured because even other SEO agencies turn to them for the same. 

FATJOE has grown to become one of the world’s largest outsourced link building agencies, serving over 5,000 clients worldwide.

When you sign up for FATJOE’s SEO link building services, you get premium access to every tool you need: A dashboard to manage and track your orders, and their Blogger Outreach product to find and reach relevant websites to build links from. 

About 97% of customers who use FATJOE rates them a 4.5/5, and even though they’re more positioned for agencies—because they do link building a lot.

#5 OuterBox – Best for eCommerce SEO 

OuterBox, an SEO and performance marketing company focused on eCommerce brands, is our pick for eCommerce SEO. 

If you own an eCommerce website and seek a talented group of dedicated people to power your business through the search engines, you should look OuterBox’s way. 

Founded in 2004, this company earned the list of Inc. 500 fastest growing companies in the US, having served hundreds of customers across several eCommerce sectors. 

Their clientele speaks for itself: NewAir, AtlasOil, JetDock, UCFS, and others. 

And it doesn’t matter which eCommerce platform you’ve built your business with. Be it WooCommerce, Magento, Shopify, Drupal, or others; you can rely on OuterBox for effective eCommerce search engine optimization: 

5 Characteristics That Make a Great SEO Company

You’ll find hundreds, if not thousands, of SEO companies out there.

So, let’s say you wanted to go out of our vetted list to find one for yourself. What are the characteristics that make a great SEO company you should be looking out for? 

They are as follows. 

1. Experience and Process for Implementing SEO

When it comes to SEO these days, anyone with a laptop, access to the internet, and a WordPress-installed blog can boast of being an SEO company. 

What you won’t see behind those claims, however, is the experience and process they take to deliver results. 

You should always lookout for this. 

Scroll their website, do a simple Google search and see if they show up on the search engine’s organic positions. If they don’t, it means they have little to no experience nor implemented what they claim to deliver. 

Can you give what you don’t have?

Likewise, a fundamental characteristic of a great SEO company is that they have experience implementing SEO for themselves first. 

And they have a process, showing you how they go about getting results: 

2. An Impressive Portfolio

The idea of showing off portfolios has become a characteristic of great SEO companies today. And the reason for this is simple. 

They’re proud of the businesses they’ve helped increase rankings on Google and driven traffic to get leads and sales. 

But, this idea to show off their portfolio does you more good. 

Scroll through it, and you’ll see the kind of clients they’ve worked with or frequently work with. From here, decide if you want to be in that mix and get similar results. 

For example, at Neil Patel Digital, here are some clients in our work portfolio:

3. Thought Leadership 

SEO is always evolving. 

Today it’s Google’s RankBrain. Before you know it, it’s Panda. And just when you thought that one would stay, Hummingbird hits you right in the face. 

And those are major updates. In one year alone, Google makes upwards of 3,200 updates to its search engine algorithms. 

How can you—one focused on managing your business, keep tabs with all these changes?

You need thought-leadership, and that’s a characteristic of great SEO companies. 

Look out if they’re keeping up with SEO best practices as they evolve, and sharing tips to help businesses adjust for maximum impact: 

4. Real Life Testimonials

Who wouldn’t toot his own horn?

Definitely not search engine optimization companies. Developing winning SEO strategies, managing its implementation, and guiding teams on its execution to generate results is hard. 

When an SEO company does all this hard work and gets those fantastic results, their customers reward them with testimonials, having got value for their money. 

Thus, sharing real-life testimonials is a characteristic you’ll find with most great SEO organizations: 

5. A Complete Team of Leaders, Managers, and Executors

Just as no man is an island, turning SEO ideas into higher rankings, website visitors, leads, and sales needs a diverse team of specialists. 

When an SEO company makes too many promises without showing you the team to make it happen, hold tight. Why? 

Because that’s a red flag they’ll charge you a premium and outsource your job for pennies on the dollar overseas or Fiverr for $5. 

From strategic leaders to managers and different teams of specialists to execute your strategy, great SEO companies are proud to show off their amazing team members: 

What to Expect from a Great SEO Company

So far, I’ve listed our recommended SEO companies and highlighted the characteristics that make a great search engine optimization company, suppose you decide to find one yourself. 

Either way, after making a choice, what should you expect from a great SEO company?

1. Discovery session 

Your decision to work with an SEO company may come from the need to rank your site higher, generate more traffic, drive sales, or all three. 

But, no business case and needs are exactly the same. The SEO strategies that worked for another company won’t work automatically for yours. 

Great SEO companies, from experience working with different organizations, know this. Thus, they’re not quick to send proposals. Instead, to help you, they allow you to share your unique needs and business case in a discovery session: 

2. Research and Recommendations

After sharing your needs and business case with an SEO company, they take what you tell them and use their expertise to conduct in-depth research. 

They do this to get the right context needed to bring themselves on the same page with you, your target audience, and industry. 

After they’ve performed this research, expect a great SEO company to share their recommendations of what you need to do to get maximum results. This, they can do over another discovery call or via email. 

3. Contract with Deliverables

If your discovery session and follow-up conversations with an SEO company looks like a good fit for the exchange of mutual value, you’ll receive a contract for your business. 

However, a great SEO company won’t only send you any contract. In it, expect to see a detailed list of what they’ll deliver, how they plan to deliver it, and when you should start expecting results. 

4. Onboarding, Project Scoping, and Management

To help you, an SEO company would need access to some of your assets. 

Depending on your work scope, this could include your in-house staff, website or blog access, your analytics login codes, etc. 

So, to forge a smooth partnership with your company, expect your team to go through a detailed onboarding process from a great SEO company. 

From this onboarding process, they’ll also scope your project, timelines, and establish an understanding of how they’ll manage your project. 

Conclusion: Give SEO Time

SEO takes time before its results start to manifest. 

You should start expecting results from SEO in about 100 days. 

Any company that promises you overnight successes doesn’t know SEO well enough or what they’re doing. 

In short, great SEO companies don’t make wild promises; they show you what’s possible and how they’ll work hard to achieve it. 

If you give them time, you’ll start seeing results—qualified traffic, leads, and sales. 

And once things pick up, it’s like a flywheel, always getting better as long as you continue to work with a great SEO company.

The post The 5 Best SEO Companies of 2020 appeared first on Neil Patel.

Best VPN Services

The pandemic has changed work permanently. Before COVID-19, only 9.8 million (out of 140 civilian workers in the U.S.) worked remotely. Today, almost 70 million people are working remotely. 

Are you working remotely?

If you are, there’s a good chance that you’ll need a virtual private network (VPN). If you’re running a small business and your employees need to work remotely, you need a VPN as well. Today, we’re going to take a look at VPNs — what they are, why you need them, and how to find the VPN that’s right for you. 

What’s a VPN, and Why Do You Need One? 

A VPN is a private network that’s run through a public network — imagine that a remote worker sitting in Starbucks had an extra-long Ethernet cable. They plug one end into their computer, and the other end directly into their company’s servers at work. 

That’s basically what a VPN does; it creates a secure and encrypted tunnel from your computer to a server on the internet. This is great because it means no one can access the data you’re sharing with your computer and company server. You have privacy and data security. We’re going to look at seven of the top VPN Services, explaining the pros and cons of each service. 

Our 7 Picks For Best VPN Services:

  1. Perimeter 81 
  2. NordVPN Teams
  3. ExpressVPN 
  4. VyprVPN
  5. SurfShark
  6. Mullvad
  7. TunnelBear

How to Choose the Best VPN Service for You

When you’re looking for a VPN, the first thing you’ll want to do is identify your needs. What do you want your VPN to do for you? What kinds of things do you need from your VPN? In general, most people focus their attention on four specific criteria. 

Criteria #1: Speed and Reliability

If you’re planning on using your VPN for things that require a lot of data or activity, you’ll want to choose a service that’s optimized for speed and reliability. If you’re sharing large files routinely or you’re streaming video consistently, you’ll want to select a VPN that provides unlimited connections, unlimited bandwidth, and high download and upload speeds. 

When it comes to speed and reliability, there are factors you control and factors your service provider controls. 

  • Factors you control: Improving Wi-Fi stability, using a wired connection (which is always faster), upgrading your internet connection speeds, or upgrading your VPN. You can also choose a VPN service with more servers or servers closer to your desired location. 
  • Factors you don’t control: Number of servers, server load, or server location/distance – longer distance = slower speeds. International bandwidth restrictions (i.e., VPNs in Australia are slow due to underwater fiber optic cables carrying a set amount of data at any one time) and VPN protocols also impact speed. And another thing, complicated peering relationships between networks, also reduces speed.

You’ll want to test your VPN speed so you can verify the claims your provider is making. You’ll need two things to do that — an accurate testing method and a baseline for your tests. Here are some of the more reliable speed tests you can use to verify your VPN speeds. 

Next, run a speed test on the same connection, with and without your VPN. If you’re on Wi-Fi, stay on Wi-Fi for both tests. Run the tests twice to get an average speed. Run your tests using the same VPN server/location you plan on using with your service. 

Criteria #2: Security and Privacy

VPNs should be secure by default; the VPN service you choose should have the basics of security and privacy protection down. Here are the most important security and privacy requirements you’ll need to consider when choosing a VPN. 

Security

  • Handshake encryption: This takes place at the beginning of the VPN session where you and the server you’re communicating with exchange private keys that encrypt or decrypt data and messages to acknowledge each other.  
  • Authentication: Reputable VPN services will use a hash algorithm to automatically verify the packets they receive, making sure that data from a middleman hasn’t been injected into your packet. They’ll also verify that your data hasn’t been tampered with or changed in any way. 
  • Ciphers: This is an algorithm, like AES, that encrypts and decrypts your data in a series of clearly defined steps. Using a key to encrypt your data makes it impossible for unwanted eyes to spy on your data unless they have the specific key that was used to encrypt the message. So the unencrypted message “VPNs made easy” would become “FVWWOluB9rHb5KUtyJYqlA==” using the AES algorithm. 
  • Encryption strength: 128-bit AES encryption is faster but less secure; 256-bit encryption is slower but more secure. Stronger encryption is obviously harder to break, so this is more of a priority if you’re focused on security. 

Privacy

  • Activity logs: Many free VPN services track your activity — the websites and pages you visit, files downloaded, etc. These free VPNs sell or monetize your usage activity on their VPN without your permission or knowledge. 
  • Connection logs: Other VPN services track assigned IP addresses, connection start/end times, or bytes of data transferred. This typically doesn’t include your data, but it can be combined with other data (i.e., the IP address you used to log into your Slack account) to expose your identity. 

If privacy is important to you, you’ll want to stick with log-free VPN services that don’t track your activity or metadata. 

Criteria #3: Compatible Devices

If you have an iPhone, but you use Windows on your computer, you’ll want to verify that the VPN services are compatible with your devices. While most VPN services are compatible with the standard platforms — Windows, Mac, Android, Linux, and iOS, etc. some aren’t available on all platforms. The VPN that’s Windows ready may not be available on Android or iOS.

You’ll want to verify that your devices are all compatible before signing up. 

Criteria #4: Connections 

How many devices can connect to your VPN service simultaneously? The availability of connections tends to vary from service to service. Some providers allow just one; others allow up to three, while others are unlimited. You’ll need to identify what you need ahead of time. 

It’s not just connections that you have to worry about, though. You also have to take a look at the availability of countries and the availability of servers. If you have specific availability needs, you’ll want to verify this with your VPN service provider ahead of time, then confirm this during your free trial or guarantee period. 

Other important considerations include: 

  • Payment plans: The cost you’ll pay for VPN services varies considerably, and it depends on the features you choose and the length of your subscription. 
  • Customer service: If you need on-demand customer support (in case something goes wrong), you’ll want a VPN service that provides live chat or phone support (which will impact the price). If that’s not as much of a concern, then a provider who offers email support may be a better option. 
  • Free trial or money-back guarantee:  If you opt for a service that offers a free trial, you’ll want to choose a service that gives you enough time to try things out. Some VPN services’ free trial period is quite short, which may not be enough time to verify the service on your end. A money-back guarantee is ideal because you have a way out in case their service isn’t what you’ve expected. 
  • User friendly or tech-savvy: If you’re not comfortable with setting up and configuring your VPN, you’ll want to make sure you find a provider with a user-friendly interface. Some providers will configure your VPN for you virtually, so everything is done for you ahead of time. 

You must figure out what you’re looking for ahead of time. 

The Different Types of VPN Services 

It’s important to make a distinction between VPN technology and VPN services. As we’ve already discussed, a virtual private network boils down to a secure, private connection between your device and endpoint. That is VPN technology. The VPN service, on the other hand, uses VPN technology to provide you with a package of tools. Using VPN services, you can not only protect your internet connection and guard your privacy but gain access to extra customer service with configuration guides, automatic setup, and live chat support. 

Different types of VPNs:

  • Remote Access VPN – Provide a secure connection from a user to a remote server to gain entry to a private network.
  • Intranet-based Site-to-Site VPN – Provide a secure connection for various users in different, fixed locations to connect to each other’s resources. For example: With a site-to-site VPN, multiple local area networks (LAN) can connect to a single wide-area network (WAN). Think of one company with numerous locations sharing resources.
  • Extranet-based Site-to-Site VPN – Difficult to implement, these VPNs are common in large-scale business environments where you are looking for a secure connection between two separate intranets, but you do not want them having the ability to access each other directly. Think of two different companies working together. 
  • Cloud VPN – Also known as virtual private network-as-a-service (VPNaaS), is designed for organizations that rely on outsourced cloud data centers instead of in-house infrastructure. A traditional VPN doesn’t work if your organization stores all of your data in the cloud. A cloud VPN allows users to access a company’s resources — applications, data, and files through a website or via a native desktop or mobile app. 

As a user looking to secure your privacy and access the internet, or secure business data for your remote workforce, you’re most likely looking for commercial VPN Services, let’s take a look at our picks for the top VPN providers.

1. Perimeter 81 – The Best for Small Business Teams

  • Pricing: $8/mo. (annual), $10/mo. (monthly
  • Number of servers: 700+
  • Money-back Guarantee: 30-day
  • Support: 24/7 live chat
  • Single sign-on: Yes
  • # of Users: Minimum of 5 team member

Perimeter 81 is an Israeli-based business VPN service that’s unique because of its Cloud VPN architecture. It’s great for users on multiple devices. You don’t need external legacy hardware or tools. It comes with the business features you’d need to run your remote organization safely in the cloud. 

Perimeter 81 is ideal for remote businesses because it protects your business from unexpected mistakes. Their automatic Wi-Fi Security and DNS Filtering features instantly shield your data by automatically activating VPN protection when employees connect to unknown, untrusted networks. According to their website, “All outbound and inbound traffic is encrypted and routed through your dedicated private servers – concealing your company’s actual IP address with an IP mask.”

This protection shields your company from man-in-the-middle attacks and unsecure Wi-Fi networks. Their service keeps your business safe from data breaches, lawsuits due to negligence, and other claims. Employee training is important, but Perimeter protects your employees and your business when they’re working. 

They also provide you with the data you need to monitor network activity. You can audit resource access, monitor bandwidth consumption, and detect network anomalies remotely and at any time. All of this is important because more organizations have a “bring your own device” (BYOD) policy in place.

The potential downside to Perimeter 81’s service is access points. As of today, they have 700 public servers in 36 countries. That might sound like a lot until you realize some of their competitors have double or triple that amount in twice as many countries. 

Pros

  • Single sign-on (SSO) functionality
  • User friendly and easy-to-use
  • Great for remote businesses
  • Auto-integrated with all cloud providers
  • Secure access to both managed and unmanaged devices

Cons

  • Higher price point
  • Fewer servers than their competitors

2. NordVPN Teams — New Service From Industry Leader

  • Pricing: $7 – $9 per mo. 
  • Number of servers: 5,000+
  • Money-back Guarantee: 30-day
  • Support: 24/7 response within 3 hrs.
  • Single sign-on: Yes
  • Multi-device support: Yes apps on all devices

NordVPN Teams is a new VPN service from an industry leader. NordVPN is known for its consistent performance, a strong stance on privacy, and aggressive security features. The company is based in Panama, where there are no mandatory data retention laws and no legal obligation to collect your data. It’s also important because Panama doesn’t participate in the five eyes or fourteen eyes alliances. 

They don’t track, collect, or share your private data — activity, usage, or metadata. They invited one of the big four auditing firms PriceWaterhouseCoopers AG, to run an industry-first audit of their no logging claims to verify that they’re telling the truth.

NordVPN is one of the few providers that offers double VPN, an advanced VPN security feature that routes your traffic through two VPN servers instead of one, encrypting your data twice. They provide two-factor authentication and single sign-on, which are standard features for top-tier VPN services. They also provide you with a kill switch, if your connection drops for even a second, the kill switch will cut off all the Internet traffic on your device, ensuring none of your information is exposed online.

For business customers, they provide you with a dedicated account manager that’s assigned to your account. Your Control Panel enables you to manage user accounts, control permissions, and create gateways. You can oversee user activity, monitor server load, add new users, and create custom teams from inside your control panel. 

Pros

  • A trusted brand name
  • Thousands of servers around the world
  • Single sign-on (SSO) functionality
  • Strong on security
  • Apps on all devices
  • Fast speeds
  • Cryptocurrencies and cash accepted

Cons

  • Slow app and server connections
  • Open VPN connection is not user-friendly
  • No split tunneling
  • Shared IP addresses

3. ExpressVPN – Consumer Favorite, Best-in-Class 

  • Pricing: $8.32 per mo. (annual), $12.95 (monthly)
  • Number of servers: 3,000+
  • Money back Guarantee: 30-day
  • Support: 24/7 live chat
  • Multi-device support: Yes

ExpressVPN doesn’t have a product strictly designed for businesses. They’re consumer-focused, which is great if you’re a sole proprietor or a remote, contract, or freelance worker on your own. Their apps are compatible with almost every device on the usual platforms; they also have apps for nontraditional platforms, including— Linux, Kindle Fire, Chromebook, and even Barnes and Noble’s Nook! 

Since they’re consumer-focused, their apps are user-friendly, easy to set up, and simple to maintain. They provide you with all of the standard encryption and security features you’d expect from a top-rated VPN provider. And, they also provide you with some unique features like split-tunneling or using their own DNS servers. 

Like NordVPN, they have a no-logging policy as their company is based in the British Virgin Islands. There’s no mandated government surveillance and no data retention laws. 

Pros

  • Consumer-focused
  • User-friendly and easy-to-use
  • Apps available on all devices and platforms
  • Strong reputation
  • Top-rated security and encryption

Cons

  • No VPN services for businesses
  • More expensive than their competitors

4.  VyprVPN – The Best VPN for Speed

  • Pricing: $2.50 per mo. (24 mo. plan), $3.75 per mo. (12 mo. plan), $12.95 per mo. (1 mo. plan).
  • Number of servers: 700+
  • Money-back Guarantee: 30-day
  • Support: 24/7 response within 3 hrs
  • Privacy: end-to-end
  • Multi-device support: desktop and mobile

Owned by Golden Frog GmbH and incorporated in Switzerland, VyprVPN focuses on a few areas — speed, anti-censorship, and privacy. They call their service the “most powerful VPN.” They offer more than 200,000 IP addresses and 700+ servers, across 70 locations internationally. 

Their platform resolves speed issues due to ISP bandwidth throttling. It’s common for users to state that their speeds are close to 100% of their original speeds. This is impressive when you realize that they rely on AES 256-bit encryption. They provide users with unlimited switching between servers and protocols without restrictions. 

VyprVPN provides some of the same features listed from other providers — kill switch, public Wi-Fi protection, and DNS protection. But they also offer a proprietary technology called Chameleon. In this protocol, VyprVPN scrambles your metadata, so it’s not recognizable via deep packet inspection, but it’s still fast and lightweight. As a result, VyperVPN can bypass restrictions from governments, corporations, and ISPs while fighting censorship and maintaining speed. 

VyprVPN also owns and operates their data centers to reduce any risk of a data breach. Other VPN providers route traffic to third-party servers, so they’re not as secure as a service that keeps things in-house. VyprDNS keeps your browsing history private. Their no-logs policy makes a breach unlikely. 

Pros

  • Unlimited high-speed bandwidth
  • 70+ server locations
  • Chameleon protocol
  • 5 Simultaneous connections
  • No activity or usage logs
  • Fast customer support
  • VyprDNS
  • Self-owned servers

Cons

  • Fewer servers than bigger competitors
  • Poor speeds in specific regions (EU)
  • Slower connection times in specific regions

5. Surfshark – The Best for the Price

  • Pricing: $1.99 per mo. (24 mo.), $5.99 per mo. (12 mo.), $11.95 per mo. 
  • Number of servers: 1,700+
  • Money-back Guarantee: 30-day
  • Support: 24/7 live chat, email tickets
  • Multi-device support: Desktop and mobile platforms

Surfshark is an award winning VPN service that offers incredible value for the price. According to VPNMentor.com, SurfShark is ranked 4th out of 357 VPN services. Their service provides users with 256-bit encryption, double VPN, an automatic kill switch, and a no-log policy. 

They’re headquartered in the British Virgin Islands, so like other VPNs in our list, they’re free from the five, nine, fourteen eyes alliances. While they don’t collect usage or connection data, they do collect your email address, password, and basic billing information. If you’d like to avoid sharing this info, you can use cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. They also collect unique advertising identifiers from third parties for marketing purposes and user analytics.

One detail that stands out with Surfshark is unlimited connections. The number of devices that can connect simultaneously, per license is unlimited. This is great if you’re an individual, but it’s also great if you’re running a business. There are no additional licenses or requirements once you’ve signed up. Just set your VPN up, pay for the service, and you’re all set. 

Surfshark offers its Adblock VPN that blocks advertising and malware, counters phishing attempts, and boosts browsing speed. They offer premium features like private DNS on each server, camouflage mode to mask activity from your ISP, and Multihop – connecting via multiple countries at the same time to maximize footprint masking and ID protection. 

Pros

  • Best value for the price
  • Unlimited connections/devices
  • Built-in ad-blocker
  • Whitelister
  • Private DNS
  • Double VPN
  • No logging
  • Engaged customer support

Cons

  • Medium-sized network
  • Moderately reduced speeds in specific regions

6. Mullvad – The Best for Anonymity

  • Pricing: $5.50 per mo.
  • Number of servers: 315+
  • Money-back Guarantee: 30-day
  • Support: Email

Mullvad believes privacy is a universal right.

Privacy isn’t the same as security. If you’re looking for a VPN service that will go to extreme lengths to protect your privacy,  Sweden-based Mullvad is at the top of the list. They don’t require an email address or even a password from their customers. The company randomly generates a unique code for your username. You use this code to log in to the desktop apps or add credit to your account. They even allow customers to send cash in the mail to pay for your account!

They want to know as little about you as possible.

Mullvad will store your account number, your counts, paid time remaining, and the number of simultaneous connections that are used by your account. This data is kept in temporary memory, then purged once you log off. They log the total number of current connections for a given server, the bandwidth used per server, and the CPU load per core on each server. None of these items contain personally identifiable information.

Mullvad only offers connections in 38 countries, and they only have 315 servers. They don’t use virtual servers, so your VPN connections are running on physical hardware at the location specified. The speed varies based on your location. If you’re in Europe or North America, speeds are generally good. If you’re in Australia or Asia, the performance is generally much slower.

Pros

  • Privacy-focused
  • Simple and user-friendly
  • WireGuard support
  • More anonymity than most VPN services
  • No affiliates or resellers

Cons

  • Focused exclusively on privacy
  • Slower speeds in certain locations
  • No password protection

7. TunnelBear – The Best for Newbies

  • Pricing: Free, $3.33 per mo., $5.75 per user, per mo. for teams 
  • Number of servers: 20
  • Money-back Guarantee: 30-day
  • Support: 24/7 email support tickets
  • Multi-device support: Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android

TunnelBear’s service is designed to be incredibly simple for newbies.

They’re based out of Canada, which is a member of the five eyes, nine eyes, and fourteen eyes alliances. This means data that goes through or is stored in Canada is subject to intelligence agreements —they may be legally forced to share your data. TunnelBear states that they have a no-logging policy, so everything seems okay until you read this in their privacy policy. 

“TunnelBear makes good faith efforts to provide you with the ability to delete your Personal Data. However, there may be circumstances in which TunnelBear is unable to delete all your Personal Data. For example, we are unable to delete it where we are legally required to keep it, including where we need it to continue to offer you the service or if you are involved in litigation with us, we would be required to retain your personal data, which is limited to the fields we discuss above in 1.2, 1.3 and 1.4.”

This data includes your email address, twitter id, paid user designation, operational data, and personal and financial data. If this isn’t a concern for you or your organization, TunnelBear is a great option for individuals and businesses that want to get started with a VPN but aren’t as knowledgeable as they’d like. 

TunnelBear includes the standard features you need to get started with a VPN — AES 256-bit encryption, tunneling (Android only), hashing, and more. Their service is reasonably priced and designed to help inexperienced people get started with a VPN. 

TunnelBear is transparent about its service, sharing the results of its independent security audits each year on its website. 

Pros

  • Designed for inexperienced users
  • Generally open and transparent about their service
  • Low cost
  • Built for individuals and teams
  • Offers a free plan

Cons

  • May share your data with governments
  • No phone or customer support

Conclusion

Whether you’re a freelancer, an entrepreneur with a small team, or a growing business looking for options, a VPN will provide you with the security and peace of mind you need to keep your remote team connected and working safely. 

Your needs are unique, and they’ll dictate which VPN service will work best for you and your business. Weigh the options against your needs for speed, security, privacy, compatible devices and number of connects. Millions of people are working remotely, and that number continues to grow every day. If you’re not already using a VPN service, now’s a good time to start. 

The post Best VPN Services appeared first on Neil Patel.

Check Out the Best Discover Business Credit Card and More

Are you looking for a Discover business credit card?

The Very Best Discover Business Credit Card

We looked into lots of corporate credit cards for you, to find the best Discover business credit card. So, here are our choices.

Per the SBA, company credit card limits are a whopping 10 – 100 times that of personal credit cards!

This reveals you can get a great deal more money with company credit cards. And it likewise reveals you can have personal credit cards at stores. So, you would now have an additional card at the same stores for your small business.

And you will not need collateral, cash flow, or financials to get business credit.

Discover Business Credit Card Benefits

Benefits can vary. So, make certain to pick the benefit you would prefer from this choice of alternatives.

A Discover Business Credit Card and More Cards for Cash Back

Here is a great Discover business credit card and some similar cards from other providers, so you can make a reasonable comparison.

Flat-Rate Rewards and No Annual Cost

Discover it® Business Card

Check out the Discover it® Business Card. It has no annual fee. There is an introductory APR of 0% on purchases for twelve months. After that the regular APR is a variable 14.49 – 22.49%. 

Get unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases, with no category restrictions or bonuses. They double the 1.5% Cashback Match™ at the end of the first year. There is no minimum spend requirement.

You can download transactions| quickly to Quicken, QuickBooks, and Excel. Note: you will need good to outstanding credit scores to get this Discover business credit card.

https://www.discover.com/credit-cards/business/

Flat-Rate Rewards

Capital One ® Spark® Cash for Business 

Have a look at the Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business. It has an introductory $0 annual fee for the first year. Afterwards, this card costs $95 annually. There is no introductory APR offer. The regular APR is a variable 18.49%.

You can get a $500 one-time cash bonus after spending $4,000 in the initial three months from account opening. Get unlimited 2% cash back. Redeem at any time with no minimums.

You will need good to superb credit to qualify.

Find it here: https://www.capitalone.com/small-business/credit-cards/spark-cash/ 

Discover Business Credit Card Credit Suite

Establish business credit fast with our research-backed guide to 12 business credit cards and lines.

Bonus Categories

Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card

Check out the Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card. It has no yearly fee. There is a 0% introductory APR for the first 12 months. Afterwards, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%. You can get a $500 one-time cash bonus after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening.

You can get 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on web, cable, and phone services each account anniversary year. 

Get 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year. Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases. There is no limit to the amount you can earn.

You will need exceptional credit scores to get approval for this card.

Find it here: https://creditcards.chase.com/business-credit-cards/ink/cash?iCELL=61GF 

Boosted Cash Back Categories

Bank of America® Business Advantage Cash Rewards MasterCard® credit card

Have a look at the Bank of America® Business Advantage Cash Rewards MasterCard® credit card. Get an 0% introductory APR for the initial 9 billing cycles of the account. After that, the APR is 13.74% – 23.74% variable. There is no yearly fee. You can get a $300 statement credit offer.

Get 3% cash back in the category of your choice. So these are filling stations (default), office supply stores, travel, TV/telecom & wireless, computer services or business consulting services. Earn 2% cash back on dining. So this is for the first $50,000 in combined choice category/dining purchases each calendar year. Then earn 1% after, with no limits.

You will need superb credit to qualify.

Find it here: https://promo.bankofamerica.com/smallbusinesscards2/ 

An Alternative to a Discover Business Credit Card: Company Credit Cards with a 0% Introductory APR – Pay Zero!

These cards have another feature similar to the Discover business credit card rated above.

Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

Have a look at the Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express. It has no annual fee. There is a 0% introductory APR for the initial one year. After that, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%.

Get double Membership Rewards® points on day to day business purchases like office supplies or client dinners for the first $50,000 spent each year. Get 1 point per dollar afterwards.

You will need good to outstanding credit to qualify.

Find it here: https://creditcard.americanexpress.com/d/bluebusinessplus-credit-card/

American Express® Blue Business Cash Card

Also take a look at the American Express® Blue Business Cash Card. Note: the American Express® Blue Business Cash Card is identical to the Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express. Yet its rewards are in cash rather than points.

Get 2% cash back on all qualified purchases on up to $50,000 per calendar year. Then get 1%.

It has no yearly fee. There is a 0% introductory APR for the first year. Afterwards, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%. So, the APR is comparable to that of the Discover business credit card.

You will need great to superb credit scores to qualify.

Find it here: https://creditcard.americanexpress.com/d/business-bluecash-credit-card/

Here are a few more great business credit cards with different features which may also be of interest.

Secure Business Credit Cards for Fair Credit Scores

Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business

Have a look at the Capital One® Spark® Classic for Business. It has no annual fee. There is no introductory APR offer. The regular APR is a variable 24.49%. You can earn unlimited 1% cash back on every purchase for your business, without any minimum to redeem.

While this card is within reach if you have average credit, beware of the APR. However if you can pay in a timely manner, and in full, then it’s a bargain.

Find it here: https://www.capitalone.com/small-business/credit-cards/spark-classic/

Discover Business Credit Card Credit Suite

Establish business credit fast with our research-backed guide to 12 business credit cards and lines.

Outstanding Business Credit Cards with No Annual Fee

No Yearly Fee/Flat Rate Cash Back

Ink Business Unlimited℠ Credit Card

Take a look at the Ink Business Unlimited℠ Credit Card. Past no annual fee, get an introductory 0% APR for the first 12 months. Afterwards, the APR is a variable 14.74 – 20.74%.

You can get unlimited 1.5% Cash Back rewards on every purchase made for your business. And get $500 bonus cash back after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening. You can redeem your rewards for cash back, gift cards, travel and more via Chase Ultimate Rewards®. You will need excellent credit to get approval for this card.

Find it here: https://creditcards.chase.com/business-credit-cards/ink/unlimited

Unbeatable Cards for Jackpot Rewards That Never Expire

Capital One® Spark® Cash Select for Business

Take a look at the Capital One® Spark® Cash Select for Business. It has no annual fee. You can get 1.5% cash back on every purchase. There is no limit on the cash back you can get. And get a one-time $200 cash bonus as soon as you spend $3,000 on purchases in the initial three months. Rewards never expire.

Pay a 0% introductory APR for 9 months. Then pay 14.49% – 22.49% variable APR after that.

You will need great to superb credit scores to qualify.

Find it here: https://www.capitalone.com/small-business/credit-cards/spark-cash-select/

Small Business Credit Cards for Luxurious Travel Points: Alternatives to the Best Discover Business Credit Card

Flat-rate Travel Rewards

Capital One® Spark® Miles for Business

Take a look at the Capital One® Spark® Miles for Business. It has an introductory yearly fee of $0 for the first year, which after that rises to $95. The regular APR is 18.49%, variable due to the prime rate. There is no introductory annual percentage rate. Pay no transfer fees. Late fees go up to $39.

This card is wonderful for travel if your expenditures don’t fall into standard bonus categories. You can get unlimited double miles on all purchases, without limits. Earn 5x miles on rental cars and hotels if you book via Capital One Travel.

Get an introductory bonus of 50,000 miles. That’s the same as $500 in travel. But you just get it if you spend $4,500 in the first 3 months from account opening. There is no foreign transaction fee. You will need a good to outstanding FICO rating to qualify.

Find it here: https://www.capitalone.com/small-business/credit-cards/spark-miles/

Discover Business Credit Card Credit Suite

Establish business credit fast with our research-backed guide to 12 business credit cards and lines.

Bonus Travel Categories with a Sign-Up Offer

Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card

For a terrific sign-up offer and bonus categories, take a look at the Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card.

Pay a yearly fee of $95. Regular APR is 17.49 – 22.49%, variable. There is no introductory APR offer.

Get 100,000 bonus points after spending $15,000 in the first 3 months after account opening. This works out to $1,250 towards travel rewards if you redeem with Chase Ultimate Rewards.

Get three points per dollar of the initial $150,000 you spend with this card. So this is for purchases on travel, shipping, internet, cable, and phone services. Plus it includes advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines each account anniversary year.

You can get 25% more in travel redemption when you redeem for travel using Chase Ultimate Rewards. You will need a great to excellent FICO score to qualify.

Find it here: https://creditcards.chase.com/business-credit-cards/ink/business-preferred

No Annual Fee

Bank of America® Business Advantage Travel Rewards World MasterCard® credit card

For no yearly fee while still getting travel rewards, check out this card from Bank of America. It has no annual fee and a 0% introductory APR for purchases during the initial 9 billing cycles. Afterwards, its regular APR is 13.74 – 23.74% variable.

You can earn 30,000 bonus points when you make a minimum of $3,000 in net purchases. So this is within 90 days of your account opening. You can redeem these points for a $300 statement credit towards travel purchases.

Get unlimited 1.5 points for each $1 you spend on all purchases, everywhere, every time. And this is no matter how much you spend.

Likewise get 3 points per every dollar spent when you reserve your travel (car, hotel, airline) with the Bank of America® Travel Center. There is no limit to the number of points you can earn and points don’t expire.

You will need outstanding credit scores to get this one (as in, 700s or better).

Find it here: https://www.bankofamerica.com/smallbusiness/credit-cards/products/travel-rewards-business-credit-card/

Hotel Credit Card

Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card

Take a look at the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ Card from American Express. It has an annual fee of $125. There is no introductory APR offer. The regular APR is a variable 17.24 – 26.24%. You will need good to outstanding credit scores to get this card.

Points

You can get 75,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after using your card to make purchases of $3,000 in the first 3 months. Get 6x the points for qualified purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels. You can get 4x the points at United States restaurants and filling stations. And you can get 4x the points on wireless telephone services bought straight from American providers and on American purchases for shipping.

Get double points on all other eligible purchases.

Rewards

Plus, you get a free night every year after your card anniversary. And you can get one more free night after you spend $60,000 on your card in a calendar year.

You get Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status with your Card. Plus, spend $35,000 on qualified purchases in a calendar year and earn an upgrade to Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status through the end of the following calendar year.

Also, each calendar year you can get credit for 15 nights towards the next level of Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.

Find it here: https://creditcard.americanexpress.com/d/bonvoy-business/

The Best Discover Business Credit Card for You

Your straight-out best Discover business credit card will depend upon your credit report and ratings.

Only you can select which features you want and need. So, ensure to do your research. What is exceptional for you could be devastating for another person.

And, as always, make sure to establish credit in the advised order for the best, fastest benefits.

The post Check Out the Best Discover Business Credit Card and More appeared first on Credit Suite.

Just How To Best Select An Affiliate Program Online

Exactly How To Best Select An Affiliate Program Online Advertising services and products via the Internet is undoubtedly much easier and also much more gratifying contrasted to conventional advertising and marketing techniques. With the numerous individuals around the world obtaining on-line daily, there’s a massive opportunity for a vendor to market his items and also …

The post Just How To Best Select An Affiliate Program Online first appeared on Online Web Store Site.

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How Being Fundable Helps You Get the Best Business Loans

Everyone wants the best of the best, and it should be no different when it comes to business loans.  However, you may need to change your thinking about what actually makes the best business loans the best.  Build Fundability So You Can Get the Best Business Loans For example, do great terms make a loan … Continue reading How Being Fundable Helps You Get the Best Business Loans

Best POS Systems

Some years ago, POS systems were a luxury reserved for only big enterprise businesses. 

Thankfully, not anymore. 

Today, there’s an abundance of options to go round for companies of all sizes. But, with too many options came a new challenge: Choosing the best POS system that’s right for your business is now an uphill battle. 

It’s why we created this guide to help you make a better and more effective decision. 

Our team has done the heavy lifting of reviewing dozens of POS systems in the market. We’ve also done the pricing, features, and critical support comparisons to determine what POS system is best for what. 

So, irrespective of your small business type – retail, restaurant, franchise, online store, etc., you’ll find the best POS system that’s right for your company below. 

The Top 5 POS Systems For Small Business Owners

  1. Square POS (our overall best)
  2. Shopify POS (best for ecommerce retail integrations)
  3. Vend POS (best for multiple fashion, sports, or homeware stores)
  4. Toast POS (best for restaurants and food businesses)
  5. ERPLY POS (best for small franchises)

How to Choose The Best POS System for Your Business

To choose a POS system, start by considering what your business needs are – accept payments, process sales, track inventory, CRM integration, manage employees, etc. 

What’s best for you depends on your needs.

In our analysis, we looked at everything from pricing, applicable features to the security of each system, and ease of use. Next, we picked the best POS system best suited for different small businesses with one to 50 outlets. 

We’re only recommending POS systems with hardware and software capabilities that will impact your business operations and help you maximize profit. 

And for this, key things you should look out for when choosing a POS system are: 

Pricing

Complete POS systems come with hardware, software, and payment processing. These are the ones we recommend because you won’t have to buy different parts. The cost for these all-inclusive POS systems is anywhere from $30 for basic plans to $150+ per month for advanced plans. Apart from this monthly cost, most charge fees upwards of 2% (plus some cents) per transaction. 

Most POS systems have customized plans if your annual sales volume exceeds $250,000 or if you have to install them on multiple locations. To take advantage of these discounts, contact the sales department before buying, as it could save you some money in the long run. 

Ease of Use

If you buy a POS system that’s difficult to use, it defeats the purpose of having one. Having said that, the easiest to use POS systems have intuitive designs and run on technology most people already use. These include iPads or Android tablet devices. 

Regardless, before you buy a POS system, sign up for a demo and take it for a test drive. This way, you can determine firsthand if it’s easy enough for you or your employees to use.  

Reporting

You’ll find all POS systems talk about their reporting capabilities. But, some are basic with limited customization and only a handful of reports. 

On the other hand, others come with tens of advanced and pre-configured reporting filters. The best POS systems offer real-time reports, and you can access them on the go through an app on your mobile device or a browser. 

Some core reporting capabilities to look out for are your sales, customers, inventory, and employees’ data. Ensure a POS system offers the reports you need to keep track of relevant business activities. 

Employee Management

On most POS systems, you can add employees and give them access to settings, essential sales information, or features. Again, it depends on what your needs are. 

Some POS systems allow you to assign role-based permissions to employees, while on others, you can customize different controls for specific employees. 

On advanced ones, you can monitor when employees clock in and out, track each employee’s sales, and manage tips. So, before you buy a POS system, decide what employee information you need to track.

Customer Management

The first question to ask is, what depth of customer information do I need? Or, what customer details do I need to deliver exceptional customer service? 

It’s best to start with those questions because POS systems offer varying levels of customer management capabilities. With some, you can capture basic info like email addresses to send email marketing campaigns. 

Others come with a suite of customer relationship management (CRM) features that allow you to create complete customer profiles, track purchase histories, collect contact information, append notes, etc. Choose a POS system that allows you to capture the depth of customer information you need. 

Inventory Management

Basic POS systems will only allow you to manage your catalog inventory. With advanced ones, you can track components, manage vendors, or purchase orders. 

It all depends on your needs, so decide if you need basic or advanced inventory management capabilities (and if the POS offers them) before you buy.

Add-ons/Integrations

Most POS systems offer add-ons and integrations, depending on the monthly plan you’re purchasing. On some, you can get these add-ons for an extra fee. Some popular add-ons are gift cards, loyalty programs, reservation systems, or advanced reports. 

For integrations, the best POS systems allow you to connect them with relevant business applications like email marketing, accounting, or payroll software. When choosing a POS system, take some time to decide if paying a higher monthly plan that gives you access to add-ons and integrations is more cost-effective than paying extra fees. And, of course, only make this decision after you’ve considered your business needs.  

The Different Types of POS Systems

POS apps, mobile POS systems, open-source systems, multichannel systems, touchscreen POS systems, self-serve POS systems, and cloud-based POS systems are the different types of POS systems. Among these types, there are various brands to choose from. 

In this guide, you’ll find reviews of cloud-based POS systems, as they’re the most flexible for small businesses and offer a full feature set. On cloud POS systems, transactions happen in-person at your various outlets, while payment processing occurs on the cloud. 

These systems connect with Wi-Fi networks, allowing your data from even multiple sales outlets to aggregate and sync automatically to the cloud. 

Thus, with cloud-based POS systems, you can access reports, real-time sales data, and other information generated from its use on the go. 

The best cloud-based POS systems for small businesses are what follows. 

1. Square POS Review – Our Overall Best Small Business POS System

Since our team started reviewing the best POS systems on the market, I’ve come across Square POS systems at multiple locations where I do my in-person shopping. 

And that’s for a reason. 

Among small businesses of all types, Square is fast becoming the overwhelming choice. This system’s software flexibility allows business owners to start using it to accept payments with their existing devices. 

With Square, you can turn the devices you currently use into a POS system in less than an hour. 

And you can do this without buying any hardware. But, if you need to purchase Square’s hardware, there’s still flexibility, as you have options to choose from: 

  • Square Terminal
  • Square Register
  • Square Reader for magstripe
  • Square Standup for chip & contactless
  • Square Reader for chip payments & contactless

If you run a location-based business like a boutique clothing store or coffee shop, Square’s register and standup terminal are the best options. The Square Reader of magstripe gives you the option of turning your phone into a POS system to accept payments on the go. 

Square’s POS system also handles credit card processing effortlessly. Thus, you don’t need third-party integrations to accept or process payments. 

Regardless of your business type, the versatility of Square POS system makes it the popular choice for most small businesses. Besides, Square’s pricing is straightforward and transparent. 

Square’s free iPad POS is free to use, only charging you 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction. And this is your only cost, regardless of how many sales you process. For larger businesses, pricing starts at $60/month plus the transaction fee. 

There are no hidden charges whatsoever with Square. 

If your business processes over $250,000 per annum and your average order size exceeds $15, you can request a custom solution from Square. 

Other pros you get with the Square POS system are robust reporting, real-time analytics, and 24/7 customer support. You can also view, manage, update, and track your inventory with Square. 

With the Square POS system, you can create and manage your customers’ profiles more effectively from one dashboard. 

Square has a few cons. 

For non-card transactions, they charge 2.75% and some features needed by mid-sized businesses cost a little more. Finally, this system’s security protocols, which protect against fraudulent payments, place accounts on hold for large volume transactions. 

After reviewing dozens of the best POS systems, Square is our overall best today. 

Square comes highly recommended for small business owners of all types and even mid-sized and large businesses. 

2. Shopify POS Review – The Best For eCommerce Retail Integrations

Popularly known as an ecommerce company, Shopify also offers a retail POS system with excellent ecommerce integrations. 

If you already run a Shopify store or plan to expand your retail business online, Shopify’s POS system is a great option.  

With Shopify’s POS system, you get a branded online store and can sell through online channels, including eBay, Instagram, and Amazon. Whether in-store or across these online channels, the Shopify POS system lets you manage your sales in one place. 

It’s much easier that way, as you won’t need to invest in separate solutions.

Sales, employee, and inventory management are some of the core features you get with the Shopify POS system. In short, the system updates your in-store and online inventory in real-time. Added to this, it comes with exceptional sales analytics with the option to offer discount codes. 

Need to manage your business on the go? No problem. Shopify’s POS system comes with a mobile app.

The robust in-store and online integration available with the Shopify POS system gives your customers a seamless checkout experience. And the convenience to replace or return a purchased item in your local store.

The system comes as a free inclusion in your Shopify monthly plans, which starts at $29 $29/month for the basic plan. 

Unfortunately, this base plan doesn’t give you advanced reports and other needed features like in-store payments. You’ll need the $79/month plan to process in-store payments at 1-5 locations or the $299/month plan for up to eight locations. 

Per in-person transactions, charges are 2.7%, 2.5%, and 2.4% for the three plans, respectively. 

On all plans, you get a 14-day free trial and 24/7 live support via phone, email, or live chat. The system’s easy setup is another you’ll love about Shopify POS.

Shopify POS isn’t for you if you have dozens of in-store locations. Other cons include the system’s exclusive focus on ecommerce and retail and the extra charges you must pay if you’re not using Shopify’s payment processors.

However, if you’re already selling online with Shopify or want an easy setup for a few retail locations, Shopify POS is a no-brainer. 

We recommend Shopify POS if you want to launch a new ecommerce store or in the market for a new POS system. 

3. Vend POS Review – The Best For Multi Fashion, Sports, or Homeware Stores

You can personalize the Ven POS system to suit your unique needs. It’s also a perfect solution if you have multiple physical stores. 

Vend is among the best iPad POS systems currently on the market. You can also use it on your PC and Mac. Vend POS system offers data entry options, using mouse, touchscreen, or keyboard. 

It integrates seamlessly with a wide range of third-party applications, giving you access to loads of additional features. For instance, you can connect third-party payment processors offered by PayPal, Square POS, Shopify POS, and others. 

Vend’s ecommerce integrations make it super easy to sell across your physical store, mobile, and digital channels. Its robust sales analytics, inventory, and customer profiles management capabilities are excellent. Additionally, you can process split and contactless transactions and gift cards. 

Regardless of the platform you run Vend on, you get a cross-platform consistency that looks the same. However, the Vend POS system doesn’t come with any hardware, but it makes up for this with its software simplicity and extensive integration options. 

Pricing for Vend’s POS system starts at $99/month when paid annually for the Lite plan with a monthly turnover limit of $20,000. The Pro plan is $129/month if you pay yearly. 

All plans come with one register. If you want additional registers, it costs $49 per month. Large retailers can request an Enterprise plan, which comes with a dedicated account officer. 

Vend POS’s biggest con is its slow processing speed. Others are that you can only use Google Chrome to run this system, and it’s not suited for food trucks, bars, or restaurant businesses.

However, we recommend the Vend POS system if you have multiple retail outlets such as fashion boutiques, sports, homeware, or outdoor stores, or the likes and need a solution with extensive integration options. 

4. Toast POS Review — The Best For Restaurant and Food Businesses

The brains behind the Toast POS system built the platform with food and beverage vendors and their customers in mind. So, if you own a restaurant, bar, or food truck business, Toast POS has features tailored to your needs. 

The system’s integrated CRM software builds an inventory of your loyal customers. It also allows you to craft messages and run automatic promotions that keep customers happy so that you can score a backlog of customers returning to your food business.

Toast POS is one of the few systems with excellent Android capabilities. 

And this is more suited to restaurants due to the affordability and flexibility of the Android infrastructure, which has faster software updates than the iPad.

Whether you’re a full-service or quick-service food business, the Toast POS system works well for both. You even have options to customize the system for large food chains, pizzerias, or bars.

As a Toast user, you can access its community of like-minded business owners to get or share best practices in your industry.

Overall, Toast POS gives you a holistic restaurant management system, complete with back-office and front-end processes. It enhances staff productivity, improves customer service via its food-focused CRM features, which also comes with detailed analytics and sales reports.  

You can easily customize or split menu items and bills among your customers. Taking orders on the fly or sending alerts to customers when their orders are ready are some mouth-watering pros. This makes The Toast POS system a no-brainer for food businesses. 

Pricing for the Toast POS system starts at $69/month per terminal, with no trials. It’s hardware prices starts at $999, and there’s no financing option available. Toast POS has a flat processing fee, and there are no hidden fees.  

A drawback of the Toast POS system is that it is currently only available for Android users. But, this isn’t a problem, considering Android devices are cheaper than iPads. 

Toast POS system is the overwhelming recommendation if you own a food or restaurant of any kind. Its features are tailor-made for such businesses. 

5. ERPLY POS Review – The Best For Small Franchises

ERPLY POS system is the go-to platform if you own a franchise business. It runs well on Android and iPad tablets and is also accessible on other devices via a browser. 

ERPLY POS is one of the few cloud-hybrid systems that is hardware agnostic, and this makes it a favorite for small and large franchise retailers. This robust build allows you to centralize your inventory across stores and manage employees by giving them varying access to the platform. 

You get CRM tools and the ability to handle sensitive data with the ERPLY POS system. Besides this, you have other strong franchise-specific features like sales tracking, barcode scanners, and full-scale inventory management across all plans. 

Pricing for the ERPLY POS system starts at $39, but you don’t get inventory controls on this basic plan. If you want that, consider its higher-tier plans, which are upwards of $69. 

A known con of the ERPLY POS system is that it is tricky to master. Secondly, there’s limited customer support. 

However, ERPLY’s versatile interface and free trial, which allows you to take it for a spin, are strong reasons to consider this POS system. And if you own a franchise business, it comes highly recommended due to its features explicitly designed for such retailers.  

Conclusion

The best POS system is subjective. Different business types have different needs, and a POS system that works for one business may not work well for your own. 

It’s best to understand your business needs first. 

We reviewed dozens of the top POS systems on the market to identify the ones most suited for the different types of small businesses. 

We’ve provided you with the best POS for retail, food, ecommerce, franchise, and fashion retail businesses. We also highlighted our recommended overall best. 

You won’t regret choosing from any of the above options. 

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The Best Web Hosting Services (In-Depth Review)

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