If you offer Botox injections at your primary care practice or medical spa, you’ve made a good decision. First and foremost, you get to help people. As the Mayo Clinic notes, Botox injections can reduce facial wrinkles and even treat conditions like lazy eye, excessive sweating, and neck spasms. Second, the Botox market has enjoyed consistent growth. Expert research predicts an annual growth rate of 13.3% through 2024, with the market expected to reach $8.5 billion in annual revenue. As a business owner, it makes sense to ride this wave. To ensure consistent success, you must execute properly. After all, you’ve invested a lot to offer Botox injections. It costs between $700K and $1 million to open a medical spa, according to industry experts. And you have ongoing costs, such as insurance, Botox training, staff, and supplies and equipment.One area where you don’t want to lose money is payment processing. Because credit card processing fees eat into your bottom line more than you think…In fact, choosing the wrong credit card payment provider could decrease your margins by more than 10%. That’s insane! But it doesn’t have to be this way. You can eliminate credit card processing fees. And you can take home 100% of your revenue from Botox. Here’s what you should ask yourself and what you need to do:
The answer depends on the card network and your merchant service provider (MSP). At your medical spa, expect fees to average between 1.43%-3.5%.The chart below details averages by card network:
Source: ValuePenguin
A survey of medical spas that offer Botox would probably reveal more complex fee structures. It’s not just a flat fee per transaction. Some MSPs have monthly subscription fees, multi-tiered plans, and different fees for online and offline payment. You also have hardware and software fees. You must examine everything when comparing credit card processing companies. For example, if you look at Square’s pricing, you’ll see a monthly software fee and an initial hardware fee, on top of a fee for every transaction. If you have to manually key in a card number, you’ll pay a higher fee as well.
While many MSPs like Square provide fee transparency, you still have to read over all the potential costs of credit card processing. Even worse, some credit card processing companies confuse medical spa owners with unnecessarily complex fee structures. If you’re too busy and choose any MSP, you could end up paying much more in fees.
To get the lowest credit card processing fees, first thoroughly compare credit card processing companies. You have a busy schedule, but making time to ensure the best deal here will put your business in a better financial position. First, educate yourself about all the credit card processing fees involved. You pay a total fee, which is the sum of the interchange fee (paid to the card-issuing bank), assessment fee (paid to the card-issuing brand), and processor markup (what the MSP makes). Second, understand the pricing models:
So, select pass-through pricing for the transparency and affordability. But before you do so, know you can negotiate other credit card fees.For example, the MSP markup is often negotiable. Many merchants report being to knock as much as 10% of the markup fee. You also want to negotiate other fees that may arise, especially those you pay for transactions that are voided or later refunded. After you’ve done your research and negotiations, choose the MSP that offers the best combination of low fees, good service, and advanced technology.
Your Botox center receives payments from a mix of checks, cash, debit cards, and credit cards. You may think paying 3% for credit card processing isn’t a big deal, but it actually amounts to a lot of money. First, remember Botox costs between $300 and $600 per treatment, according to Medical Economics. This is a high-value purchase for your clients. As Federal Reserve research shows, people use credit cards more for larger transactions.If customer payments at your Botox clinic mirror recent trends, chances are you processed more credit card payments this year than last year.
Source: Federal Reserve
For Botox, a good portion of your clients probably make payment with a credit card. It could even account for 60%-70% of your revenue. That means you pay credit card processing fees on a majority of your revenue. And that decreases your profits more than you think. To give you a better picture, look over the example below:
That sort of income is great. But money has been left on the table. Let’s continue the example:
Imagine if you could get rid of that $33,264 in credit card fees. Your income would rise from $216,000 to $249,264. That’s a salary increase of 15.4%!Over ten years, that could mean $332,640 back into your pocket. With that money, you could expand your Botox center, retire early, go on more vacations, and/or buy a nicer house. Need any more motivation to pay attention to credit card fees?
The numbers show you should still offer card payments. But that doesn’t mean you have to pay all those credit card fees. Your Botox clinic could incentivize clients to pay in cash. How do you do that? Implement a cash discount program.As the name suggests, you offer discounts for paying in cash. You still accept credit card payments, just at a markup to offset credit card fees. Thanks to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, a cash discount program is completely legal. Even better, it’s a win-win for you and your Botox clients. What you essentially get is free credit card processing. You can’t beat that!Want to learn more? We’re ready to help your Botox clinic get the cheapest credit card processing possible. Call us at +1 (929) 293-1800 or click the link below.
