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Author Topic: Credit and Debit cards Jack Ondracek Film God Posts: 2348 From: Port Orchard, WA, USA Registered: Oct 2002 posted 08-12-2003 03:28 PM                        I'd say you're pretty lucky, Andrew. We didn't have a lot of trouble in the first year we took checks... but we got hosed very badly the next year... something like $200 some-odd during the first month alone... running weekends! Some of those people were writing bad $4 popcorn checks! If you're referring to 3% as a transaction fee for credit cards, I'd advise you (or your company) to look around. You should be able to get it fairly close to 1.5, 1.8 or so. The RTS system processes credit cards from the computer that you keep your local database on. All of the other stations in your system will be able to process cards just by adding the reader wedge (we velcro ours to the touch screen). If you do eventually go this way, you'll need an internet connection to the database computer that can be connected at all times during your business day. Anything from ISDN speeds up will work with the system.  |  IP: Logged Mike Markwood Film Handler Posts: 9 From: Barberton, Ohio, USA Registered: Aug 2003 posted 08-23-2003 02:55 PM                     You should definately take Credit/Debit cards. We process over the intenet (Cable Modem) and get approval on most transactions within 5 seconds. I would reccommend having a backup modem hooked to a phoneline to process transactions if your internet connection goes down.  |  IP: Logged Ron Keillor Expert Film Handler Posts: 166 From: Vancouver, B.C. Canada Registered: Jul 2003 posted 08-23-2003 03:31 PM                     Bank charges here are $20 if a cheque is returned NSF.  |  IP: Logged Charles Everett Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: New Jersey Registered: May 2001 posted 09-08-2003 05:45 PM                     Regal is phasing in debit/credit cards for the concession stand. At the Regal Warrington Crossing on Labor Day, I used my debit card in the Cafe del Moro. The clerk got curious and said, "You don't carry cash?" I told her I spent my last $6 on my movie ticket.  |  IP: Logged Gordon McLeod Film God Posts: 9532 From: Toronto Ontario Canada Registered: Jun 99 posted 09-08-2003 07:12 PM                     If you are a small business and a memeber of the canadian federation of independent business (there must be a US equivilent) you are eligable for a discounted debit credit card processing package What they did is as a group they shopped the package of all its memebers till a bank bites with a super low package At my partners antique market we had opened with a terminal directly with our own bank and the charges were debit $1.00 Visa 2.5% MC 3% Amex 4.5% + 2% processing on all transactions through the host service. This was in line with most other services Now with the CFIB plan we are debit at 50c visa at 2% MC 2,25% and Amex3% and no other fees The only thing is we had to open a account at the hosting companys bank (right now it is Scotia) and then we just weekly transfer the balance to our regular operating account  |  IP: Logged Jannette McQueen Film Handler Posts: 50 From: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada Registered: Sep 2003 posted 09-12-2003 01:16 AM                     I don't know what other places are like, but around here, there's hardly any shops or cafés or *anything* without credit card and debit card machines. Some people rely completely on their bank cards to pay for everything, and don't carry cash with them at all (I myself consider these people to be nutcases, but nonetheless, they exist). We got our card machine in the box office about 3 years ago I guess, and people use it quite a bit. So much, in fact, that the higher-ups decided we needed another one. So now we have two machines in the box office. And I have had a couple complaints about us not taking debit at the snack bar (eventhough, every single time you buy a ticket at the box office with your back card, or credit card or whatever, they ask you "do you want cash for the concession?") and a lot of people just assume that we take cards at the snack bar as well as the box office. To a lot of people it's very shocking that you're not up with the times and have a credit and debit machine at every till. It takes longer, but it's catering to the public's needs and preferances, and that's always good for business, I'd say.  |  IP: Logged Jack Ondracek Film God Posts: 2348 From: Port Orchard, WA, USA Registered: Oct 2002 posted 09-12-2003 12:58 PM                        Janet, if your company finds they're doing a lot of their business on plastic, they might consider going to online processing. Those separate machines have to dial an 800 number, and connect by modem before they can process a card. Many of them start the process as soon as the card is swiped, but the connection process still takes quite a while, comparatively speaking. If your machine has an impact printer (as opposed to thermal) it's REALLY slow! Still, it's the way we "dipped our toes in", so to speak... and I'm glad we did. The new ticketing systems that do card processing can connect through the internet, which can lower the process down to 3 seconds or so. Things may be different in Canada, but we can't legally put cash for subsequent purchases on a credit card (it's one of those "fine print" items in our merchant's agreements). Debit cards, yes... but not credit. One reason is that a cardholder could dispute the charge, and whether you actually did give him the cash. On your side, you could prove that you provided admission to the theatre. You could even track that concession products were sold... but you'd have a hard time proving that you actually did hand cash from your till to the customer, were he to contest it.  |  IP: Logged Scott Jentsch Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1061 From: New Berlin, WI, USA Registered: Apr 2003 posted 09-15-2003 04:23 PM                        Jannette McQueen wrote: quote: I don't know what other places are like, but around here, there's hardly any shops or cafés or *anything* without credit card and debit card machines. Some people rely completely on their bank cards to pay for everything, and don't carry cash with them at all (I myself consider these people to be nutcases, but nonetheless, they exist). I admit that I'm one of those nutcases, although not to the extreme of carrying no cash whatsoever. In this area, almost every ATM charges for withdrawals, so you're hit for $1.50 every time you get cash. With concession prices reaching $10 or more, it makes sense to charge it than it does to pay in cash. More and more retailers are telling me that they don't need a signature for transactions under $50, so I can't imagine that a signature-free transaction would take that much longer than a cash w/ change transaction. And yes, any consumer-oriented business that doesn't take credit cards is antiquated, not with the times, and a lot less likely to get a return visit from the likes of me... What I don't understand is why I can't charge my ticket and my concessions at once instead of once at the box office and again at the concession stand. But that's an issue for another thread!  |  IP: Logged Jack Ondracek Film God Posts: 2348 From: Port Orchard, WA, USA Registered: Oct 2002 posted 09-15-2003 04:47 PM                        quote: What I don't understand is why I can't charge my ticket and my concessions at once instead of once at the box office and again at the concession stand. A couple of reasons come to mind. First, logistics. Some people might know exactly what they want from the concessions... but a lot more are likely to change their minds, once they get to the counter. You'd have to have some kind of "chit" from the boxoffice, that you could turn in for your pre-purchased concessions. That could be done easily enough, but would add time to the transaction. Second... I doubt that most managers really WANT you to pre-purchase your concessions. That bypasses any effort at up-selling, suggestive sales and impulse purchases... again... maybe a good thing for the customer, but not necessarily so for the theatre.  |  IP: Logged Chris Trainor Expert Film Handler Posts: 161 From: Greenville, RI, USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 09-15-2003 04:56 PM                        National Amusements is doing this actually. You can buy basic consession items from their Quik Tix terminals at the same time as picking up (from an online order) or purchasing your tix. Pretty quick. I use it all the time (when it's working). It prints out your regular creditcard receipt, your tickets and a coupon that you bring to the concession stand and they hand you your order. Pretty slick. (again, when it works. about 25% of the time I goto one of their theaters the damned things are offline for some reason or another). --Chris  |  IP: Logged Mike Williams Master Film Handler Posts: 255 From: Knoxville, TN Registered: Feb 2002 posted 09-15-2003 05:02 PM                     Regal is also offering that. It is a take off of what UA used to do. The Ultimate Premier Pack allows you to buy 2 movie tickets and a concession combo for one price and it can be redeemed at any location. The concession combo is two medium drinks, a large popcorn and a pre-determined candy.  |  IP: Logged Jannette McQueen Film Handler Posts: 50 From: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada Registered: Sep 2003 posted 09-15-2003 08:13 PM                     Scott Jentsch wrote: quote: I admit that I'm one of those nutcases, although not to the extreme of carrying no cash whatsoever. I'm sorry if I might have called you a nutcase.  |  IP: Logged Steve Kraus Film God Posts: 4094 From: Chicago, IL, USA Registered: May 2000 posted 09-15-2003 11:26 PM                    I'm sorry if I might have called you a nutcase. Yes but he really is a nutcase so don't worry about it. Hehehe j/k  |  IP: Logged Mark Hajducki Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 500 From: Edinburgh, UK Registered: May 2003 posted 09-16-2003 07:51 PM                     Does anybody have experience of systems that can sell tickets and food together. The Wabits system used by Warner Village/ VUe does allow this [a ticket printer can be connected to the tills] but I have never seen this in use. This would also be usefull in a small cinema trying to run with the fewest number of staff posible.  |  IP: Logged Ron Keillor Expert Film Handler Posts: 166 From: Vancouver, B.C. Canada Registered: Jul 2003 posted 09-16-2003 10:48 PM                     Cineplex Odeon offered a selection of 4 combos of popcorn and drinks (regular and large sizes, of course) at their lobby ATM'S (dispensed tickets, not cash). A separate coupon was printed for the confection combo which was to be treated as cash when redeemed at the bar so as not to lose the sale if an up-size or additional item were wanted, At the boxoffice, the usual technique for covering confection sales on a charge/debit card was to offer gift tickets which would be exchanged at the bar instead of cash. The ATM had a $75 limit - no signature there - and at the boxoffice you were covered by the signature on a charge slip or the PIN number used on a debit transaction. It did cut down on the number of price increases - new bitmaps had to be produced for the ATM displays each time there was one, or the combo price was held and became a better buy for a while.  |  IP: Logged

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