More musings from the WV Small Farm Conference

Congratulations are in order for the Clarksburg Farmers Market and Elkins Farmers Market on winning the one month of PayPal's Virtual Terminal which was sponsored this year by WVfarm2u.org.

Virtual Terminal is a fee based program from PayPal that allows anyone with a verified business account from PayPal to use their internet connection, cell phone, land line or fax machine to take credit and debit card payments. Our first test of this system was on Monday, February 23 at the Winter Blues Farmers Market when WVfarm2u.org sponsored Monkey Dance Ranch's booth.

The market on Monday was jam packed with customers trying to purchase locally grown foods from farmers in the area. In today's world, it seems more and more people carry less and less cash and rely on plastic be it either credit or debit. As I walked around the market, marveling at the "sold - out" crowd who were happily purchasing free range eggs, I couldn't help overhear some key comments. These comments included key phrases:

"Uhhh, the ATM is out, we'll have to just get this - but I really wanted to get the bread too"

As I stood purchasing my cherry wood wooden spoon made by Monkey Dance Ranch, a woman walked up to their booth and said, "I wish you all accepted credit cards I never carry cash anymore".

I wished I had a siren or a bell because at that moment, Monkey Dance Ranch exclaimed they accepted credit cards and a sale was made.

If your farmers market has access to a landline, cell phone reception or wireless internet connection, it may be beneficial for you to consider the Virtual Terminal from PayPal. It's not without fees: It costs $30 per month, but with no contract so if you want to try it for a month, you can without any cancellation fees. There are 3% transaction fees, Monkey Dance Ranch tacked on a service fee to cover the cost of the transaction fee to the price of the product, this is only one way to deal with credit/debit transaction fees.

Click Here to learn more about PayPal's Virtual Terminal.