Let me guess: You’re caught in a next-level bitcoin whirlwind; dazed and confused; wondering if you’re missing out the biggest digital gold rush since web 2.0. If I’m right, then you’ve come to the right place because below we feature 10 top reasons why businesses should accept bitcoin.

Let’s go.

What is Bitcoin?

Before we get started, let’s refresh your memory. Let’s define bitcoin and talk about how it generally works.

Bitcoin is the world’s first decentralized digital currency and peer-to-peer payment system that works without a central bank.

It gives users the ability to send and receive digital payments anonymously and almost instantly.

So you’re probably wondering: how are bitcoin payments made?

All bitcoin payments are made to and from bitcoin wallets. Each wallet is digitally signed for security reasons and all transactions are traced back to when the bitcoin was produced.

And let’s remember, bitcoin is a virtual currency, meaning, bitcoins don’t exist in the real world.

You have bitcoin wallets and bitcoin balances that go up and down as transactions in the blockchain.

Similar to your bank account, all transactions are recorded and are linked to account holders.

Two things are required to make a bitcoin transaction:

1) A bitcoin alphanumeric address;

2) A bitcoin alphanumeric key.

Bitcoin addresses are randomly created and are available to anyone.

Bitcoin keys are private. They make it possible for users to spend bitcoins and each wallet contains one or two bitcoin keys.

As per accepting bitcoin…

If you own a brick and mortar shop, you can accept bitcoin using hardware terminals, touch screen apps, and wallet addresses through QR codes.

If you own an online website, you can hire a programmer or developer to run a full node.

Moving forward…

So should your business accept bitcoin?

This totally depends on your brand and business model. But hey, here are a few reasons why businesses today have jumped on the bitcoin bandwagon.

#1. Bitcoin can be used for both business and investment

Bitcoin is similar to money in a sense in that it’s a capable medium for exchange, merchants today accept bitcoin like they do money.

But there’s more to the virtual currency than exchange. Bitcoin has emerged as one of the world’s most lucrative investments.

In April 2017, 1 bitcoin was worth $1, 343, today it’s worth $18, 725.47 with higher market expectations hovering the horizon.

#2. Bitcoin improves customer satisfaction

If you own an online store, you know first-hand users are notorious for abandoning shopping carts before making a purchase at the check-out.

With a myriad of reasons that justify why they do, incompatible payment methods are one of the many.

When you offer an easy bitcoin payment method to users who prefer making payments in bitcoin, you’ll empower those users and make it easier for them to pay you.

#3. Keep your “cutting-edge” and “forward-thinking” brand identity on lock

If you’re a “cutting-edge” brand or have established yourself as a “thought leader” and “early adopter”, then adopting bitcoin as a payment method sends a clear statement to your audience.

There’s a lot of buzz around cryptocurrency today. Technical thought leaders are hailing it as being “the next big thing”; comparing its disruptive potential to what the internet was during the 90s.

And hey, marketing works for a reason. If your brand is “cutting-edge” and has a “forward-thinking” culture, then validating bitcoin and adding it as a payment method makes sense.

#4. It’s easy to adopt and there’s little risk

You don’t have to be a blockchain developer or tech nerd to get started, nor, at the moment will accepting bitcoin make or break your business.

There are online resources available like bitpay.com and coinbase.com that teach you how to accept bitcoin online.

Also, if you feel unmotivated right now and don’t feel like reading another how-to article, your next best option is to put up a “We Accept Bitcoin” badge up on your website and forward users to a landing page prompting them to contact you via email.

You can then reply and let them know of your preferred bitcoin exchange method.

#5. Save money with low transaction fees 

If you do business online and use PayPal, Square, or old fashion credit card and debit, then you’re familiar with the 2 to 6% service fee.

With bitcoin, the sender is the one who receives the charge (not the merchant) and the fee is typically lower than 1%.

There is also no cap on transactions as well, meaning there are no fees for higher transactions.

Some payment methods out there charge higher transaction fees for higher volume transactions — bitcoin frees you from this limitation and the unnecessary fees they bring.

Users can exchange as many bitcoins as they want without having to worry about getting charged more.

#6. Bitcoin makes international business easier

Small businesses and independent contractors often hold back on doing business internationally because of high international transaction fees.

With bitcoin, businesses overcome the high-charge hurdle that accompanies global commerce.

Businesses can now work with acceptable international transaction fees, making global business easier, faster, and cheaper.

#7. Bitcoin offers faster payments

The thing with payment methods like credit cards or PayPal is that you have to wait to receive your money. With bitcoin you can make a transaction, go for a coffee, come back, and walk away with a successful exchange.

Since there’s no centralized bank or established institution that review every bitcoin transaction — the blockchain technology does it for you — you’re free from waiting as long as you’re normally used to when receiving a digital payment.

Bitcoin transactions process in a fraction of the time credit card transactions do.

#8. Get more media buzz around your brand

Work the media and take advantage of the bitcoin hype. There are bitcoin websites online that promote businesses who accept bitcoin.

You can submit your website to communities like spendbitcoins.com, coinmap.org, and weusecoins.com to just to name a few examples.

These directories and communities act as search engines in a way for everything bitcoin.

When you create an account or submit your business, you officially position your brand in front of a highly-engaged audience and the media.

Journalists and bloggers are always looking for a new angle and may want to schedule an interview with a local business who works with bitcoin.

#9. Increase sales and take advantage of bitcoin’s cult-like following

Similar to communities who deal with Apple and Google culture or drone or cycle or even social media culture to just to name a few hyper-engaging communities, the cryptocurrency community is incredibly supportive.

Toronto businesses can take advantage of the cryptocurrency community, which ultimately gives your business another demographic on top of your own to leverage.

Without question, there are bitcoin businesses and investors out there who are more inclined to work with other businesses who support bitcoin.

Yes, that means they’ll work with www.weacceptbitcoin.com over www.nobitcoinpayment.com.

#10. Fraud prevention

With the amount of personal information the current banking system makes available with every daily purchases today, fraud is always a possibility.

Companies have never been more held accountable for fraudulent charges and chargeback fees than they are today.

With bitcoin, there are no identity paper trails and there are definitely no chargebacks.

Everything is anonymous and peer-to-peer, irreversible, and recorded.

Bitcoin payments are also secured via encryption, meaning its currency cannot be duplicated and its encryption is said to be impossible to crack.

Summary

Bitcoin is a global game changer however only a small percentage of the world’s population use it — the early adopters. The businesses who should accept bitcoin are the businesses who also represent bitcoin culture.

If your business values early adoption and innovation and thought leadership and user experience and eCommerce and investment — if this sounds like you — then everything should be crystal clear by now. Accept bitcoin.

But if it still isn’t clear then maybe the bitcoin bandwagon just isn’t your ride.  And hey, bitcoin isn’t for everyone…Kind of like Facebook or PayPal.

If you have one or more different reasons why Toronto businesses should accept bitcoin feel free to drop your ideas below.

If you don’t, I also accept cryptocomments.

Until next post everyone, cheers!

Seph Walter

Seph is a HubSpot and Google certified Digital Marketing Director and Web Designer with over 6+ years experience developing digital strategies for startups and marketing agencies.