How Blockchain and Bitcoin Could Affect a Small Business
Small businesses can feel left out with all the buzz surrounding blockchain technology and Bitcoin. However, this technology and cryptocurrencies can potentially affect even small businesses. Here are practical ways that leveraging these innovations for your small enterprise’s financial needs and growth could affect it.
Accepting Bitcoin Payments
The cryptocurrency revolution’s survival is dependent on its acceptance, and small businesses can excel in this area. Large companies are accepting cryptocurrency payments at the moment. However, only a few start-ups have made this move.
As a small business owner, accepting Bitcoin payments can benefit your venture in the following ways:
- Low fees: Processing credit card payments costs between 2 and 5% of the total service fees. Crypto transfers, on the other hand, are free or have a low cost. Services charge between 0 and 1%. That means you can save money by accepting crypto payments. What’s more, you can use a service that confirms blockchain transactions faster.
- Easy access to funds: Most people use platforms like Bitcoin Digital to buy and sell Bitcoin. Such exchanges allow people to purchase and sell cryptocurrencies online. Once you have your Bitcoins, you can store them in a crypto wallet that you can access from any location, anytime. Bitcoin transactions do not involve intermediaries like banks. And they do not include centralized clearances. That means you can complete a transaction faster at any time.
- No government’s involvement: Cryptocurrencies do not have ties with regulatory agencies and governments. That means you don’t have to consider borders or incur international transaction fees or exchange rates.
- Avoiding disputes: Bitcoin is entirely digital. And once a person has sent you Bitcoin, they can’t reverse the transaction. And this eliminates conflicts where somebody can complete a transaction using a traditional method and then file a claim.
Use Smart Contracts to Sign Agreements
Traditionally, you need a lawyer to come up with a contract before signing it with vendors. It can be a money or service exchange agreement, complete with a timeline and the plan. What’s more, you have to wait for the lawyer to finalize the contract and the involved parties to append their signatures. After that, you have to expect or wait for the payment. And if the involved party fails to pay, you have to go back to the lawyer and file a suit. With Smart Contracts, you avoid all this.
That’s because these contracts are digitally signed agreements for the execution of certain things upon meeting certain conditions. They cover the mutually agreed Bitcoin amount and delivery deadlines. And no party can alter the agreed amount upon submission.
Tracking Vendor Shipping and Logistics
Nobody can tamper with blockchain, and this enhances documents’ integrity. With this technology, users can add anything, but they can’t change or delete the documents or transaction data in the blockchain. However, all involved parties can monitor and audit everything.
As such, small businesses can use this technology to track inventory. Upon receiving their stock, the blockchain records its transaction. When a small business has sold an item, they can use this technology to record it. And upon shipping items, they can do the same. All the recording in blockchain occurs in real-time. What’s more, it doesn’t attract additional costs.
The Bottom Line
Bitcoin and blockchain are innovations that small businesses should embrace to enhance their growth. The excellent benefits of this technology and the value that this digital currency brings have prompted its acceptance across various industries. Jumping onto this bandwagon now can broaden the customer base for a small business. It can also offer benefits that your business can’t get from traditional currency.
This article has been scheduled in accordance with Socialnomics’ disclosure policy.
