USB card reader for in-person Credit Card processing
A USB card reader enables you to swipe a credit card for patrons purchasing tickets in-person, decreasing transaction time. The card reader simply acts as an external keyboard and "types in" the data string that is stored on the credit card.
Purchasing a USB card reader
- We encourage you to purchase them online by following this link.
- If you need to purchase online in Canada, please follow this link.
Mobile devices and Other Card Readers
Mobile card swipers, such as PayPal Here or Square payments are not supported. Due to limitations imposed by the companies that provide these services, we are unable to work with this hardware.
Credit card terminals, such as those provided by your credit card processor, are not compatible but you may turn on CCE in setup>global settings to let Arts People know that you have taken payment outside of the Arts People application in your box office.
Directions for Use
On any administrative screen* with a payment option (ie. box office, door, retail, donation) make sure the cursor is in the "CC/Cardswipe" field and swipe the card. This will populate the field with the appropriate information from the card. Leave the expiration date and cvv fields blank and process the transaction.
*If you use the Box Office Retail page be sure to look up the patron record that matches the cardholder's info before moving to the Retail page to process your test.
Troubleshooting
If you have trouble with your credit card swiper, here are some things to check on:
1) When we talk about a credit card reader, we are specifically referring to a small device with a slot that plugs directly into the USB port of your computer. Credit card terminals with keys and possibly a printer are not supported.
2) Make sure the firmware is up to date. You may need to contact the swiper manufacturer for additional assistance in reprogramming the reader.
3) If you are having trouble with credit card swiping on the box office screen, make sure you are swiping into the field labeled "CC/Cardswipe" which appears on the right-hand side.
4) If you have troubles with the card swipe not working in your door sales screen, while it is working in your box office screen, you may be using your own merchant acct, and someone from your organization may have changed settings in your authorize.net gateway that have adversely affected your credit card processing. Please see our help document Banking Setup - Using your own Merchant Acct which will give you the specific settings we recommend you use in your authorize.net setup to make sure all credit card processing works correctly.
5) In general, when having an issue, the first thing to do is to narrow down the source of the problem. In this case, test your cc reader on different machines, different web browsers, even different operating systems. This will help you to discover where the issue lies, either with software, with a specific computer machine, or with the reader itself. Take note of any errors that appear, and specific details that seem to be tied to the problem, and submit all these details to us via the help desk so we can assist you as efficiently as possible.
6) If you get an error using the card swipe, the card may be unreadable. Test other cards to see if the issue is isolated to individual cards.
7) Try using a different USB port.