What Is Venmo?
Venmo is a PayPal-owned payment platform that’s been around since 2009 and is currently only accessible within the United States. Venmo promotes itself as a social money transfer app that makes it easy to split costs and send and receive funds between people and businesses. You must link your Venmo account to your U.S. bank account (or a debit card that permits Instant Transfer) if you want to send money between the two. Also, if you want to make payments larger than your Venmo balance amount, you’ll need to link a U.S. bank account, credit, or debit card. When users send payments, they are given the option to write a note and accompany it with emojis or stickers. Depending on user preference—accounts can be set to private—the payment may show up in the feeds of others, who can then like or comment on the payment.
Can I Use Venmo for My Business?
Venmo isn’t just for peer-to-peer transactions anymore—the company now offers a Venmo business profile option for individuals, sole proprietors, and registered businesses to use. As a sole proprietor, for instance, any payment methods you link to your Venmo account will be linked to both your personal Venmo profile and your business profile. However, if you set up your business profile as a registered business, Venmo will keep the payment methods separate for you. This means that any payment method you link to your business profile will only be linked to that profile and won’t impact your personal account, which in turn can help you better manage your finances. A business profile allows customers to pay for goods or services through Venmo. The customer isn’t charged any additional cost, but the business must pay seller transaction fees that are comparable to industry standards. For every payment made above one dollar, the business must pay Venmo 1.9%+$0.10 of the amount.
Set Up Your Venmo Business Profile
In order to set up a business profile, you must be located in the U.S. and have a personal Venmo account. If you don’t already have a personal account, there’s an option to create one when opening your business profile. You’ll use the details from your personal Venmo account to log in for both profiles, and will be able to switch back and forth between the two accounts by clicking on your picture in the upper-left corner.
If You Have a Personal Account
If you already have a personal Venmo account, open the app and click on your picture in the top-left corner, then select “Create a business profile.” You can also press on the three horizontal lines in the upper-right corner, select “Settings,” and then “Create Business Profile.” You will then be prompted to enter the necessary information for setting up a business account.
If You Don’t Have a Venmo Account
Start off by downloading the Venmo app. Once downloaded, select the “Business” option when prompted. Choose “Sign up” and then “Get Started”—you’ll be asked for your name and email, and will need to create a password for the account. You’ll need to enter your phone number and verify it with a code. After verifying your phone number, you’ll be asked for information about your business.
Venmo Business Profile Features
Venmo offers some additional features to those with business profiles including:
Formal tax documentation for businesses that meet or exceed the federal and state reporting threshold. Added security by verifying the identity of all business profiles that have a tax ID number. The option to accept Venmo at checkout in your app or mobile site and allow customers to add tips to their purchases. Options to provide potential customers with more information about your business in the app, including links to a website and social media accounts.
