Hello,
One area I'm interested in getting more involved in is Concierge type services. Booking tickets, trips, reservations, etc. My question though is how do you handle the payment portion for the client.
I would not want to book trips for them on my credit card of course, and be reimbursed. How do you handle that? Do you ask them to provide a Credit Card number in order for you to book for them?
Has anyone else had experience with this? Thanks in advance!

I provide concierge services for one of my clients - buying gifts, making reservations, booking flights, etc. It's one of my favorite services that I offer.

Under no circumstances would I use my own credit card. Instead, I had my client sign a credit card authorization form which includes his credit card information and authorizes me to make purchases on his behalf up to a given amount for a set period of time. You can decide with your client whether they want to sign a form on a case-by-case basis (use a one-time authorization form) or sign an ongoing form for say a six or twelve month period.

If you do a Google search for "credit card authorization form" you'll find lots of good examples that you can download and adapt for your business.

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Linda
Clockwise Virtual Assistance

Exactly the answer I needed, thanks so much!

Signing the authorization form is a great idea to protect yourself. Once you have their sensitive information though you can store it on lastpass.com. All passwords and financial information is encrypted and protected. It helps assure clients that their information is safe.

Concierge services is a great niche if you are in the right market. I enjoy providing this service because I get immediate satisfaction from helping keep my clients organized. The goal is to replace the types of tasks the client would delegate to an in office admin or personal assistant. The authorization is great but I also work with a travel agency which has the traveller's profile, so I don't have to have their CC info saved. There is a nominal fee involved but it helps streamline operations.

Best,
Carone

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Carone Holt, CAP info@iadminsolutions.com
Starbursting Solutions Everyday