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Some small businesses may be willing to pay for certain online and mobile-banking services if they increase convenience or save time, according to a recent Aite Group LLC survey. Roughly 50% of surveyed small-business owners stated it would be acceptable for financial institutions to charge fees for some online and mobile-banking services, states the report "The ROI of Small-Business Mobile Banking." Specifically, 27% of respondents would be willing to pay for mobile-banking services, 35% for remote-deposit services and 31% for electronic invoicing. Of the respondents willing to pay for mobile-banking capabilities, 15% would be willing to pay between $5 and $10 per month, 3% would pay between $11 and $15 per month, 4% would pay between $16 and $20 per month, and 5% would pay between $21 and $26 per month. The willingness to pay for mobile banking varies by where small businesses bank, states the report. Small businesses that have Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. or Wells Fargo & Co. as their primary institutions are more willing to pay for mobile banking than are customers of other institution types, such as regional and community banks. Many larger institutions often charge for services that smaller institutions provide for free, so large-bank customers are more accustomed to paying for more-sophisticated banking capabilities, the report states. Boston-based Aite says it surveyed 283 U.S. small businesses in July for the report.
