Menards® is a company that is headquartered in Eau Claire, Wisconsin and operates hundreds of stores located across the United States (in some areas of the US) and boasts of more than forty-five thousand (45,000) employees. It’s basically into building products and services, including DIY (Do It Yourself) products for home improvement. Here we will see more about Menards® Payment Option.
Payment Options: Menards® payment system is flexible. The company accepts payment through seven notable options, which are: Menards® Big Card®; Menards® Contractor Card; Menards® Commercial Card; MasterCard; Visa Card; Discover® and American Express. We will discuss these options shortly. First, understanding more about how payment is being done in the digitialized world will further the knowledge necessary for effective use of these options based to make your own decision accordingly.
Understanding payment Options
Payment options, as a term in the banking, financial and economic domains, It is some ways or methods in which merchants/companies/a body collect payments from their buyers or clients, or other corporations for goods sold or services rendered or earmarked to render.
Payment transactions could be done in cash, credit or payment-in-kind (which also means bartering—exchanging a service as payment for another service, purchasing a commodity and paying with another commodity).
Types of Payment Options
Payment options are numerous but fall into two major categories: Non-Digital Payment and Digital Payment.
1. Digital Payments
Digital payments are the kind of payments that take place through electronic mediums to purchase goods or services or other transactions that involve payment or exchange of money.
Payments through these mediums are (i) Mobile Payment (ii) Bank Transfer (electronic transfer) (iii) Credit Cards Payments (iv) Debit Cards Payment and recently (v) Crypto Payment. We shall now discuss these mediums of payment one after the other.
i). Mobile Payment:
Mobile payment is the use of mobile phones as a medium to make payments. A person dials some numbers (a code) on the phone, for example, *99#, *898#, *737# etc. Please note that different banks use different codes based on the country the person lives). The dialling code will prompt a series of instructions to fulfil the payment according to the request.
ii). Bank Transfer Payment:
Bank transfer is the electronic transfer of money to make payment for goods and services using the internet banking app system of the financial institution. The processing is done via the internet.
Banking institutions have multi-layer security put in place to make this method fast, reliable and secure.
Unlike the mobile payment method, bank transfer does not rely on a dialling phone code to make a payment. It makes use of the internet and the set-up security protocols of the person making the payment.
iii). Credit Card Payment:
A credit card is a thin rectangular piece of plastic (some can be made of metal) issued by banks or financial services providers. This card enables the cardholder to borrow money to make payments for goods and services with companies or business entities that accept this form of making payment.
iv). Debit Card Payment: This is similar to a credit card. It’s also a rectangular piece of plastic issued by banks or financial services companies, which enables the cardholder to make direct payment for goods and services with merchants that accept this payment option.
FYI (For Your Information): credit cards and debit cards, though similar, are based on two different systems. A credit card allows you to borrow funds from your bank or financial services provider to pay for the purchase of goods and services and payback at a later y. A debit card takes the fund directly from your account with the bank or financial services provider in real-time (instantly).
v). Paying in Cryptocurrencies: This medium of payment is recent and so not widely accepted by merchants across the digital world for the payment for goods and services. However, it is worth mentioning that it is fast becoming a popular option in the fast-paced digital world.
Crypto payment involves paying for goods and services with cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, USDT, BNB etc. Cryptocurrencies are not fiat currencies. Nevertheless, the currencies can be used to purchase cash currencies (fiat currencies) on the blockchain. You will need to have a crypto wallet to be able to use this payment method. ‘Binance’ is a popular crypto wallet, others include OKX, Crypto.com, Luno etc. You download the app, install it, register your details and then set up your account to transact in cryptocurrencies. The risk involved in crypto is that they are volatile (unstable in their exchange rates). The cryptos could be high in their exchange rate with fiat currency in the morning and then suddenly crash before noon.
These are notable mediums of digital payments.
2. Non-Digital Payment:
Non-digital payments are non-electronic payments that must be manually processed by the bank or financial services providers because the payment can only be submitted for processing by physical mediums (you take it to the bank for clearing). Three notable mediums under this are cash, cheque/check or money order. We will now discuss these three mediums of payment in detail.
i). Cash Payment: This is as old as the early human societies when goods and services started to be exchanged on barter (trade by barter), and then the invention of objects to serve as money for the payment for goods and services. For example, in ancient China, India and Africa, cowry shells were established as physical cash to pay for goods and services. In China, sometime from 1000 BC onward, money in form of spades made of bronze and small knives began to be used during the Zhou dynasty. Interestingly China is the first country in the ancient world to invent banknotes (as a payment system) at the start of the 7th century during the Tang and Song dynasties.
The world has developed rapidly, and so likewise the use of a sophisticated system of cash as a legal payment medium. Cash payment is the payment for goods and services using physical paper notes or coins issued by an authorized body and legalized as legal means to pay for goods and services.
Though the world (the economies of some countries)is fast becoming cashless, cash is still the most popular and frequently used monetary legal tender to purchase goods and services.
ii). Cheque/Check: Cheque (also called check in American English) is a specially designated paper document. A person can issue it to a bank or financial services provider directing it to pay a specified sum of money written on the document (written both in digits as well as words) to the person/corporation whose name appears on the cheque.
It is also a medium of payment (non-digital payments), slow to process and could bounce (rejected or not honour) if the authorizing signature or written digits or words show any discrepancy against the ones recognized/approved by the bank or financial services provider. It is not always a reliable payment option. A person can issue or be issued a dud cheque—a punishable criminal offence in some countries.
iii). Money Order Payment: A money order is similar to a cheque but unlike the latter, it is a certificate issued by a government or banking institution that allows the payee stated on the money order to be paid. Unlike a cheque that can bounce, a money order is a guaranteed payment.
It is a medium of payment for goods and services. And like a personal cheque, it needs to be processed manually.
Comparison: Digital Payment and Non-digital Payment
It is advantageous to compare digital payment and non-digital payment. As previously discussed the two are payment options and share the same function (paying for goods and services). However, one is gaining popularity more than the other. Digital payment is far ahead of non-digital payment as the most used method of making payment.
| S/N | Digital: | Non-digital: |
| 1 | Relatively fast. | Relatively slow. |
| 2 | Convenient | Going about with cash or cheque could be inconvenient. |
| 3 | Multi-layers security protocols. | A signature is all that is majorly needed on legal tender such as a cheque. |
| 4 | Higher risk of a total loss of money should your security details become compromised. | Minimum risk of a total loss of money should the cheque falls into wrong hands, since only the stated amount on the cheque can be paid out. |
| 5 | Does not need a signature hence no signature to be forged by the wrong entity. | A signature can be forged if the cheque falls into the wrong hands |
MENARDS® PAYMENTS
Now, having discussed digital and non-digital payment options, including types and notable features in detail, we will focus on the seven listed payment options of Menards ®.
Menards® BIG Card®
This is a store card generally issued to Menards acute customers who use to shop daily. The card also enables the holder to get two percentage discounts on every purchase.
Menards® Contractor Card
This is also a store card mostly beneficial to long-term investors and business companies. It is the major card issued to Menards employees. The card also provides two percentage discounts on every purchase made with this card.
Menards® Commercial Card
Like the two previous cards, Menards® Commercial Card is a store card issued for everyday transactions.
How to Get Menards® Card?
Getting Menards® cards is not difficult. First, you open/create an account on their main website: https://www.menards.com. To apply for Menards® BIG Card® visit https://applynow.capitalone.com. Visit https://applynow-tradecredit.capitalone.com for Menards® Contractor Card. Visit https://applynow-tradecredit.capitalone.com for Menards® Commercial Card.
Other Payment Options at Menards
MasterCard
MasterCard is ranked as the second-largest payment network in the global financial Payment industry. It is a network of global payment systems and partners with banks and financial services providers that issue MasterCard payment cards processed on the MasterCard network.
Visa Card
Visa Card is a payment card processed on the Visa network in partnership with financial institutions that issue the card directly to customers for payments for goods and services.
Discover
Discover is an American financial services company that directly issues credit cards to clients/customers for payment for goods and services.
American Express
American Express is a multinational American corporation that specializes in payment card services. The company issues credit cards directly to their clients/customers to make payments for goods and services.
Conclusion
Menards® is a company with over three hundred (300) home improvement stores across the United States and over forty-five thousand (45,000) employees. It deals in building materials, productions and services, and accepts payment options such as Menards® BIG Card®, Menards® Contractor Card, Menards® Commercial Card, MasterCard, Visa Card, American Express and Discover—which are all digital payment options.
FAQs
1. Are digital payments secured?
Ans: Digital payments rely on multi-layer security protocols, so they are secure and efficient. The notable features or procedures put in place to make it secure are as follows:
Authentication: secured password, biometric security, two-tier authentication and even facial scan are some of the security protocols put in place for authentic verification.
Authorization: As fast as digital payments are, they are well-regulated by appropriate and competent authorities.
Integrity
Confidentiality: Your details are secured, except you compromise your security protocols yourself by being careless about how you keep the details safe.
Availability: The beauty of digital payments is not just their speed and efficacy but also their availability. You could be anywhere in the world and make payments from the comfort of your home twenty-fours, seven days a week provided you don’t have a personal issue with your bank or financial services provider.
Non- repudiation: This involves both parties agreeing to an obligation. So technically, the sender (payer) is responsible for the payment information provided and at the same time the receiver is also responsible for the information received.
2. How Important is Digital Payment?
Ans: Digital payments save the risk involved in the use (or movement) of cash. It is efficient, saves time and is convenient to use.
3. How are digital payments done?
Ans: Two notable ways digital payments are done are over the mobile line and on the internet.
4. Can I use Menards credit card to make payment elsewhere?
Ans: Menards credit card is a store card, like all store cards you can only make use at Menards® and a few others included in the payment system link. You could use the credit card at Menards®, Kwik Star® stores, Speedway, Kwik Trip® and Holiday.
5. What’s the charge for using Menards credit card?
Ans: No charge at all. Menards® credit cards come with no annual charge.
