Practice tip: Use rewards card for cash back on veterinary purchases

Shutterstock.comI use a Capital One Spark Business Rewards credit card to pay our larger distributors for inventory purchases. The card has an upper limit, but you can charge and pay for purchases immediately, and the cash reward is an unlimited 2 percent cash back.

Before signing up with Capital One, I researched the best rewards cards for small businesses. I wanted one with an unlimited percentage cash back, and I also wanted to be able to purchase all categories to get the rewards (some cards allow rewards only on certain types of purchases, or the rewarded purchase category rotates each month or quarter).

I opt to get my reward in a statement credit each month, and this has resulted in an average of $800 per month in income for our practice-just for paying our bills! It also results in an extended payment period from the original distributor payment terms.

If you're interested in signing up for a card, be sure to look online for a new customer promotion. Our hospital received a $500 cash back bonus for making a certain dollar amount in transactions on the card within the first 60 days of opening. I have been using this card for over a year and it works great!

Jackie Ballay is finance and inventory manager at Erie Animal Hospital in Erie, Pennsylvania. Click here to submit your own practice tip. If we publish it, we'll pay you $50!