We all know how beneficial it can be for a Canadian business to market to US consumers. Even after the pandemic, where much of the Canadian consumer base has pulled back spending, the US market’s spending continues to trend upwards. So how can you take advantage as a Canadian small business? Here’s all you have to know about billing in USD as a Canadian small business.

Why should I bill in USD

Billing in USD benefits your business in many ways.

Less fees for your customer

If you already have US customers, billing in USD can help to build stronger customer relationships as they don’t need to pay an additional international fee when paying your business. It also makes it easier for your customers to see the outstanding amount in their currency when they open your invoices. Knowing what they owe at a glance promotes quicker invoice payments as they don’t have to whip out a calculator to determine what they owe.

Attractive pricing for US customers

No matter what industry you’re in, the low Canadian dollar is a great opportunity to attract American customers. Americans know the buying power of their dollar and often will visit Canadian businesses to save money on products. By targeting American customers with your Canadian business, you could attract more customers from the US market by advertising your lower rates.

Higher profit for your business

Billing in USD can also help boost your cash flow as USD is still currently worth more than CAD. By taking advantage of the exchange rate, you can enjoy the benefit of the strong US dollar and make the conversion to CAD when it makes the most sense to you or when the market is advantageous.

Sell to a much larger market

As mentioned at the start of this article, the US market is not only spending more but is just a larger market overall. By opening up your business to our friendly neighbours in the south, you’ll have access to a greater population of customers than if you focus solely on Canadian consumers.

How do I get started?

So how do you get started with billing in USD? Here’s a step-by-step guide to prepare your business for USD payments.

Open a USD bank account.

By opening a USD account within your business bank account, you can start accepting USD payments without the instant exchange rate you’re subject to when you take USD payments into a CAD account. Most banking institutions in Canada have a USD account option that you can apply for. Or you can use a third-party option like Wise.

Choose a payment provider that offers “direct processing” in USD.

This is where step 1 comes in handy. You’ll need a USD account to connect to your payment provider to avoid having your payments be automatically converted to CAD.

Find an invoicing tool that makes digital payments easy.

You don’t want to create more work for yourself just to offer your customers more convenience. By choosing an invoicing tool that lets you integrate with a digital payment provider, you can ensure your billing process is as professional and smooth as possible.

Our recommendation:

TrulySmall Invoices – TS Invoices uses Stripe as a payment provider, making your life incredibly easy when it comes to billing your customers. Just connect to a Stripe account within the TS Invoices app, choose your currency when creating an invoice, and your customers will be happy to see that what they owe will be in their native currency.

TrulySmall Accounting – If you’re looking for more than just invoicing, TS Accounting can handle your billing, financial tracking, and reports too. Also using Stripe as a payment processor, TS Accounting allows you to do more with your business. Send invoices with digital payment options in any currency. And when your payment comes into your account, we’ll automatically categorize it and track it to the right currency account.

Ready to reach a larger audience for your small business? Start attracting US customers by offering easy payment options with multi-currency compatible tools. Try TrulySmall Invoices or TrulySmall Accounting and make it even more attractive for your customers to pay you.