How to check if your Facebook ad spend has hidden bank fees (and how you can eliminate them)

Facebook and Instagram are the leading advertising channels for most eCommerce businesses globally. In ACCC’s recent report, Australian businesses spent 28% of their total online advertising budget on Facebook in 2019, representing a 16% growth from the previous year.

With the accelerated shift to online shopping crowding out the online advertising space, it is vital for every business to utilise each marketing dollar to its full capability. This includes every dollar spent on hidden transaction fees on top of your Facebook advertising costs.

How to check if your Facebook ad spend has hidden bank fees

Despite Facebook charging and invoicing you in AUD, many businesses are paying an additional 3% in foreign transaction fee for this spend. Eliminating these fees may provide an additional $3,000 re-invested back into your business on a $100,000 Facebook ad budget.

The Big 4 Australian banks including CBA, NAB, ANZ and Westpac charge a 3% foreign transaction fee on many of their business card products, which typically applies on transactions charged in a foreign currency.

However, this also applies to transactions where the merchant or entity processing the transaction is located outside of Australia, which applies to Facebook. Even if the transaction is in AUD. This is because foreign transactions are actually defined by where the merchant is located, not by the currency they are charging in. Which is why most bank card fee schedules come with this statement:

“International transactions are transactions where the merchant, financial institution or entity processing the transaction is located outside Australia. Note: It may not always be clear to you that the Merchant or entity processing the transaction is located outside Australia.”

The merchant’s location is formally defined as part of their Merchant of Record (MoR). Unfortunately, this information is not available to the public. This makes it difficult to know upfront if you’ll be charged a foreign transaction fee, with many businesses taking a trial and error process instead.

It’s worth checking your card statements for international transaction fees or speaking to your finance team, as it’s possible you’re forfeiting an additional 3%, on top of your ad spend, that could instead be invested in growth.

Win back your Facebook ads budget from international transaction fees

It’s not possible to simply change Facebook’s merchant location to be within Australia to avoid being charged the 3% fee. The simpler solution is to eliminate these international card transaction fees entirely.

The good news is that not all card issuers charge international card transactions fees. Airwallex Borderless Cards are a popular option for fast-growing Australian businesses looking to make the most of their ad spend by eliminating card fees altogether.

Take your marketing budget further with Airwallex Borderless Virtual Visa cards

With Airwallex Borderless Visa cards, you will never see a surprise transaction fee again, with 0% international card transaction fees and $0 annual cardholder fees.

Never blow your marketing budget with set daily, weekly or monthly limits for each card while providing your team full visibility through powerful multi-user access features. Better yet, create dedicated cards in seconds for each advertising channel for greater visibility and control over your budget.

Get started with your Airwallex Borderless Visa cards today with a complete online sign-up experience. Start taking back your marketing budget, and reinvest in growth.

Related article: International ROAS: How To Calculate Return on Ad Spend

Sources:

1. https://www.nab.com.au/business/tools/rates-fees-and-charges/business-banking-fees-and-charges

2. https://www.commbank.com.au/content/dam/commbank/business/pds/003-840-personal-liability-card-fees.pdf

3. https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/cb/CC_TC_COU.pdf

4. https://www.anz.com.au/content/dam/anzcomau/documents/pdf/commercial-cards-fees-and-charges.pdf For more information on how this was calculated, please visit this page.

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