THE BASICS
Introduction
Busk.co is the fastest and most versatile tipping platform for street performers on the internet. Our service:
• was specifically designed for use in the street
• works all over the world, so you can get tipped wherever you go in the world
• has no set up or annual fees
• is easy to set up
• lets you accept Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal and credit card tips
Fees
Your audience has two options. By default, they can pay the transaction fee. Or, they can click a button to opt out of the fees. If they pay, you get the full tip amount. If they opt out, then 7% will be deducted from your tip.
The good news is that roughly 93% of tippers cover the fee, which means you only lose an average of 0.49% of your total tips. Read more about our fees, including how we worked out how much to charge the tipper.
Tipping you on busk.co
Step 1: Scan. Your audience scans your QR code (download your sign here)
Step 2: Choose (optional). They can change how much to tip, and whether to cover the fees
Step 3: Confirm. They confirm the tip
Step 4: Stay in touch (optional). Afterwards, they can then give you their email address
This whole process only takes a few seconds once the page loads. If they don’t change how much to tip, all they have to do is click one button to “confirm”. There’s no app needed, no logging in, so it really is just “scan, tap, and tip”.
How to download/print a sign
To get a sign, your easiest option is to go to busk.co/buskpay and we’ll make one for you!
If you want to print one yourself, you can download a sign from the tools tab in your dashboard. Then, get your local print shop to print and laminate it. And if you’re in the USA, we’ve created instructions on how to create your own durable foam board here.
About BuskPay
BuskPay is a line of waterproof, durable and beautifully designed signs that help you get cashless tips. They are made out of foam board, which means they are lightweight but won’t fold in the wind.
You can purchase your own in our shop and we’ll send it to your door.
Note: Currently, we only ship to the USA, the UK, Europe, Canada and Australia.
Reports from street performers have been amazing:
“BuskPay is working just bloody great, averaging between 10%-40% of every show. This is huge: it was just money walking away otherwise.”
Joel, Melbourne
“It’s great – I’ve had tap machines and all sorts for collecting payments but the QR code is excellent at getting people to tip. They’re also pretty impressed with the layout of the landing page, as am I. Thanks for doing what you do!”
Colin, Paris
“BuskPay has opened up the world of digital donations for me. It is so well designed and easy to use. I am greatly appreciative!”
Jeff, Vancouver
⚠️ MOST COMMON QUESTIONS / STRIPE ISSUES
Set up your Stripe account to receive tips
Stripe can be a little complicated, because there are different settings in each country. When you create a Stripe account, they want to make sure you’re not a scammer. This means they ask for info they can use to confirm you’re using the site legitimately.
So, to see how to set up a Stripe account in your country, we have written detailed instructions.
The main question we get all the time is about what “business URL” to put when you sign up. If you don’t already have a website set up, just put the URL of your profile on busk.co. You don’t need to set up a separate website.
To start the process, go to your tip settings and click “Connect Stripe Account”
Step 1: Link your account to Stripe to start receiving cashless tips
Step 2: Download a sign and display it in the street!
That’s it, it really is that easy!
When will the money reach my bank account?
Stripe will transfer your tips directly to your connected bank account. You can go to your Stripe settings page and change your “payout schedule” to have them transfer money to you either daily, weekly, monthly or on a specific date.
If you notice that your tips are not reaching your bank account, please check your Stripe account to make sure all your personal information is up to date—sometimes Stripe will restrict your account if you haven’t provided enough security details. This is just so they can confirm you’re not a scammer. It’s for everyone’s safety.
NOTE: For security reasons, Stripe will delay your first payout by 7-14 days. Again, this is to make sure you’re not a scammer. After this probationary period, payouts will take only 2 days to reach your account.
How can I get my tips when Stripe has restricted my account?
If you haven’t provided enough information to Stripe, and you’ve ignored their warnings, they might restrict your account. To prevent this:
• make sure to write down all of your information correctly when you create your Stripe account
• if your account has been blocked, log in to your Stripe account to find out what information they want you to submit (usually this is just a photo ID)
DASHBOARD, UPGRADES AND POINTS
Dashboard
You can see all the tips you’ve received via Stripe and albums you’ve sold on the tips tab of your dashboard, and download all the data as a CSV file. And if the tipper has chosen to share their email address with you, it’ll show up there as well.
It’s a great way to build a fan base and keep track of your tips.
Changing the default tip amount and currency
When people scan your QR code sign, they will see a “default tip value”. For example, it might be $10 AUD if you connected an Australian account, or £10 GBP if you connected a UK account.
If you want to change either the value or the currency, you can do that in your tip settings. Maybe you’re travelling to Canada, so you want to change the currency to CAD. Or, maybe you’re performing at a big festival, so you want to increase the tip to “20” instead of “10”. You can do that here:
NOTE: Regardless of which currency people use to tip you (in other words, regardless of the currency that appears when they scan your sign), Stripe will always convert that currency into the one that your bank account is in.
Premium Accounts
If you’d like to increase your earnings, and support our website, you can do so by paying for a PRO or account. Buskers with custom URLs (one of our PRO features) tend to get tipped more often than those who don’t, probably because a custom URL (like busk.co/nick) looks more professional than a URL with numbers in it (like busk.co/12345). Here’s a rundown of the benefits you get with our premium tiers:
PRO ($6/month)
All of our basic features, plus:
• access to our database of hundreds of festivals you can perform at
• extra visibility, meaning event bookers are more likely to find you
• a custom URL, making you look more professional
• 5 album uploads instead of 3
• extra resources
PRO+ ($12/month)
All of the basic and PRO features, plus:
• the ability to publicise your social media to tippers (after the tip)
• custom messaging on tip pages
Get “points” to increase your visibility
Similar to other social media platforms, The Busking Project uses an algorithm to organise the thousands of buskers on our website. This is so event bookers looking to hire buskers near them will see the “best”, “most popular” and “most active” profiles.
Our algorithm is a simple points system that determines how high you will show up in searches throughout the site.
Every time you receive a tip (whether you have a PRO account or not), you get 100 points. You also get points when somebody becomes your “fan”:
You also get points by creating a compelling profile, using our tools and more. You can read about it here.
Why this system is better for buskers than all the others
When you use our website, you’re not just getting tipped—you’re using the power of the internet to further your career. Tips on busk.co:
a) help you get visibility on our website, which can help you get hired for events
b) help you build a digital fan base, through gaining “fans” who send you their email addresses
c) lead to the promotion of your social media pages
d) let people can tip you however much they want (unlike most card machines)
e) pass the fees onto the tipper
f) work internationally, wherever you go
g) don’t require that your tippers have an account (unlike all the others)
h) are therefore super-fast, as there’s no log-in required.
It shouldn’t be a surprise that busk.co is the best service for buskers, as it’s the only cashless payments platform in the world that’s designed to serve the specific needs that street performers have.
We hope this article has answered any questions you might have!