How to reduce the sting in charging service fees.

Today I paid my property taxes. I never enjoy paying this cost. To me it’s like buying tires or a new air conditioning unit. It’s not quit the same as investing a Hermes handbag, that cost about the same thing. Now that gives me a lot of joy and pleasure.

My point today is: over and above my tax bill, I was charged 2.5% of the total to use my American Express credit card.

I’ve had experiences like this in the past, where retailers will do this. They make you pay extra for using a credit card. Which I find annoying. I felt like I was being nicked and dimed by the store and they were a loser business, struggling so much that they added this petty fee, which in my mind should be build in to the price.

Today was different. I wasn’t peeved at all. Why? Because the fee was framed as a convenience fee. I value convenience and had no problem with the 2.5%. It really boiled down to how they presented it to me.

Next time you charge your customer some fee, think about how you package it. This one word made a big difference in how I felt about the cost and vendor charging  me.

For more on pricing and why we pay what we do, check out a previous blog and a book I found very insightful.

For more tips, also check out:
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