Refocus the Conversation About Credit Card Fees

Published 10/5/23

Your customers are likely seeing many of their local restaurants and businesses charging a fee to use credit cards. Like everything else these days, the cost of accepting credit cards is going up. While for many years merchants accepted card processing expenses as ‘the cost of doing business,’ today, more and more businesses are passing those costs onto their customers who choose to pay by credit card.

What does this mean for you?
This is an opportunity for your customer–facing representatives to diffuse complaints about paying a credit card fee (if you charge one) – and help justify the necessity from your business point of view. Here are three scripts you may want to consider, to notify your customers about the fees associated with paying with a credit card:

In-person: “There will be a $X flat fee for credit card payments. Would you like to use another form of payment?”
Online: “By selecting ‘credit,’ you agree to pay a $X convenience fee.”
Phone: “I’m happy to process your credit card payment, but please be aware there is a $X convenience fee.”

The key is to be transparent about the fee and deliver the information confidently – but offer the customer a chance to use another form of payment if they object to the fee. For example: “If you would prefer to use another form of payment, such as cash or check, this fee would not apply.”

If you wish to put up your own sign in your lobby or at the payment counter, it could read something like:

“Notice: A $X flat fee applies when using a credit card for payment.