At AVPS, we know that our clients have to incorporate the costs and fees associated with credit/debit card processing into their overall bottom lines. This means that, if they accept credit cards, they must include this as part of how they price their goods and services. While this has long been the norm, the rise of mobile credit card processing is creating some sticky customer service issues that we want to help our partners avoid. To demonstrate what we mean, here’s a story of a service provider, a customer, and the moment it all went wrong:
On the hottest day of the summer, Mrs. Smith realizes that her air conditioner motor is on its last legs and needs replacing. She calls up her trusted A/C repair person, and he quotes her a price for the service. He comes out, replaces the motor, and then writes her an invoice for the very costly, but agreed upon fee. Mrs. Smith hands over her credit card, but her repair person says, as he pulls out his cell phone credit card reader, “Oh, wait, there will be a 3% additional fee if you pay with this card.” Mrs. Smith is understandably annoyed, and this makes her once trustworthy A/C repair person seem suddenly less-than-trustworthy. In a single moment, her opinion is soured and this increases the chances that she would look elsewhere next time she needed service.
So, what is the moral of this story? The service provider went about this transaction in the wrong manner. First, he could have simply created a fee scale that anticipated that a majority of customers now pay with credit cards. Second, if he did want to only apply the fee to credit-paying customers, he should not only have informed her during the quote before any work was done, but he should also have that information included on his invoices, advertising, and website.
At AVPS, we know that you have to factor processing fees into your costs. You need to either build these expenses into your entire matrix, or be upfront with customers before they invest any time or money with you. Springing fees on customers at point of sale is unprofessional, and a fast way to lose goodwill. Need more ideas to keep those processing costs down and customers happy? Contact our representatives for fresh perspectives on mobile processing.
