Why don't some places accept AMEX?

[Platinum]

I hope that some of those nutcases who are rejecting to accept AmEx have learned their lesson so far. When they tell me that they don't accept my card I simply tell them: "Well, then you don't get my business". If they are willing to lose customers over few cents then let it be. In the end they are losing much more then me or AmEx. I will go some place else where my AmEx is accepted. They should accept this transaction cost as the cost of doing business. I love seeing their faces when I give up on purchase just because the don't take my card.

[CS800]

Here in MA most places accept AMEX.

[android01]

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@Revelate wrote:

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@namvet wrote:

You have to spend money to Make Money!  Not all understand this.

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Not entirely applicable to this discussion: there's epending good money, and then there's wasting it.  If your business plays in the margins, even a 0.5% differential is non-trivial if you're looking at 3-5% income to begin with on any given trasaction.  

There are multiple business models that I and a buddy have kicked around over the years, and most of them would expect credit cards for payment.  Everyone has a VISA / MC somewhere, so if it turns out Amex is too expensive on whatever one or two that we pick, we won't accept it; however, we absolutely will do a comparison of the networks, perhaps it as CA stated and my old experience from retail where I had access to the books is no longer applicable.

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Every business plays in some kind of margin.  One of the divisions of my company sells pro audio equipment, where we're lucky to make a 10% margin.  The 3.25% Amex rate is virtually a full point higher than our MC or Visa interchange fees, and we can't even build that into the price as the competition is so tight, particularly in this economy.   That 1% could mean a BIG difference in the sales staffs net targets for the month and what bonuses they get at the end of the year.     

[android01]

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@Platinum wrote:
I hope that some of those nutcases who are rejecting to accept AmEx have learned their lesson so far. When they tell me that they don't accept my card I simply tell them: "Well, then you don't get my business". If they are willing to lose customers over few cents then let it be. In the end they are losing much more then me or AmEx. I will go some place else where my AmEx is accepted. They should accept this transaction cost as the cost of doing business. I love seeing their faces when I give up on purchase just because the don't take my card.

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Then I would encourage you to take your business elsewhere.  If you've never run, owned or operated a business you wouldn't understand how much interchange fees matter.  Your "few cents" add up to a lot of money throughout a year.  It affects the bottom line which affects re-investment in the business, employee wages, and a host of other fixed and variable costs that consumers don't and never would consider.          

[Anonymous]

Again, if 1% (actually the vast majority of the cases, it's closer to one half of one percent) then you've got bigger issues and need to quit taking credit cards altogether as that right there is already "eating in to a tight margin'.  If you're accepting cards, you accept all cards, as the difference is minimal and should already be factored.  

If you think you 'need' to accept cards, then refuse debit and refuse all cards except for MC, as they are the cheapest.  If you accept ANYTHING but MC and cash, and still complain about percentages, you need to rething your math.

If multi-billion dollar companies accept all cards without issue (when the interchange fees they pay are more than you whole companies sales for the year), and many small companies accept the cards without issue... somethings off on your end.

[MarineVietVet]

[Anonymous]

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@bichonmom wrote:

[snip snip]

Personally, I'm in business to make money, and if I want to make money, I have to make it as easy as I can for my customers. One way I do that is by accepting all 4 major CCs. I would hate to lose income because someone wanted to use their Amex, and I didn't take it. I think it's a poor business decision not to take all 4. That said, Amex is a tiny % of the CCs I get, and I don't think I've ever had a Discover sale.

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+1

We've had to point out to several clients that it's worth setting up an EASY way to accept payments so that customers don't get turned off. Even if losing an extra 0.5-1% in fees sucks, it's better than losing the whole sale.

I understand that some places don't want to go through the hassle of having to set up separate merchant accounts through Amex and Discover, so I always make sure to also have a Visa card with me.

Then again, it's better than the places that don't accept credit cards - debit cards or cash only. The first time I was told that I was dumbfounded, for a moment I thought they expected me to barter them some goats or bolts of silk or dig out gold coins out of my adventurer's pack. I don't know why, but it just felt surreal to me.

[android01]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Again, if 1% (actually the vast majority of the cases, it's closer to one half of one percent) then you've got bigger issues and need to quit taking credit cards altogether as that right there is already "eating in to a tight margin'.  If you're accepting cards, you accept all cards, as the difference is minimal and should already be factored.  

If you think you 'need' to accept cards, then refuse debit and refuse all cards except for MC, as they are the cheapest.  If you accept ANYTHING but MC and cash, and still complain about percentages, you need to rething your math.

If multi-billion dollar companies accept all cards without issue (when the interchange fees they pay are more than you whole companies sales for the year), and many small companies accept the cards without issue... somethings off on your end.

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So how much does YOUR company pay in interchange fees, and what could you have spent some of that money on had you had a chance to keep it?  Another employee? More capital equipment to grow your business and hire more people?  Please, do tell.  

[Anonymous]

Plenty of people only carry one credit card.  Since VISA/MC are pretty much universally accepted anywhere that accepts cards, this type of person won't carry an AMEX, because it'd be stupid to have your one card be a card that isn't accepted everywhere.  Most everyone that has an AMEX has a backup, and they will just use the backup instead of not buying an item they want in order to make god-knows-what point about how they know better than the business owner about how to manage their finances.

[android01]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Plenty of people only carry one credit card.  Since VISA/MC are pretty much universally accepted anywhere that accepts cards, this type of person won't carry an AMEX, because it'd be stupid to have your one card be a card that isn't accepted everywhere.  Most everyone that has an AMEX has a backup, and they will just use the backup instead of not buying an item they want in order to make god-knows-what point about how they know better than the business owner about how to manage their finances.

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+1000.