Are you nickel and diming your customers?

I had a very interesting interaction last night when I was paying for a service.

Normally, I pay with cash for this service but last night, I used my debit card.

"It will be for $1 more because I get charged that for running a bank card."

I didn't know what to say. What does one say to that? A service you had been using for a number of months and had been loyal to -- and they put a value on your business at a $1.

Now, keep in mind, there were times the service was not exactly what I had expected but I did not complain or say, "Hey, I am only paying you 80 percent of your fee because I don't feel like got my money's worth one week."

I get that there are fees associated with using bank cards. I have worked in and with enough small businesses to know those merchant fees can take a bite out of your profits.

You know what else takes a bite out of your profits?

Losing loyal paying customers.

I ran into this several years ago when someone said they were only accepting debit card payments if the total was over a certain amount. Problem was, you'd have to get a ton of stuff you didn't want or need to total that amount.

The end result was, a lot of people stopped shopping.

It's putting a price tag on your customers worth and value. You are saying, "Unless you spend this much with my business, I don't want to be bothered."

When I do marketing and writing work, most of my clients ask me if I accept certain payments. One of them takes a pretty big chunk of my pay for processing fees.

Do I charge a fee to cover that cost?

Absolutely not.

It is the cost of doing business and it is something that allows my customers to pay me quicker and easier (for them) and is more convenient for me as well.

I value their business more than I do the fees.

That interaction last night was over a $1. One dollar.

May not seem like a lot, but it was the energy of the transaction.

It came across as tacky and made me feel like I was being de-valued as someone who had been using their services for a number of months.

It also was enough to make me re-think if this was something necessary or if it was worth going elsewhere.

If you are a small business owner and feel the pain of bank card processing fees, try evaluating if you may need to change your merchant services, or even slightly go up on your fees to cover those costs. (Odds are, if you are feeling the bite of a fee on a rare transaction, you are needing to look at your business overall.)

And are you adding value to your service? If these padded fees make your customers question your business intentions, maybe you aren't adding value that keeps customers loyal and for long-term.

Above all -- don't nickel and dime your customers to death. It may help cover your costs in the short term but in the long run, it can negatively affect your business.