What crosses my mind? Don't bring out my AMEX the next time I go to that restaurant (assuming that the food quality was good and the service was at least decent).

If I enjoyed the meal, I don't care if I have to use my VISA. This is assuming that this isn't a business expense. If I'm going to take clients out to dinner and I have to use the corporate card, I call in advance to see if they accept AMEX. I usually take clients to restaurants that I go to regularly anyway, since I know that I'll receive consistent quality service (which all happen to take AMEX).

I don't look down on any small business that doesn't take AMEX, since I know that operating a small business is difficult and the expenses add up easily. If it's some type of chain, however, then I do.

In the POV of a business owner, I don't see why I would even participate in the iDine program. It just only encourages the penny pinching type of customers to come, and they'll never come back as soon as they find a better deal for the same type of food somewhere nearby.

I didn't know Discover still existed. ;)

I would much rather have a homemade olive puree than have you accept AMEX.

My general policy with AMEX is "Leave Home Without It." Traveling both domestically and internationally I have found AMEX a pain to use, many places don't take it. I also know that here in the US people say that Mastercard and Visa are treated the same, you can have either. Internationally, Mastercard is nowhere near as good.

Oddball with a Discover Card checking in. I keep this card exclusively to use at Sam's Club (it's the only card they take) and, right now at least, for gas (with 5% cashback). For all other transactions it sits quietly in the inner recesses of my wallet.

I agree that if you want to attract business customers then you need to accept the most common business card(s) -- and right now that means Amex.

On the other hand, I moved to San Francisco from NYC about a year ago and I can tell you that Amex is accepted in many fewer places than Visa/MC. So if I wanted to have only one credit card, there is no way it could be Amex. So I have two cards -- I try to use Amex and if the place doesn't take it I use my Visa.

I actually had a discussion with my boyfriend a few months ago about credit cards. He has SPG Amex and switched to a no fee airline card Visa that gives him .5 points per dollar. His reasoning was that anyplace reasonably expensive takes Amex, and he doesn't care about the small transactions. Well, I'd say about 1 in 5 times we can't use Amex, even at reasonably pricey places. Not to mention the places we really love that only take cash.

Unless you get a lot of business customers, I vote for the pesto. :)

I don't avoid them, though it is somewhat of a hassle. I do agree however, that some of my favorite restaurants are cash only businesses...and I would drive out of my way to an ATM to get cash in order to dine at some of these fine establishments...

I don't base my opinion of a restaurant on whether they accept AMEX, but I do think it should be clearly posted which cards (if any) are accepted. However, i can do without being lectured to by proprietors that "Amex wants double the commision that Visa gets" and "they're putting me out of business." Then fine, don't accept AMEX and I'll gladly give you my Visa, but as long as you take AMEX, I don't want to hear about your problems or receive your dirty looks.

Amen... that is a decison for the restaurant manager. I've never gotten a dirty look, but if I did I would have something to say about it!

Quote:
Then fine, don't accept AMEX and I'll gladly give you my Visa, but as long as you take AMEX, I don't want to hear about your problems or receive your dirty looks.

--- In fact, the worst disaster I've seen locally is a restaurant that notes on the bottom of the checks that they accept Visa/MC only. They used to take Amex, and their POS was still set up for it, and any customer who remembered previously paying with Amex could make a stink and still use Amex -- which other customers would sometimes see, and they'd get annoyed if they had already paid. In the end, they didn't make anybody very happy -- not very effective hospitality.

My employer makes me use a corporate AMEX card for work related travel expenses unless AMEX is not accepted. I am thankful when this occurs because I prefer to use my United Airlines Visa card.
With the corporate AMEX I still get the bill directly but don't get the miles.

I think the reason Amex is the card of choice for business travellers is simply because life on the road is full of surprises. The "no pre-set spending limit" generally eliminates at least one of those.

As for the ARCO thing....that's been a fact of life for travel on the West Coast for at least twenty years. They launched it with a famous TV commercial featuring a credit card being exploded. Just do a little quick math and make sure you have a debit card handy if you go there.

In my experience its rare to save more than fifty cents on a debit card fill-up at ARCO, so why bother with the hassle they make you go through to use it?

"Corporate Amex must be used for business expense", to me one of the big reason is that employer gets a kick back from what is charged on it. I have a personal card that gives me points. Corporate Amex does not. I'd much prefer to put in on my personal card. I don't like to pull out the corporate card because most places do not take it here in Canada outside hotels and high end restaurants. And those who do, accept it begrudgingly like Taxi drivers. I suspect those who religiously put their expense on Corporate Amex is only doing it b/c they are enrolled in a points program with them. Otherwise they would be putting it on their personal card that has points.

I travel over 50% of the time, and my company issued me an AMEX card for business expenses. I do not have a personal AMEX card and do not intend to get one. I know that many do NOT feel this way, but if I am on business and you don't take AMEX, I don't do business with you. There are so many places that do that it's easier for me to only have to do one expense report, not one for the AMEX and one for things on a personal account. And I have, many times, called ahead to make sure that a certain establishment DOES accept AMEX.

My personal purchases are made anywhere, obviously.

I hope this helps you make whatever decision you may come to. Good business to you whatever you decide!

--Paul

Somehow, my gas tank always seems to go empty at about the same time as my wallet--so I first stop at the ATM, and take out enough cash to pay for my gas at ARCO. Up here in the Bay Area, I find that the ARCO stations are typically at least 10 cents cheaper per gallon then the nearest competitor, and 20 to 30 cents cheaper than national brands.

Thus, if it takes 15 gallons to fill my tank, I spend at least $1.50 less on a $45-50 transaction...more than the value of the 45-50 miles I'd get using a card. As you pointed out, the debit card fee eats up a good chunk of the savings--and makes going to a station that takes credit cards competitive once again.

Tying this back to the original topic, I think it just demonstrates that everyone (either the business owner or the consumer) runs their own cost benefit analysis (maybe not at as detailed a level as I do) and makes decisions based on it--for some consumers, the convenience of using credit cards (or a particular credit card) is higher than having to have cash, just like the decision to take (or not take) one or more credit cards is weighed against lost business. I imagine that most places that don't take AmEx would do so if they thought that it would actually bring in enough business to balance the costs.

^ ^ Same here, I put the $1.50 coffee that I get a Panera Bread on Amex...its just easier, and I get the points.

There's a trick around this...I buy Sams Gift Cards for myself in $100 increments, which they sell at my local grocery stores. I use my Amex to pay for the GC's, and get the double points because its a supermarket purchase :D