Ready for a “Cashless” Society?

OBSERVATION
Tipping cards are a handy way to say thank you

WHAT’S HAPPENING

The Where’s My Tip? card offers travelers a cashless relief from figuring out what to tip doormen, bellhops, housemaids, valets and concierges (Springwise.com 6.22.10).
For a $100 annual membership fee, users get 100 “tip cards,” which they hand to service attendants in lieu of cash. Each card has a member ID number. Recipients plug in their ID online, provide their contact information and request a tip amount from the guest.
Where’s My Tip emails the request to the member, who can pay the requested fee or a different amount via credit card or PayPal account.
Members can access detailed reports of requests received or tips paid online at anytime.

WHAT THIS MEANS TO BUSINESS

Cashless convenience is appealing for travelers who like to travel as light as possible.
For some travelers, nuances in local customs can make for awkward tipping situations. Placing the burden on the recipient takes the guesswork out altogether. But does it get more awkward when the valet requests $100 for a one-night stay? Or he can’t get online to make the tip request?

RESOURCE: Iconoculture

What are the advantages/disadvatages of a “tip card”?

What do you think about a “cashless” society?

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admin | Trends, Uncategorized | 07 28th, 2010 |

4 Responses

lsmaagaard Says:
July 30th, 2010 at 7:22 am
This is interesting, but I think it is similar to rebates. Likely the person getting the tip card would forget to enter the card or lose it altogether. I do see a cashless society but possibly something to be scanned would be easier to use.
stephenmkelly Says:
July 30th, 2010 at 12:05 pm
Wow, this is really horrible for people who work in the service industry! It does make it easy on the customer, but…

Lynn makes a good point – many people would probably just forget to follow up. Other requests wouldn’t make it past spam filters on email accounts. Inflation would also become rampant, I think, as each person in the service industry, tired of feeling kicked around and stiffed on tips, suddenly make a point to begin raising their tip rates. This would be much to the detriment of the more level minded folks on both sides of the transaction. 15% is a pretty common tip in the service industry for wait staff. What if you began getting 30 – 40% tip requests? Then what? No one likes gratuities, so placing restrictions on how much the request could or could not be, minimally or maximally, would probably not go over well.

A transaction that is not sanctioned by face-to-face contact could be a dangerous thing.
Judelia Says:
July 30th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
Plenty of reasons for concern – I’m thinking the IRS would love this!
stephenmkelly Says:
July 31st, 2010 at 6:44 pm
The IRS? Ohhhhhhhh, yeah.