Card payment: How to continue to tip your tips self -determined

Whether the baker, hairdresser or the kiosk around the corner: If you pay with a card, you are now becoming more and more apparent on the display of the card terminal a selection menu with different tip options. You can often choose from four options – about ten, 15 and 20 percent tip surcharge and that, no tip. Incidentally, this procedure also occurs increased in delivery services (and online orders).

Anyone who experiences this for the first time may be surprised – on the one hand, because tips are usually not required by the seller, but is given their own drive by the customer.

On the other hand, because the options are often available where you would not have thought of giving a tip before – i.e. wherever you are not operated at the table, but only operate yourself or only buy something at the counter.

When people get little thrusts in everyday life

Experts call this nudging when people in everyday life get small thrusts to get them to do or leave something specific – « without any or prohibitions, » says business psychologist Prof. Julia Pitters from IU International University.

« You prefer to organize people’s surroundings so that it is easier for them to choose. » But who benefits from it? We provide answers to the most important questions about the topic. « The reaction depends heavily on the personality, » says behavioral economist Prof. Dominik Ensten from the Institute of German Economy.

While some perceive the offer as a relief because they could give tips conveniently and without arithmetic, others might feel compelled to give tips and could react with react dance – that is, due to the pressure, no tip and avoid the location in the future.

From the provider’s point of view, it is a clever move to offer the tips of tips on the card terminal. Because the tip of the card payment is often forgotten when paying for the card, this food for thought can be helpful. « So it gives the impression that this is common, » says Pitters.

The sum of the tip is increasing

And because people react very strongly to social norms and do not want to have the feeling of being apostates, they often decided to choose a tip. By using the nudding, with which guests would already be pushed in the direction of giving tips at all, the total of the tip overall increases, says Dominik Ensten.

How much each individual gives depends not only on its usual tips of tips, but also on which options can be selected on the payment terminal. « Typically, people in the middle press, » says Ensten.

Simply because we usually shy away from extremes. Many dealers and business people know about this psychological effect and skillfully chose the tips of the tip, says Julia Pütters. This means that drinks between five and ten percent are usually common. However, if the lowest option begins at ten percent, « a completely different anchor is set ».

Because guests and customers tended to the middle, they did not choose the lowest category, otherwise more than ten percent tip. Because people are reluctant to be perceived as economical or even stingy, says Julia Pitters. However, especially when paying at the card terminal, the active decision against a tip would be at least perceived at least from the staff, but possibly even by the way, according to consumer advice centers.

According to Dominik, this is in our genes. In the small communities in which people used to live, everyone knew everyone. There it quickly got around who was really stingy and who was particularly generous. « If you were nice, you could rely on the fact that this will help your own reputation and that the generosity will be repaid one day, » said Enste.

This original behavior has been kept to this day because people automatically followed the strategies that were advantageous for them earlier. Even the selection of the lowest possible tip option – even if the usual ten percent – therefore find it difficult to consider the other possibilities, says Prof. Stefan Trautmann from the Alfred Weber Institute for Economics from the University of Heidelberg.

After all, this is still the most stingy of the tips of the tips. « If we don’t have a long time to think, we keep falling on these things, » says Julia Pitters. « We cannot avoid that. » That is why it could help to be aware of whether and how much tip you want to give before a payment.

Do you give more than you actually want?

So you are less clever if there are suddenly different options on the card terminal. The exchange with others can also help move the inner compass, says Pitters. It can be found that others occasionally can be carried away to give more tips than they actually want or sometimes they would like to select or at least choose « no tip » themselves.

Sonja Guettat from the Rhineland-Palatinate Consumer Center also recommends not being put under pressure, just because, for example, there is a long line behind you at the cash register. Instead, you should ask confidently if none of the desired tip options are specified and (have) entered them manually.

According to the consumer advocate Sonja Guettat, it is not forbidden to propose the tips of the tip. « However, there is no legal right to tip. » Therefore, it must be guaranteed that customers at the card terminal could always choose the option not to give a tip.