Penalize your customers - good move.

"5% resort fee is added to all purchases in Beaver Run Resort."

http://www.beaverrun.com/

Can you imagine if every business did this? Walk into a 7-11 and there is a sign on the door, "5% convenience fee is added to all purchases at 7-11." Or maybe the grocery store, below the King Soopers sign in small letters, "5% access fee is added to all purchases in King Soopers." How about at McDonalds in fine print at the drive through, "5% FFF (Fast Food Fee) is added to all purchases in this drive through."

Where does this come from? Why is it not built into the cost of their products and services, why do we have to pay an added fee? It may seem as if I am whining about a small amount of money, but it is not the point. I have to pay a fee to buy your product or service? You have the audacity to make me a pay a fee to do business with you? This definition seems to fit best: "A sum paid or charged for a privilege."

So I get to pay you extra money for the PRIVILEGE of doing business with you?

This is a penalty, a tax instituted by a private company on their customers. I am sure other resorts do it as well, but that does not make it acceptable. It is not the money - it is being required to pay a "fee" spelled out in black and white for any transaction I make with them. What if you do this with your customers, on the bottom of every quote you send to your clients? "A 5% fee is added to all purchases." How do you believe that would be received by your customers? In whatever business you are in, can you imagine? They simply have it backwards don't they? They should be paying a 5% fee to us for the privilege of providing their product or service to us, as we have other choices. Can you imagine if a business did that? At the bottom of your receipt you saw "A 5% customer appreciation refund is applied to all purchases. Thank you for your business." Now that would be impressive.

Poor customer service I can accept. Usually an individual employee can make a mistake, treat someone poorly, make an unfortunate choice along the way, but there can be reasons. A bad day for example, it happens to all of us. But a corporate decision to announce to their customers that they are charged an extra 5% for doing business with them. Well, I just won't go. Not again.