Chris Pirillo » Business

Buying Gas with a Credit Card Could Cost More

Chris — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 06:46:41 +0000

Many credit card companies, such as Visa, charge gas stations a fee every time you use your credit card at the pump. Many of these stations are passing that charge along to you in the form of higher-than-advertised gas prices. Let’s say the price per gallon of gas is $3.85 when you pay inside with cash. That same exact purchase using your credit card could cost you $3.95 instead. Some companies are admitting to this extra fee, and offering discounts for paying with cash. Other companies are not even bothering to tell the consumer, hoping you’ll never notice. What did my friends at FriendFeed have to say about this?

WHOA!!! That is outrageous! I’m glad I just started following you! - Justin Korn

I’ve heard of this happening from time to time lately, but this was standard in like 1983… Back to the future? - Jay Wiegmann

the WaWA stations around the Philly,NJ, DE region take 10c or more off for paying cash. - clarke thomas via twhirl

Debit card too? Anyone know? - zoblue

There’s a gas station down the road from me. I think it’s Giant. They list the price on the sign and then in dark letters on a dark background it says "cash." At night, you can’t read it till it’s too late. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

None of this is new folks. We went thru this in the late 70s/early 80s. - Steve Gillette via twhirl

LOL Marc. None. I made it up to express my emotions. Just fill in the blanks. ;-) - AJ Batac

I have yet to see a gas station in Southern California that does this but then again I only get my gas at Costco. - Michael Narciso

Yes, this was common in the 1980s. It was widely outlawed, no? - James Joyner

it does make some sense, the retailer will lose money on the credit card purchase b/c of having to pay the fee to the CC company for use of their product. - clarke thomas

@Michael: Almost every AM/PM I’ve seen in California and Arizona does it. They don’t charge per gallon, but they do charge a one time fee. Usually at least .35. and you have to know your cards pin #. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

Still happening here in New Jersey - the difference is typically 8-10 cents, and that’s why I use cash. - Scott Kitchen

Blogged about this here: http://www.outsidethebeltway.c…. Credited you. - James Joyner

This is an on-going issue on a lot of fronts not just gasoline. We have discussed offering rebates to clients that pay by check vs cc as the s/c’s that we get hit with by the cc companies are outrageous compared to our bank’s fee structure. The flip side is that a lot of folks use their cc for the points or other gimmes. As well as from a corporate accounting perspective, it is quite easy to track expenditures as they relate to profit and loss when cc is the method of payment. - Mathew A. Koeneker

Steve: I wasn’t buying gas in the 70/80’s, so I was shocked to here this, particularly now when prices are so high. - Justin Korn

Clarke: If you are a retailer and you accept Credit Card, you adjust your prices accordingly or set a minimum purchase so that the credit card fee is worth your while. - Justin Korn

Jason: AM/PM puts this charge up front and does not at any time sneak it in while you are at the gas tank. They have always done that and people (i think) are generally aware of it. - Justin Korn

Justin, l0ckergn0me (Chris Pirillo) is a great guy to follow, even before FriendFeed. His site is all about making technology understandable. Plus, he has a sweet PC setup in his office. - J. Phil

@Justin They make you aware of it when you pull up to the tank and then try to pay by card only to have to walk to the center of the island and then read the little sticker saying they are charging you a convenience fee. It’s not a convenience when I have to leave my car and walk over to an atm and do it all there and then have to go back later to get my receipt. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

J.Phil - Thanks for the tip…I’ll need to get acquainted with Chris and maybe someday check out this sweet PC setup - Justin Korn

@Jason - True, but my point is this video that was shared is a shock and totally absurd. For a gas company to slip the surcharge in at the tank with no warning, notice, nothing…that is wrong and possibly illegal. AM/PM has been charging a credit card fee for years, that’s their policy, always has been (and their gas is typically cheaper too). - Justin Korn

One last thing….AM/PM calls it a "convenience fee" to make it sound nice and sweet. really it’s a, "we are being charged, so we are passing that fee on to you" fee and being nice about it. - Justin Korn

Merchants are allowed to DISCOUNT for cash. However, Visa and MasterCard DO NOT allow merchants to charge a fee for using a credit card. If you see them doing this, report it to your credit card company. You can report to MasterCard here: http://www.mastercard.com/us/p… - Jeremy Brooks

@Justin: I agree with you on both points. The video was definitely a shock fest and what some of those companies are doing probably is illegal. Second, AM/PM does eventually disclose what it’s doing. A couple of years ago, that .35 meant something. they weren’t always cheaper. now, your right, it doesn’t really mean much at all. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

@Jason: AM/PM does not charge for credit card transactions (in fact, last time I checked, they don’t accept credit cards). They charge for DEBIT transactions, which is allowed by bank’s terms of service. - Jeremy Brooks

In my area Chevron, Shell, and Mobile have empty gas pumps throughout the day. Arco and 76 are filled to the brim with cars. I really do hope Chevron and Shell feel the pain. - Michael Narciso

@Jeremy: you can use your credit card at am/pm if you know the pin number for it. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

As much as I agree with the dislike of the practice, I am more burned by the rates merchant account companies charge for the ability to take credit cards. With gas especially, a percentage is just not feasible when rates climb. The percentage cuts into the already extremely narrow profit (pennies) the gas station makes. There should be a different rate structure for gas stations if Visa/MC want to keep this business. - Jeremy Hall

@Jason: Maybe they have changed; the last time I was at an AM/PM, they didn’t accept any type of credit card, PIN or not. They only accepted debit cards. - Jeremy Brooks

Jeremy, it is entirely possible/probable that it is I that was wrong. I was under the impression that you could. Your probably right. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

I’ve been using CC’s issued by the gas companies Union 76 & Chevron here in California for over 20 years and have never seen a fee or cash discount imposed for their use. - Jeff P. Henderson

I can tell you how I feel, I’m not happy. The price of gas is outrageous enough these days without gas stations passing along their merchant’s fees to me as well. What do you think? Are you ticked off? Are you going to ask the station attendant what you’re actually paying before you fill that tank? Or… will you just start paying in cash now?

Buying Gas with a Credit Card Could Cost More

Starbucks or Bust?

Chris — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 03:20:34 +0000

I can’t say I’m all that surprised about Starbucks closing 600 stores - given that we have fourteen stores within a two block radius of our house. You can’t turn your head in a modern city without seeing at least one Starbucks sign. It’s always depressing to hear that someone has lost their job, but aren’t there other neighborhood coffee shops in dire need of a good barista or two? Assuming, of course, that one has the skill set required to brew.

It’s no secret: I’m not a huge Starbucks fan (I’m a Peet’s man, through and through). Still, I wondered what my friends thought of the news:

Peet's is infinitely better, anyway. :) In other news, Starbucks leaves 54,230,918 stores open. - Me

Agreed. Starbucks is not particularly good coffee, as far as I am concerned. But obviously there are may that don't agree with me… - Pascal Sijen

Too bad we don't have Peets in Maryland - Aaron Brazell

There go 600 free iPhone hot spots (with a Starbucks card of course) - Steve Pribut

I don't really see that as a problem. I'm surprised they aren't closing more. I like their coffee, but there are just too many of their stores. - Eric Truman

Love Peets. There are 2 Starbucks in my town within 5 blocks. Overkill. - Chris

I've always thought Starbuck's coffee tastes cheap and over-roasted. A couple months back, they began retraining their baristas and upgrading their quality across the board. That's probably the right move. They're being flanked on all sides and can't become a discount brand. - Chris Baskind

it's about time. reminds me of: New Starbucks Opens In Rest Room Of Existing Starbucks http://tinyurl.com/cbrzd - Sean Savage

+23 for Peet's. Major Dickason addiction. - AJ Kohn

I've always preferred Seattle Drip to Starbucks. (no idea how widespred "the drip" is.) - Tim

i wonder if i should apply to a starbucks… maybe not… - Justin

I'm not a fan of their over-burnt beans but I've been forced to consume their version of coffee since they crushed all of my local independent coffee houses. Crazy, there are four Starbucks locations within an eighth mile of each other a few blocks from my house. - Glenn Batuyong

the only thing I drink at Starbucks is the Chai Tea Latte. That's it. - Chris Cavs

Hmmm, Starbucks makes the best coffee in Australia. Maybe Peet's should consider coming here! - Toastpaint

Just about the only thing I ever learned to tolerate at Starbucks was a double shot of espresso. I’m sure you have your own “Starbucks drink” - and you even have the proper order of the words memorized, too.

Starbucks or Bust?

Can Fast Food be Healthy Food?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 17:58:49 +0000

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Vital Nutrition was a recent presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. Vital Nutrition provides nutrition planning for consumers. They also prepare these meals in a fast-food style restaurant.

Vital Nutrition

Business Category: Retail
Founder: David Blanco
Inspiration for Product/Service: Traveling for a living, finding it hard to prepare my normal healthier meals in hotels; I realized there is no honest healthier fast food alternative. Beyond the need for the meals; I realized the need for consumer education (at the time, myself) and nutritional planning for general health as well as sickness and disease prevention through everyday, accessible nutrition.
Target Customer/Audience: Families, Cancer patients and survivors, as well as other nutrition-sensitive people seeking detailed nutrition planning and meal preparation on the go.
Synopsis of Product / Service: Vital provides nutrition planning for our consumers. Further, we prepare the meals designed through our nutrition planning in a quick-serve restaurant setting.
Main Company Contact: David Blanco

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Should Browser History be Publicly Shared?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 09:23:52 +0000

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Timelope was a recent presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. If you want to keep track of your browser history either publicly or privately, then the TimeLope Firefox plugin is for you. Want to share your browsing information with others, or browse endless links? If so, then this is right up your alley.

Timelope

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Anders Conbere and Aviel Ginzburg
Inspiration for Product/Service: It started out as a way to let people browse alongside someone else, and morphed into more of a social service as we progressed along and found that the more engaging features were those that let us interact with other users of the service.
Target Customer/Audience: Web 2.0 power users, and the online businesses targeting them.
Synopsis of Product / Service: Timelope is a web service that let’s users share, annotate and search their browser history.

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What do you Need in a Sports Website?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 08:30:43 +0000

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Sports 4E was a recent presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. Sports 4E is dedicated to providing a social network type of tool for recreational sports leagues that will allow them to automate everything from registration to playoff schedules.

Sports 4E

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Troy Ritchie, Gabe Coyne and John Guthrie
Inspiration for Product/Service: I have been running recreational sports leagues since 1995, and desired a web tool that would automate my leagues. Functionality that was as easy as running a Fantasy Football League was a priority.
Target Customer/Audience: Sports League Directors of US cities Parks and Recreation Departments.
Synopsis of Product / Service: Sports 4E is a sports league management company that provides a social network enabled tool for recreational sports leagues to automate registration, waivers, rosters and schedules.
Main Company Contact: Troy Ritchie

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Who are Today’s Hot Swedish Music Artists?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 08:16:01 +0000

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Robber Dotter was a recent presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. Robber Dotter is committed to bringing Swedish musicians and bands to the US for recording and touring.

Robber Dotter

Business Category: Record Label
Founder: Anna K. Anderson and Sean M. Anderson
Inspiration for Product/Service: The idea stemmed from a love of music, a love of Sweden, and Sweden’s commonly accepted reputation as the third largest exporter of music after the US and the UK, usually well after a band is known in their native country.
Target Customer/Audience: Lovers of independent and listener-supported radio, lovers of indie rock, music lovers in general and lovers of all things Swedish are those who will be most interested in RobberDotter Records.
Synopsis of Product / Service: RobberDotter Records’ primary goal is to bring Swedish musicians to the US for full-spectrum promotion, album distribution and touring.
Main Company Contact: Anna K. Anderson

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Are There Web Site Builders for Businesses?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 07:53:26 +0000

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NetSolutions was a recent presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. Net Solutions North America designs, develops, hosts, and promotes effective websites. All of their websites include easy to use tools to help you be your own webmaster.

NetSolutions

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Robert Reynolds, Patrice Valentine and Peggy Emmons
Company Blog
Inspiration for Product/Service: Building a product that a typical business person could use to make changes to their website.
Target Customer/Audience: Small business is the target audience with leads generated through B2B resellers. We our products through resellers under the brandname ProFusion and retail using our Net Solutions North America, LLC name/brand.
Synopsis of Product / Service: Net Solutions North America builds web application tools that allow non-technical people to build attractive, functional and interactive websites using menu selections and Word-like editors to create pages and modify content. We also do custom design work, custom application development, provide hosting, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, email marketing, site maintenance and application customizations.
Main Company Contact: Patrice Valentine

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Are There Web Site Builders for Businesses?

Did you Know Fish Need Elevators?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 07:45:43 +0000

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MunsonWorks was a recent presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. The MunsonWorks company is committed to building the best inclined elevator possible. They are designed primarily for people who own homes uphill from the waterfront, but can be designed for many other places as well.

MunsonWorks

Business Category: Manufacturing
Founder: Eric Munson
Inspiration for Product/Service: Upscale high-bank waterfront homeowners, condo or resort developers, and government entities.
Target Customer/Audience: The businesses and the neighbors in a single neighborhood of a big city.
Synopsis of Product / Service: MunsonWorks is a 3 year old corporation that engineers, manufactures, and installs custom inclined elevators (or trams) throughout North America, and soon wordwide. Access is especially important for elderly and handicapped people. My parents desire to have easier access to the waterfront from their high bank property.
Main Company Contact: Eric Munson

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Where’s my Personal Financial Analyst?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 07:18:53 +0000

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MarketOutsider presented their company at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle recently. MarketOutsider offers you a new way of doing online investment research, which will allow you to use your time more effectively.

MarketOutsider

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Bryce Baril and Colin Meyer
Inspiration for Product/Service: I was tired of wasting my time weeding through stories and headlines to find out what was relevant to me and not just noise or yesterday’s news. My time is valuable and my memory frail, whereas the opposite is true of computers. Why not harness them to do the job for me?
Target Customer/Audience: Investors of any type.
Synopsis of Product / Service: We offer a financial news personalization service that goes far beyond your average financial news site. Think of us as your own personal robotic financial analyst that tracks the news related to your portfolio for you. It doesn’t just find articles that mention companies in your portfolio; it reads the articles, finds connections, determines if it is good or bad news… giving you everything you need to know in a single glance.
Main Company Contact: Bryce Baril

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Where’s my Personal Financial Analyst?

Is There a ‘YouTube’ for Kids?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 07:15:29 +0000

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Lilipip was a recent presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. Lilipip is dedicated to providing exceptional video content for kids of all ages, at no cost to the viewers. Their videos will not only entertain your child, but will also feed their curious minds as well.

Lilipip

Business Category: Media
Founder: Ksenia Oustiougova
Inspiration for Product/Service: Realizing there was no quality content online for my 5 year old son.
Target Customer/Audience: New parents of young children, age 25-40, tech savvy, $100K annual income, who are already giving their cell phones to kids to keep them occupied while on the go. These parents are expected to spend $5.5 billion on mobile devices that can show Lilipip content in 2010.
Synopsis of Product / Service: Lilipip! is our nickname for “little people”. We are parents with really curious little people like yours. Rather than feeding their developing minds with the usual “junk food”, we set out to find the finest short kids videos from all over the planet to enjoy at home or out on-the-go. Our videos enlighten, entertain, amuse and basically feed your child’s curiosity and sense of wonder. Since they’re short (averaging 5 minutes), your kids can watch them over and over on our website.
Main Company Contact: Ksenia Oustiougova

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Is There a ‘YouTube’ for Kids?

How Much is Electricity Costing You?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 06:36:11 +0000

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Elektronova is a company that presented at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle recently. Elektronova is dedicated to helping consumers monitor their electrical consumption. This will not only allow people to save money. It will also help promote a more energy-efficient lifestyle.

Elektronova

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Lawrence Winnerman and Kaley Davis
Inspiration for Product/Service: We were interested in the renewable energy space, but quickly realized that the first step… consumption awareness and reduction… is something that there is virtually no information on. The idea for Elektronova quickly followed out of that core realization.
Target Customer/Audience: Everyone who uses electricity, and is interested in saving money by reducing their electricity consumption.
Synopsis of Product / Service: We are creating small, networked devices that plug in between any electrical appliance and the wall socket. The data is aggregated by a master unit, and sent to our servers. Consumers can then view their electricity consumption, set reduction goals, and view tips and tricks on how to save both energy and money.
Main Company Contact: Lawrence Winnerman

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How Much is Electricity Costing You?

What’s the Difference Between?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 06:00:29 +0000

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Diffen was a presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle recently. Diffen is an online collection of comparisons and differences that users help write and maintain. You can compare and contrast virtually anything you think up, simply by entering two words or phrases and clicking a button. This service is absolutely free!

Diffen

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Nick Jasuja
Inspiration for Product/Service: My 12-year-old niece used to subject me to a barrage of questions that I found I couldn’t answer - what’s the difference between LCD and Plasma TVs? iPod and Zune? Obama and Clinton? Jail and Prison?
Target Customer/Audience: Anyone who needs to compare options to make a decision… which is everyone.
Synopsis of Product / Service: Diffen is an online collection of comparisons and differences that users help write and maintain. You can compare cell phones, cameras, cars, service providers, employers, cities, schools, celebrities, sports teams, philosophies, presidential candidates, neighborhood restaurants, software products… anything your mind can dream up.
Main Company Contact: Nick Jasuja

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Want a Personal Digital Shopping Assistant?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 05:27:10 +0000

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ClayValet ClayValet was a presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. ClayValet provides a service for shopping websites that allows them to give personal attention and advice to their customers. Their shoppers are normal people who are experienced and comfortable with online shopping. They are not experts themselves, but they know where to look, how to compare prices and whom to trust. Right now, the service is completely free! You can submit up to five requests per week, at no cost to you.

ClayValet

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Mikhail Seregine
Inspiration for Product/Service: We saw our friends who shop online being frustrated by overwhelming choices and difficult websites. In helping them find what they wanted, and watching ourselves shop, we observed behavior patterns that could be translated into a scalable service.
Target Customer/Audience: The end users of our service are online shoppers, but our customers are comparison shopping websites that emphasize selection and choice.
Synopsis of Product / Service: We provide a service for shopping websites that allows them to give personal attention and advice to their customers. A shopper can submit a form or email to the website with a request written in plain English, such as “I want a toy for small children to develop manual dexterity”. Behind the scenes, our software orchestrates automated research and human attention to produce simple, useful recommendations.
Main Company Contact: Darcy Camden

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Should Neighborhood Community Businesses be Online?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 04:52:24 +0000

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BizBuzz, LLC was a presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle recently. BizBuzz has one goal: to unite all businesses within a community under one umbrella resource. Having a centralized community location for all businesses, people will be able to find what they need faster. Businesses will also be able to network much easier, to better meet the needs of their communities.

BizBuzz, LLC

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Nancy McManus
Inspiration for Product/Service: I was looking to give myself, my friends, and my neighbors a vehicle to access the incredible local resources that exist in our community. Previously, these resources were outside our grasp, as there was not a well-known centralized place to turn to find the answers.
Target Customer/Audience: The businesses and the neighbors in a single neighborhood of a big city.
Synopsis of Product / Service: BizBuzz, LLC is a unique community-driven website that cuts through the chatter of Internet congestion and allows you to garnish the best (and often unknown) resources of your own community… while also enabling every business to have a indexable web presence.
Main Company Contact: Nancy McManus

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Should Neighborhood Community Businesses be Online?

Is There Group Wisdom for Strategic Planning?

Chris — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 04:02:41 +0000

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3rd i Designs is a strategic planning company, and was a presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. Their plan is to integrate the lastest research into how groups can make effective assessments. They use the Web to leverage group wisdom. 3rd i Design believes that the old paradigms to strategic planning are too expensive, slow and unreliable for today’s world.

3rd i Designs

Business Category: Tech Startup
Founder: Jon Poland
Inspiration for Product/Service: Attending the 2004 Conference of the World Future Society exposed me to the books The Wisdom of Crowds and Good To Great, which are what inspired me.
Target Customer/Audience: The head of a 50+ person company/department, tech-friendly, 30-50, progressive thinker who values employee input.
Synopsis of Product / Service: iC is an online application that taps group wisdom for conducting strategic planning. iC incorporates the latest research into how groups can make effective assessments and into best business practices. The old paradigms for strategic planning are too slow, expensive and unreliable to deal with the speed and complexity of today’s world.
Main Company Contact: Jon Poland

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