Businesses are responding to changing sentiments
Ask anyone what they think about tips and tipping culture, their opinion is up to the flip of a coin – a coin that may not end up in a tip jar, as businesses respond to a shift in opinion. These days, with technology being near-universal in just about any business that may warrant tipping, establishments have screens that immediately ask a patron how much they want to tip.
Gradually, however, this trend may reverse increasingly across the country. A recent report by Bankrate claims that two-thirds of Americans believe “tipping culture has gotten out of control,” particularly when it comes to digital, contactless payment prompts. Although 73% of Americans tipped in 2022, it seems almost as many don’t want to be presented with the prompts when they go to pay; they want to just do it of their own volition.
Paying with a touchscreen has become increasingly common in all sorts of businesses. Before, one might see gratuity calculations at the bottom of a receipt. But that might become more common once again.
“We’ve had the option of tipping for a long time because of tip jars, but you could kind of ignore it,” noted Michael Lynn, professor of consumer behavior and marketing at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration. “The technology is making it harder to say no, and it’s making it harder to tip a small amount.”
During the pandemic, tipping increased, due to a “groundswell of feeling thankful,” in the words of Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at Bankrate. More and more now, says Molly Burke, senior analyst at Capterra, businesses are letting customers disregard the tip prompt screen.
While 73% of Americans said they tipped in 2022, in 2023 that number is looking more like 65%, according to numbers posted by Bankrate. Businesses are letting them forgo this step more and more.
“Small businesses can deactivate the tip screen or customize the amounts they show on the tip screen or just ask customers to skip it,” shared Burke.
It’s not due to a total anti-tip sentiment; rather, some Americans want the culture to be curtailed. “I understand some people’s frustrations,” says Matt Vizcaino, a business owner who runs Alabama’s Tortugas Homemade Pizza. “I do also understand tips are not ‘needed’ in all situations.” Some of those new situations include carry-out. Only one-third will tip for carry-out and among those who do, they pay 5% to 10%. Meanwhile, among customers who dine in, they almost always tip and will, on average, tip 25%.
Digital tip prompts make it harder to create a divide like this, as Rossman notes, “You have to go out of your way to not tip, and that’s what a lot of people resent.”
For as long as gratuity has been an option, there have been countless motivations: invest in future improvements for the establishment, supplement the server’s income, fulfill a sense of duty when resources are available, or to avoid disapproval. Similarly, there are now many opinions about tipping in general and the shift the culture has taken in recent years. How do you feel about the situation?
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