The Cost of the Hidden Cost Nobody Warns You About.
Why payment friction, surprise fees, and broken processes quietly drive customers away.
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Payment Friction and The Cost of the Hidden Cost Nobody Warns You About
Most businesses believe their transaction is complete the moment money changes hands. After all, the money’s in the bank, the product or service has been delivered, and everybody’s happy.
Most customers know better.
And today, there’s a hidden cost causing a widening gap between how easy companies think they are to deal with and how it actually feels to be their customer. I’ll bet you feel this disconnect almost daily.
But first, a story:
I recently paid an insurance bill on one of my rental properties. At least, that’s what I wanted to do.
The agency sent the invoice with a link to pay online. I clicked on the button, opened the site, and filled it out. Name, email address, property address, policy details, payment information, etc. When I clicked “save,” the system asked if I already had an account.
I didn’t.
Everything disappeared. I had to start over, create a login, set a password, log in, and re-enter all the same information again.
When I finally reached the payment screen, I chose to pay by credit card, only to learn that there would be a $98 convenience fee.
That hidden cost wasn’t going to happen.
So I backed out to arrange an electronic payment with my bank. This meant I had to go through the whole process again on my bank’s electronic payment portal.
What should have taken mere minutes took more than half an hour.
And not one second of that time made me feel taken care of or cared about.
THAT’S payment friction.
So What Causes the Expertise Gap and Payment Friction?
Service professionals live inside their systems every day. These steps feel obvious because they are obvious to them.
But we customers arrive without that context.
When processes are designed from the inside out, frustration is built in. Inevitably, if not intentionally.
See how businesses misinterpret customer intent in “Are You Answering the Question Nobody’s Asking?”
How bad design vs good design affects the customer experience.
Your Customers Don’t Tolerate the Fee. They Resent It.
For decades, companies absorbed card processing fees as part of doing business. Today, many assume their customers are willing to accept surcharges as normal.
We’re not.
Research summarized by The Financial Brand shows that 73% of credit card holders use their cards less often when surcharges appear. WalletHub reports that 85% say these fees make them feel nickel-and-dimed.
Ipsos Research found that businesses that surcharge experience an average 10% drop in card transaction volume. KJRH News found that 62% of consumers believe these fees should be illegal.
But most companies don’t see the connection between the additional charges and consumer dissatisfaction because most customers don’t bother to argue, complain, or rant. They simply adjust behavior and eventually switch merchants and payment behavior. THAT’S payment friction too.
Here’s The Message for Service Businesses and Insurers:
If you sell expertise, convenience, and peace of mind, your process has to deliver the same.
Your customers trust you to guide them. Every hidden requirement, late disclosure, or unnecessary step weakens that trust.
And you lose it when the experience feels harder than it should.
The strongest service organizations design their systems for people who have never seen them before. With respect, usefulness, and fairness.
That’s what keeps customers coming back, and what no surcharge can ever replace.
In 2026, I’m delivering keynotes and conference sessions for leadership teams, associations, and service organizations on how these small, overlooked moments quietly shape trust, loyalty, and long-term growth. If your audience is responsible for customer experience, operations, or brand perception, this is a conversation worth having before the friction of dissatisfaction burns up your customers.