It is totally a matter of interest in the shop. If I need new windshield wiper blades I am likely to take a $5 fee with $10 reimbursement from an auto supply place. There are tax advantages in the reimbursement since it is not taxable. If I don't need anything then even a $15 fee may not get me there.
I frankly don't worry about the time required for reimbursement as my 'shop kitty' is kept at a level to cover me for 2-3 months so that all credit cards get paid off in full each month. By far the vast majority of my credit card charges are for items being reimbursed by shops. At present I have a little over $700 outstanding in reimbursements for shops, several hundred dollars of which will be reimbursed probably on Friday. I simply see the 'shop kitty' as my operating capital which allows me to get the maximum benefit from my shops.
At the same time I will not lay out much cash for shops with companies that are not paying within their pay cycle. Thus although I have happily laid out close to $250 for a steakhouse dinner for Freeman in the past, until I see a pattern of regular payment reported by shoppers, I will not do that again. I noted the other day that someone mentioned they got paid without demand in 12 weeks--which is, I believe, their current pay cycle--I will probably test for myself with a hotel that reverses charges and see when Freeman pays the fee before I play again. A long payment cycle can be planned for and worked around but a pay cycle that is not honored is not worth messing with.
To a great extent CORI and the Purple Portal of Market Force have been able to pay low fees because shoppers want to get paid fast and will work for less to do so. I use that same philosophy the other way around. If you pay $15 for a job and pay in 4-6 weeks I am likely to do it, but if payment takes 6-8 weeks I probably want $18 and if you take 9-12 weeks, it needs to be $20.
On a routine basis my groceries, oil changes and dining out are covered by shops. Most of my office supplies are covered by shops, clearance table items, rewards programs and sales. There is no point for me to do clothing shops because the best price/quality combo comes from a store where only purchase and return is the shop.
Overall to me, reimbursements are a huge part of my business. For 2011 they have constituted over 40% of the value of my shops and that is money on which I will not be taxed. They have both lifestyle and budget balancing advantages.
As for finding a use for small reimbursements, consider that a small pack of chips or cookies for your $1 inside purchase can be a treat in a packed lunch for you or a spouse or child, a Sunday newspaper can yield a wealth of coupons to use on your grocery shops, small items can be used as Christmas stocking stuffers, pay a little extra and pick up a loaf of bread or other grocery item you need anyway with what in essence amounts to a discount.
In drug stores pick up the sale toiletries if you are already overstocked with what you need and donate them to your battered woman's shelter for a charitable deduction. The same holds true of school supplies. Shelters often arrange to pick up an abused woman and her kids while she is out on errands with little but the clothes on their backs to get them to a safe place.