I think it really depends on the dog. For Kai, I don't need to tap because I've learned that eye contact works even better. But for Kaedyn, eye contact is not going to work. I'm not saying tapping would be a 100% fool proof way to tell him no but it really varies from dog to dog. If I tapped Kai for every little nip, I'm almost certain that he'd start becoming fearful as he is a some-what timid dog. I guess if tapping is the only way that your dog gets the message, then fine.