Digital Payment Agent Program: Highest Compensation, Lowest Buy Rates, Lifetime Residuals and More....
If you are ready to dive into the world of becoming an ISO for merchant services, then you are probably on the prowl for the best ISO agent program. The merchant processing industry is a lucrative one, but only when the ISO chooses the right partner to operate under. The ISO agent program that you choose to operate under can have a big impact on your earnings, quality of business, range of potential clients, payout frequency, and many other parts of your business that should be considered essential. This short guide will give you the information that you need to select the best credit card processing ISO program in the industry and will even give you a bit of information about who we feel has the best ISO agent program and why.
Why is it important to select the best ISO agent program?
It is important to pick out the best ISO agent program because the program that you choose will have some very drastic effects on the income that you are able to earn and other aspects of your business. If you want to set your business up for success in merchant processing, then choosing the ISO program that you are going to be operating under is a highly essential part of that process.
Each ISO agent program attempts to achieve relatively the same thing, but with different benefits and results that attract different types of clients and merchants. You should never assume that all ISO agent programs are the same and have the same benefits, rates, payouts, and other incentives to get you to use their program. Carefully screen the specifications of each program to actually find the program that is right for you.
Is it the same for everyone?
When it comes to finding the best ISO agent program in the industry, the truth is that there is no one answer that fits the needs of everyone. Each ISO program is different with their pay structures, marketing tools, and other resources that they give you to succeed in merchant services. So, the answer likely won’t be the same for everyone and will instead depend on what industry you’re in.
However, that’s not to say that some programs don’t rise above the rest. There are certainly programs out there that have displayed excellence time and time again, giving themselves an excellent reputation when it comes to payments, resources, and the other benefits that a particular program is able to offer.
While one program doesn’t usually fit all sizes, you can increase your chances of having success as an ISO by picking out a program that has repeatedly exceeded expectations and set the gold standard when it comes to ISO agent programs.
What to look for in a credit card processing ISO program
When you are in the process of selecting a program, there are some select features that you should be examining to ensure you find the right program for you. Here are some of the features that you should look for when screening potential ISO agent programs for your ISO to partner with and offer merchant services.
Payout
When you partner with an ISO agent program, you definitely want to make sure that they pay accurately and that they pay on time. Closing sales as an ISO won’t help you unless you are actually being paid your residuals and commissions that are due to you. Make sure that the company that you work with has a reputation for paying on time.
Residuals
A very important factor that you should take into consideration when selecting an ISO agent program to work with is what the residual rate is. These rates range from 50%-75% and are the backbone of your business. Earning residuals is often passive after the initial setup, so be sure that you are getting as big of a share of them as possible before moving forward.
Marketing Advantages
When you partner with an ISO agent program, you want to be sure that the program you select has the tools and resources to make you more successful in merchant services. This includes the access that they give you to their marketing materials, initiatives, promotions, and literature that you can use to sway clients into signing on with your ISO.
Who has the best ISO program in the industry?
If you’re looking to partner with the best in the business, then you can’t do much better than Shaw Merchant Group. SMG has continuously proven their excellence and the quality of our ISO agent program. This ISO agent program has many benefits including high residual rates, prompt and accurate payments, and the ability to help market your services and provide you with the resources you need to close more sales. Choose Shaw Merchant Group if you want to set up your ISO for success now and in the future.
Want to become a merchant services agent but don’t know which merchant services ISO agent program is right for you? Well, why don’t we solve this problem for you? This guide is specifically created to help people who are stepping their toe into the vast sea of merchant processing. By the end of it, you will have a pretty clear idea of how to find a good processor.
10 Things You Need to Consider in a Merchant Services Agent Program
We will tell you 10 factors that you need to consider when looking for a viable, credible merchant services agent program. This way, you will ensure that there are no problems later on in your career as a credit card processing agent. With that said, let’s get started:
1. Fast Funding:
One of the most important things to look for in a merchant services ISO agent program is their funding period. Clients should not have to face delays in terms of funds transfer after a transaction is made. One of the most attractive and compelling features of a good merchant services ISO program is that the merchants get their funds the same day.
This is what attracts most of the merchants as they do not want their earnings to be kept by a 3rd party for more than a day. You will also be able to sell this kind of program better because of the speedy service.
2. Several Discounts:
When you are deciding to become a merchant services agent, go for the processor that offers a cash discount program. Simply put, it is a payment processing tactic where the fee of a particular credit card transaction is offset to the customers. This means that the merchant will not have to pay any transaction fee, the customers are using the facility instead of paying in cash, so it should be them who bear the cost.
The best cash discount program allows merchants to do just that! The algorithm of POS software is already trained to charge the percentage of fees levied on each transaction from the customer. Plus, some of the top merchants also provide free signage that educates customers about the fee on a credit card transaction, so there are no surprises at the end.
3. Dealing in High-Risk Industry:
There are many that become a credit card processor, but they have a very low-risk appetite. This means they will only deal in safer industries and not offer services to risky businesses like medical marijuana stores, travel agencies, and pharmacies etc. Now you might not work with these businesses when starting out, but soon, when your business grows, you will have to get clients from high-risk industries.
So if the credit card processor doesn’t deal with these industries, then you will be limited to a few fields which will put a cap on your growth potential. So instead of finding a merchant dealing with high-risk industries later on, you need to work with one from the start.
4. Assistance in Marketing:
As a credit card processing agent, you will need several marketing resources at your disposal to close sales. One of them is a team assisting you with lead capturing and turning the cold ones into warm leads. A terrific processor will have excellent merchant support that will help you convert more merchants with minimal energy, time, and resource exhaustion.
Plus, some of the excellent credit card processors also have their own landing pages designed to show to your potential customers. These landing pages can take several hundred dollars to make, but the processor will offer you for free, making your conversion process easier.
5. Flexible Plans:
One of the most necessary parts of working with a merchant services ISO program is to get paid properly and on time. You do not want to be underpaid, so make sure to work with a processor that offers a fair share of the income to you. Also, they must have lucrative bonuses if you go out of your way to close a specific number of sales in X amount of time.
You need to properly analyze the contract you will sign with them and check their payment terms, make sure to work with a company that pays on time.
6. Merchant and Income Analytics:
The best part of working with the top credit card processors in the industry is that they leverage technology to make things easier for their agents. A good processor will provide you with your own dashboard that will display various performance metrics like the number of sales you closed, your earnings, number of clients, and more.
Some even go the extra mile and provide data on merchants as well. You might be able to see the number of transactions they make and even get information on individual transactions.
7. Equipment and Software:
Many become a registered ISO for merchant service providers, but they do not work on their equipment and its advancement. The credit card processor must provide you with the necessary technology that you can offer to your clients and seal the deal. A good processor should offer these equipment and facilities:
- Point of Sale terminals to suit the needs of merchants
- Smart online payment options
- Facility of mobile payments
- Support loyalty programs and gift cards
- Fast processing with minimal errors As for the software, they must have up to date, user-friendly software in their equipment, allowing merchants to complete the transaction process smoothly.
8. Excellent Support:
Besides the marketing assistance that we discussed above, the merchant services provider should offer fast, responsive, and friendly customer services. You don’t want to find yourself in a situation where your customers are facing any issues that need to be solved, and you cannot get in touch with the processor’s customer support to fix them.
In this case, even if the problem is not caused by you, you will be the one facing the consequences if you cannot get a customer support agent to solve the problem. The merchant might stop using the processor, and that will result in your financial loss.
So before you decide on working with a merchant, you need to ensure that they have a dedicated customer support team that can quickly answer your questions and solve any problems as soon as possible.
9. Multiple Boarding Options:
Look for a program that provides different boarding options from big payment processing platforms like EPX, First Data and Global Payments. Being able to access these programs means complete peace of mind for both you and the merchants.
Because there will be fewer chances of facing any integration or technological problems when connecting the POS or billing software of the merchant with the platforms your program uses. This will ensure your whole sales process goes smoothly, and you don’t lose a ready-to-convert client at the last moment.
10. Must Be Credible:
Lastly, you need to do your complete due diligence in finding everything about the company you can. They should not have a shady track record, damaged reputation, or bad reviews on the internet.
You need to work with a company that has the face of its CEO attached to it, has a brick and mortar headquarter, and is licensed to operate.
Plus, keep your eyes peeled for any too good to be true bonuses or discounts; these things come with bad surprises later on.
Is There Any Program With These Qualities?
Glad you asked, I was wondering that I have written 10 points for you to look in a company so it might be challenging to find one that meets this criterion. Well, let me make things simple for you by introducting Shaw Merchant Group. They are excellent at what they do, and their core focus is to benefit their agents and merchants. Have a look at a few of their key features:
- They have Global Payments, EPX and First Data powered merchant accounts
- Their terminals work with both credit and debit cards. Plus, they support both EMV and NFC based methods of payment
- They also support mobile payments via PayAnywhere technology
- Their PayAnywhere feature also works with storefront point of sale system
- Automated cash discounting
- They have web-based terminals that provide agents with all the details of their performance and the specifics of their merchants
- Very attractive signup and profitability bonuses
Parting Words:
If you have successfully made it to the end, then it means you already know about the key things to look for to find the cream of the crop credit card processing company. We have also suggested the leading program with all the qualities discussed in this guide. So it is fair to say that you have everything you need to get started on your journey to working as a merchant services representative. You just need to take the first step and make a career doing what you really want to do.
How to Start a Credit Card Processing ISO
Wondering what it takes to be a legend merchant services sales rep? We will tell you exactly the things you require! This guide is specially designed to help you take off your career and get so many sales that it might become hard for you to handle.
But all of this will require you to work hard, give your 101%, put in several hours a day, and have patience. If all of this seems feasible, then congrats, you are the perfect candidate for merchant services sales jobs. Now you just need to work on the five important tips we have mentioned below, so let’s start:
1. Work On Your Business Plan:
Being a merchant services sales rep has many perks, and one of them is freedom. You are your own boss; you don’t have to answer to anyone. However, this freedom means that you need to work and think like a business owner, and that’s why you need to have a business plan. Yes, having a good credit card processor on your back is helpful as you will get merchant services sales training, but you will have to embark on this journey on your own. So to ensure you have a solid plan for taking your business to the height of success, you need to answer the following questions:
- How will you approach the market? (Your method for getting clients)
- From where will you get your revenue? (Will you only be selling merchant services or the technologies like POS terminals as well?)
- Will you leverage the internet to get leads?
- Will you use cold calling to promote your product(s)?
- Will you personally reach businesses and pitch?
- How will you pitch to get as many clients as you can?
These are a few major points you need to include in your business plan. We suggest that you just focus on a few approaches at the start and measure the results. Selling credit card processing service is something that needs a strategy, implementation, evaluation, and continuous fine-tuning.
Soon you will know which approach is working for you and where you lack, you can focus on the ones that are giving you results and get more education and training for the ones that need improvement.
2. Build Your Network of Referrals:
Finding a reliable credit card processor is an essential yet challenging step that merchants need to take. If they know that there is someone who can help them connect with a credible processor, they will come running towards him, and YOU CAN BE THAT SOMEONE! All you need to do is increase your social circle and hand out merchant services sales jobs to people in your network.
You can tell them to refer businesses that need credit card processing service to you, and in return, they will get a commission. The referrers will send businesses your way; you will educate them about the credit card processor and seal the deal. Yes, you will have to share some of your earnings, but you don’t have to share the bonus that you get. Plus, you wouldn’t have gotten those sales anyway, so something is better than nothing. Your business needs sales at the start, whatever your approach is.
Besides this, you also need to have a circle of merchants. Start approaching merchants and offer them your help for free. You don’t have to sell them the plan; you need to sell without selling! Just connect with different merchants, join their conventions or conferences, or whatever events they have. Network with them and if anyone approaches you for help, lend them a hand without asking for anything.
When your expertise and continuous support come into notice of merchants, they will definitely suggest you to anyone who needs credit card processing in their circle. This is called the word of mouth marketing, and it is extremely powerful, nearly 92% of people believe in suggestions coming from friends/family more than advertising.
3. Pick The Right Merchant Services ISO Program:
This is the most crucial part of your journey that can either make or break anyone’s career. Not all credit card processors offer equal opportunities, benefits, or services to both merchants and agents, which is why you have to be very careful when selecting one. Here are a few key points to consider:
- Their Offerings to Merchants: They should offer value to the merchants with things like free POS terminal, fair fees, and the latest, smooth and easy-to-use POS software. These are the things that attract merchants, which means you have more chances of closing the sale.
- Gauge Their Customer Support: Talk to the merchants and agents working with them, make sure they have a good customer and agent support. Nothing is worse than a processing company leaving its agents hanging when there is an issue that needs to be solved.
- See if They Work in High-Risk Industry: You might start small and play it safe by dealing with low-risk businesses, but as your business grows, you will be dealing with high-risk industries like cannabis as well. Make sure that the processor works in such industries, so you don’t have a limited group of merchants to work with.
- Discuss Your Contract: You need to work with a company that offers a good share of the fee to its agents along with different bonuses. Also, look out for too good to be true kind of deals because if they are offering something that doesn’t leave them any money, then something can be fishy.
- Should Not Be Exclusive: They should not require you to only work with them and not any other processor. This will limit your earning potential. You should be able to work with others along with them or switch to others if they are not working out for you.
- Should Not Have Quota Requirements: There should not be a requirement that you need to make X amount of sales each month to keep your residuals even if the past clients are still working with them. Find a company that allows you to keep the residuals regardless of the number of accounts you open.
- They Should Train You: The partner should offer the necessary training you need to know how to use all the equipment and software so that you can better educate the merchants. They should offer merchant services agent training and also teach you to read all types of forms that you will be dealing with, so you know what you are doing. Working with a credit card processor offering all of these benefits will ensure a safe and successful career for you as a merchant services sales rep.
4. Know What You Are Doing:
No matter which kind of field you are working in, your number one priority is to serve your customer the best way you can; this is the secret to success that everyone asks about. If your clients have any problem, you need to go running to them, fix the issue, and leave them happy. This is what will make you a successful merchant services sales rep.
So to be able to do this, you need to leverage all the pieces of training available, read every educational material you can find, and also utilize online resources like YouTube, Lynda, and Udemy to learn the things that are not covered in the company’s curriculum. You need to be on top of your game in both selling and customer support. Also, attend various workshops and conferences related to your field, connect with experienced agents who have been selling merchant services for years. Consume any knowledge bombs they drop like a sponge. Be a merchant services nerd if you have to but get an excellent grip over how things work. This will help you in ways you cannot imagine now because knowledge is power after all.
5. Always Be Truthful:
They say honesty is the best policy; I say AMEN TO THAT! Honesty is what will make people keep coming back to you. The world is already full of liars and cheaters; finding someone businesses can lean on is difficult. So if amid all of this dishonesty, you come with your truthfulness; merchants will come running to you.
However, you cannot advertise that you are authentic and credible; you need to prove it. So for that, you need a lot of patience and a lot more honesty. Tell your merchants everything right off the bat; who you are, what you are offering, how much will they be paying, the good and bad about the processor, and anything else that might come as a surprise later on.
When your clients see that they can actually trust you and that you went out of your way in helping them, they will not only prefer to work with you; they might ask their merchant friends to tag along – a win-win situation!
Over to You:
You see, becoming a pro in selling credit card machines is not as hard as it might seem. You just need to have a plan, a network of referrals, a good processor, a wealth of knowledge, and honesty. These ingredients will soon make you one of the most successful agents in the industry.
So if you want to stop thinking and do something, then join a credible merchant processor now, work on yourself and reach the heights of success – the sky is the limit!
Wondering how to become a merchant processor? Maybe you don’t know how the credit card processing program works and want to understand its basics? Well, whichever reason has brought you here, this comprehensive guide will help you understand how to become a merchant account reseller and how the merchant account reseller program works, along with many more useful things. So with that said, let’s get started:
Process of Becoming a Credit Card Processing Reseller Program Agent
The process is not really hard; you just need to understand who is who and what is what and you will be quickly able to figure out how to become a merchant account reseller. So basically there are two ways you can become a merchant services agent, and we will discuss both of them below:
- Being MSP: Short for Member Service Provider, MSP, or also known as ISO (Independent Sales Organization), is usually a company (it can also be an individual) that is directly connected with the bank. However, if you go with this route, you will have to pay a large chunk of money to the bank on a yearly basis to establish a relationship with them and enjoy various perks like low buy rates and continuous support. However, the amount you pay to the bank per year can be up to $10k or more, and since you are just starting out, you won’t have this much money. Plus, some banks don’t even sign up individuals and require them to work with their registered MSP.
- Working with MSP: This is the second method of becoming an agent where you will be working with an MSP that is directly registered with banks like the North American Bancard program. Now obviously, you won’t get the buy rates that the bank is offering, you will get a rate that will have MSP’s commission added to it. But considering that the MSP is paying a hefty sum of money to the bank per year, this is more than a reasonable deal. A good MSP or ISO partner program will provide you with ample learning resources and continuous support so you will be able to learn quicker and ultimately earn quicker.
Now that you know the difference between both, you should not have any problem with joining a merchant services reseller program. However, there are some more things you need to understand before you dip your toe into this field. So for that, we will cover things like how this program works, what your responsibilities will be, and some things to look for in a suitable ISO partner program.
So How Does The Credit Card Processing Reseller Program Work?
The process is pretty simple and straightforward. Assuming you are working with an MSP/ISO, you will get a ‘buy rate’ from the company. You can call it the profit of the MSP program. Now when you deal with a merchant, you will have to add your own profit to that buy rate and offer it to the merchant so that whenever a transaction is made, both you and the MSP will get a piece of it.
For instance, if you join a merchant services program that is offering you a buy rate of 2% + 20 cents, you can resell it to the merchants for 2.3% + 25 cents. These additional %0.3 + 5 cents will go in your pocket. Now, this looks like nothing compared to the work you will put in converting the merchant. However, this amount will be charged for each transaction the merchant makes on credit cards.
This means that if the merchant processes 100 credit card transactions with an average of $10 per transaction, then it becomes $1k. So you get, 0.25% x 1000 = $2.5. Now also add 5 cents for each transaction which will be $0.05 x $1000 = $50. So the total becomes $52.5 in recurring monthly income. Now that’s the income from just one merchant.
If you sign up 10 of them in your first year, your monthly income will be $520 per month in the second year. So you can keep adding merchants to your portfolio and keep increasing your income.
Responsibilities of a Merchant Services Reseller Agent:
Your main responsibility will be to sign up as many merchants as you can because that is the sole factor behind your monthly income. Here are a few more things that’ll be on your plate once you become a credit card processor:
- You will have to first learn everything about the products/services you will be selling to merchants
- You will have to educate merchants about what you are selling and persuade them to sign up for your program.
- You will have to help the merchants in completing necessary paperwork and setting up their merchant accounts with the MSP.
- You will have to work continuously with the merchants you sign and offer them support whenever they encounter a problem.
- You will also have to actively search for new merchants and pitch them your products/services. Most of them will show reluctance, keep paying them friendly visits, and help them without asking for anything in return, some of them might convert soon.
- You will have to keep a continuous track of your progress, how many merchants you signed up, how much you are making, what your monthly goals are etc. (Some good ISO programs offer web-based dashboards for performance measurement).
These are a few important things that you will be doing on a daily and weekly basis as a credit card processing reseller program agent.
Things to Look for in a Suitable Merchant Account Reseller Program:
The policies, procedures, and rules of merchant programs vary, which is why you need to be very careful when choosing one. We have already discussed the things you need to look for in a program in this guide - Selecting the Best Merchant Services Agent or ISO Program. However, to provide you with a basic idea, we have covered some basics you should remember below:
- Their Buy Rate: The MSP/ISO you will be working with should have a lower buy rate as merchants will prefer to pay a low fee, which is why a program with a high buy rate won’t get you high sales. North American Bancard eliminates the concept of buy rate with cash discounting, making it easier to get more merchants. Read about it here (Link to the guide on cash discounting)
- Monthly Sales Quota: Some merchant processing programs require you to make X number of sales to keep earning the residual coming from your merchants, avoid them at all costs. Your residuals should stay yours no matter how many sales you make.
- Customer Support: Go with the merchant processing program that offers the best customer support. You don’t want to be stuck in a position where a merchant is having a technical issue, but the processing company is not answering your phone.
- Freebies: Some of the top merchant services programs offer freebies like a free POS terminal and signage to let customers know the merchant accepts credit cards. These things really help when you pitch your program to the merchants.
There are many more important factors you need to look for when joining a credit card processing reseller program, make sure to read out detailed guide this subject.
FAQ:
Who Can Become a Merchant Services Agent?
To be honest, anyone can become a merchant services agent as long as they are disciplined, self-reliant, and go-getters.
Granted, you will have to study a lot at the start about the programs you will be selling and the techniques to sell effectively, but once the ball starts to roll, you will find it easy to work in the industry.
How Much Can a Merchant Services Reseller Make?
There is a lot of potential for how much you can make. If we look at the example above, then you might make $50 off of a single merchant.
If you manage to sign up 15 merchants per year, then in 5 years, you will be making $3750 in monthly recurring income without doing much. Keep increasing merchants, and your income will increase.
How Do I Become a Merchant Account Reseller?
It’s simple, just select a good merchant account reseller program, talk to them, discuss your concerns, and once you are satisfied, fill their form.
You might be required to provide them with some documentation, just follow what they tell you, and after some verification work, you’ll be registered as their merchant accounts reseller.
Over to You:
See, it’s not really hard to be a merchant account reseller, plus the perks of being your own boss and no income cap really make it an appealing business model. However, just be careful when joining a credit card processing reseller program as you don’t want to be bound by unfair rules and regulations.
The industry is filled with credit card processing resellers claiming to be the best. They will make promises of bringing the moon for you, but the curtain from the reality is lifted when you start working with one, as most of them usually make false promises.
So if you want to become a merchant services agent but don’t know which merchant services agent program is the real deal, then we’ve got your back.
Top 5 Merchant Services Reseller Programs
We will tell you about the top 5 merchant services reseller programs that are leading the charts right now, and then you can decide which one you want to work with. Sounds good? Let’s get started then:
1. North American Bancard Agent Program
If you are looking for a corporation that has the most experience in the industry and is considered a goliath when it comes to the best cash discount program, then look no further than NAB (North American Bancard) agent program. They are regulated by top banks like Wells Fargo, BMO Harris, and Bancorp Bank, which speak for NAB’s credibility.
The company has been in the merchant processing game for nearly three decades now, and because of their vast knowledge and connections, they offer the best benefits to their agents. This allows their partners to rise above the competition and get maximum sales. Out of the many strengths that this program has to offer, the most appealing one is its cash discount.
They offer the best cash discount program where the merchants don’t have to pay any fee for processing credit card transactions. The amount is offset to the end customers allowing the merchants to save heaps of money in monthly processing fees. Furthermore, they offer excellent customer support and are always present to help out their agents and merchants.
2. Shaw Merchant Group:
If you want to work with someone who has an impeccable track record in the industry, then Shaw Merchant Group is another option to consider. Their merchant services ISO agent program offers tons of benefits and opportunities to ambitious agents looking to make a killing in the credit card processing industry.
Furthermore, they have an excellent customer support team working with the agents to solve any issues their merchants might come across. Shaw Merchant Group also offers a wealth of learning resources to the sales agents looking to expand their knowledge and be savants in their fields. They offer a great residual income split with lifetime availability allowing their agents to work without worrying about meeting sales targets to keep their bills paid.
Although you might want to do your own research before joining the merchant services ISO agent program of any single company, the ones we are talking about in this article are truly the cream of the crop. That being said, let’s move to number three on our list.
3. PayProTec:
Another reliable merchant services reseller program that is, although a small company, but has a track record of being very reliable. Since PayProTec is a family-owned business, they work closely with their agents and merchants, which creates a strong bond of trust, respect, and understanding. The company was launched in 2006 with headquarter in Warsaw, Indiana, and is a registered ISO of Wells Fargo Bank.
They work with tons of POS solutions, including HotSauce, Paradise POS, Linga POS, Growthzilla, Revel Systems, Vend, and NCR Silver. Furthermore, they also offer eCommerce payment processing solutions for various platforms ranging from Shopify, and Magneto to WooCommerce and OpenCart. The company offers ample resources to help agents build their businesses, such as a free website that can be used for lead generation. Plus, they provide their agents with a portal where they can check their performance stats based on metrics like the number of sales, total residuals, and so on. The best part of working with PayProTec is that they don’t just claim to offer excellent support; they do care about their agents, which is one of the main factors behind their success.
4. Shift 4 Payments:
Launched in 1999, HarborTouch is one of the leading merchant services reseller programs in the U.S. With headquarters in Allentown, Pennsylvania, the company processes over 120,000 businesses and the total value of these transactions exceeds a whopping $10 billion. HarborTouch offers POS equipment, credit card processing services, card processing terminals, and electronic cash registers.
The company used to operate under the name of ‘United Bank Card,’ but then it became a subsidiary of Shift4 Payments. HarborTouch currently promotes the POS systems of SkyTab, Echo, and Oryx, which are mainly designed for cafes, food trucks, spas, and retail businesses. Furthermore, they also offer a payment gateway for eCommerce businesses backed by Authorize.Net.
All in all, you can say that HarborTouch is a one-stop solution for all payment processing and POS equipment needs for most of the businesses. Lastly, just like Shaw Merchant Group ISO agent program, they offer free POS terminal to their clients, which makes it pretty easy for the agents to make an attractive pitch to their merchants.
5. eMerchant Broker:
Nothing shouts disappointment more than being limited to working in just a few niches, and that is what most of the merchant services agent programs do. They pull their hands out of the high-risk niches like pharmacy, eCommerce, or Cannabis. This limits the agents’ earning potential as they are only allowed to work in a handful of industries. eMerchant Broker, on the other hand, doesn’t put a limit on niches. They deal in virtually all sorts of niches, and in fact, 99% of merchants get their accounts approved with them, which is perfect for agents working hard in the field to convert as many merchants as they can.
Established in 2011, eMerchant Broker’s headquarter is located in Thousand Oaks, California. The company is backed by BMO Harris Bank and deals in all kinds of niches, including retail, mobile, MOTO, eCommerce, and virtually all of the high-risk ones. The company offers ample processing products and services, including merchant cash advances, virtual terminals, POS equipment, check processing, credit card processing, and debit card processing.
Since eMerchant Broker deals in high-risk niches, they understand that chargebacks are going to be a major issue, which is why they work with Verifi to leverage their CardHolder Dispute Resolution Network. Furthermore, they also work with Ethoca to get chargeback alerts. With the help of these two partners, eMerchant Broker efficiently handles chargebacks and prevents the loss of their customers’ funds.
So Which Merchant Services Agent Program to Join?
Now that you know about the leading merchant services agent programs in the industry, you can become a merchant services agent with the knowledge of things to expect from them. If you ask us, our personal favorite is the Shaw Merchant Group ISO agent program, and there are lots of good reasons for this. Let’s discuss some of them below:
- Multiple Products: They have a diverse range of products ranging from POS systems to EMV enabled terminals and mobile card readers. The availability of these options will ensure you can capture as many physical stores as you want.
- Multiple Banks on Back: Unlike many credit card processing resellers that work with one or two banks at most, SMG works with three different banks that include Wells Fargo, BMO Harris, and Bancorp Bank. This allows them to work with different kinds of businesses and offer multiple processing options.
- Lucrative Payment Plans: Not only they pay their merchants and agents without any delays, but they also offer various bonuses to the agents working hard to bring lots of sales. Furthermore, they provide lifetime residual income, which means as long as the merchant is in business, the agent will keep getting residuals from it.
- Cash Discounting: They also offer the best cash discount program that allows merchants to offset processing fees onto their customers and not pay anything whenever a card is swiped from the terminal.
- Advanced Technological Infrastructure: They offer lots of technological benefits to their agents like a dashboard depicting the sales numbers, residuals, and merchants’ data in one place. Furthermore, they provide their agents with a free landing page that helps them attract more leads and eventually get some sales from the internet too.
There are many more benefits of working with them, such as their own online university filled with a wealth of knowledge that you can consume like a sponge and get an edge over competitors.
Over to You
We are certain that now you can become a merchant services agent with full confidence as you know about the top players in the industry and what to expect from them. Joining a merchant services reseller program is the most crucial step that will dictate the direction of your career’s growth. However, there will be a lot of things that you will have to learn after signing up for a merchant services agent program. This is where the learning resources and customer support of the processor will help you out.
Credit cards are all the rage in the USA and have been for decades, and six out of ten Americans have at least one credit card. The number of credit card users has been growing each year exponentially. People use them as the primary mode of payment. Similarly, debit cards are widely used online payment substitutes, and the number of new users is rising worldwide. Today, debit card usage accounts for 25% of all purchase volume which was 13% in 2005.
Moreover, there were 45 billion dollars in credit card transactions in the year 2019. It means more volume of the transaction will increase demand for credit transaction processors. Payment processing companies act as a bridge between the merchant and the customers making the payments. This industry may be competitive, but it’s true that it can be very profitable. Do you want to become a merchant service agent, or wondering how to start a payment processing company? If yes, then read on to learn how to become a credit card processor.
How to become a credit card processor in 4 simple steps?
You might think it’s simple to become a credit card processor, but it is not as simple as it sounds. In fact, it is more than project projection, payment terminal, and POS options to get things started. Follow these steps if you are on a mission to becoming a merchant service provider.
Conduct Market Research
Market research will not only help you better understand your target market but also uncover insights about your competitors. So don’t forget to invest some time to conduct market research to analyze your competitors and potential clients. Determine the viability of new selling merchant services and the niche of the local retailers. Don’t forget to monitor how your competitors are doing business, their services, and the average fee their customers are paying for credit card processing.
Come up with a great deal for your future clients. If you offer to deal with a lower amount than your competitors, you will likely get more profit. All you need to go to your local market and create a survey to gather comprehensive information from your targeted audience about the service they use the most. Ask them about their current merchant service provider and check how much they are satisfied with them. And most importantly, don’t forget to collect the contact information of your potential clients, like their phone numbers and email address.
Plan Out How You Will Operate Your Business
The second step is to create a profitable business plan. It will give you an idea of how your credit card processing company will work. Plan out what kind of services you will offer and their pricing. Moreover, your business plan should also cover how large your sales team will be. In other words, it is a guideline that will help to make business-related decisions. Also include other details like how much capital you need to start a payment processing company, how you will obtain this capital, and how you will market your new business.
There are two main options for those who are becoming a credit card processor, i.e., start your own company or franchise (work under another company or brand) a credit card processing company. When you start your company independently, it offers various benefits. First of all, starting an independent business may cost less, and you earn more profit because there are no chances of getting your hand-tied in any contract or bad deal. In addition, it comes with downsides too. When you start a new company, no one recognizes you in the market, and you have to do a lot of hard work to beat your competitors around. Not only that, you should have good terms with banks to finance your company.
On the other hand, if you choose the second option, i.e., franchise an existing credit card processing company, forget about designing a winning business model, finding credit card terminals, machines, and other equipment, and build a relationship with finance resources like banks. However, if you choose this option, you will require big bucks to get started. Moreover, the parent company will also cut through some percentage of your profits.
Partner With The Bank
You need to partner with a bank to handle the interbank routing and get financing for operational costs. Initially, you need at least $50,000 capital to start a credit card processing company with a physical office location. If a contingency plan fails and unexpected expenses arise, consider a secondary source.
Execute Your Business Plan
Now, it’s time to execute your business plan and launch your company. Having a killer marketing strategy helps you grow your business exponentially. Your ultimate goal should be to stay ahead of your competitors. To reach out to more clients, business networking can help you rack up new contacts. Provide the best services as promised to your customers. Referrals from merchants play a crucial role in the company’s growth.
How To Sell Merchant Services
Want to know how to sell merchant services? Just keep in mind that there is no secret formula to selling it; it starts with you. First off, you should know how this transaction processing procedure works. You should be an expert as a credit card payment processor that helps you get more profit than MSPs (Merchant Service Providers). Over time, when you see more trade growth, people will recognize your business assets. Prepare your business assets like yellow and white pages, business cards, website, business cards, and local directory for your company and market them to grow your business.
Tips On Selling Merchant Services
One of the best tips on selling merchant services is that give your clients the reason to choose you. Don’t offer the same thing that other hundreds of merchant service providers are offering. Let them know what benefits they will get because only special discounts are not enough. A high percentage of profit is probably is more attractive to sell your merchant services. Don’t focus on discount price offer only. Show your numbers and merchant testimonials as your company’s proof of growth. Moreover, don’t hesitate to build a good relationship with them which helps you increase sales.
Are you excited to become a credit card processing agent? Do you want to start a credit card processing company? If your answer is YES, then you have come to the right place.
In this article, I am going to teach you ways to start a successful credit card processing company. I am also going to take you through the fine details of planning, setting up, and starting a credit card processing company.
You are going to learn about what it takes to become a successful credit card processing agent, how to conduct market and niche research, how to create a great business plan, how to get funding for your venture, and also tips to run a successful credit card processing company.
It is important to note that when you become a merchant service provider you will be helping corporate and businesses to process payment for their customers.
Your credit card processing services will involve offering the platform and equipment to facilitate the sending, approval, and processing of payments and transactions between customer’s bank accounts and your clients' bank accounts.
What It Takes To Become a Credit Card Processing Agent:
The credit card processing industry is very dynamic, and the success of becoming a merchant services agent is both easy and hard.
There are a few things that you need to know; some of these include having a clear understanding of how selling credit card processing works. You will also need to have deep knowledge of how credit cards work and what they do.
Another overly important thing that you will need to understand is your market and, most importantly, your niche market. This way, you will be able to connect with your customers on a personal level. In addition, you will also be able to create a solid relationship with banks for financial transactions and payment processing.
Market Feasibility and Niche Research
It is critical to note that any successful venture always starts with thorough research. When you want to become a credit card processing agent, you will need to do thorough market research.
Understand the type of services or products you will be offering and where your clients are and their needs.
Make sure that you look at the services offered by your competitors, their rates, and also how satisfied their customers are with the services they get.
The few steps you can take to become a merchant services reseller are to first create a survey on several businesses in your area, determine the most common services they use, and evaluate the satisfaction level of customers with their current payment providers.
Another important step that you need to take is to gather client information, such as phone numbers or email addresses. These details will help you when you start sending out pitches.
Crafting a Comprehensive Business Plan
For you to become a credit card processing agent and be successful in it, you will need to come up with a detailed business plan.
It is okay if you are not a seasoned writer, but you can hire one to do the work for you. Better still, there are several business plan templates available online that you can use.
There are several details that need to be included in your business plan; some of these details include:
- How you intend to run your venture
- The executive summary about your business
- How you intend to raise startup capital
- Products and services you will be offering
- Marketing and sales analysis
- SWOT analysis
- And more
Ideally, the business plan for a credit card processing company can serve as proof to investors and stakeholders that you are serious about with your venture as the document shows all the strategies.
A great business plan can help you win funding from various investors and banks.
How to Finance Your Credit Card Processing Business
Most business requires a startup capital; the same case applies to credit card processing companies.
To become a credit card processing agent, you need to consider where you are going to get funding to start your venture. You will also need to cater for all the operational costs until you start realizing some profits.
According to research, on average, a minimum of $51,000 is needed to start a payment processing company.
There are options that you can use to get financing for your credit card processing company, some of these options include;
- Getting a loan from banks
- Approaching investors
- Getting funding from business partners
- Using your savings or selling assets to raise funds
- Sourcing some funds from friends and family members.
Launching Your Merchant Services Reseller Company
Once all the above are set up, you can go ahead and launch your credit card processing company. There are other finer details that you will need to consider before you do this. These include finding the appropriate location for your business, understanding the requirements which you must have beforehand, and understanding the manpower needed to run the business.
To become a payment service provider, you should fully implement your business plan. The best way is to strictly follow the plan without cutting corners.
Tip: Due to the competitive nature of the credit card processing business, it is critical to ensure that your business stands out.
Put more efforts to stand out among your competitions. The best way to do this is to have a business network. You can reach out to organizations and corporations to widen your reach and customer base.
Marketing Plan for Your Credit Card Processing Company
- Just like any other business, a marketing plan is a must. You can do all the above work, but if you don’t come up with an effective marketing plan, you might fail.
- Take your marketing strategies seriously. The following are some effective marketing ideas that you can use.
- Use social media platforms to spread the word about your business
- Reach out to stakeholders, clients, and managers of big corporations
- Make sure that your business is listed in local directories
- Use TVs, magazines, newspapers, and radio to advertise your business
- Start bidding for available contracts
To further increase your reach to potential clients, you can create business cards, flyers, pamphlets, or business website.
Tips To Help You Run a Successful Credit Card Processing Business
In order to succeed in starting a processing processing company, understand that you will not only be providing requirements and services to help process payment for customers BUT also, you will be selling yourself. As a credit card processor, you will need to clearly show potential clients why they need your services. Show them the benefits they will get from your services. Never seize to reach out to potential customers. In addition, ensure that you do a follow up on those pitches. To simplify the process of becoming a credit card processing agent, North American Bancard provides all the tools you need for a successful credit card processing business.
All around the world, there are thousands of businesses that use vital services that are referred to as merchant services. These are services such as payment processing, which is what allows businesses to accept and process payments so that they can make a profit on their product. Without these services, businesses would be unable to function in the modern world. You might think that the fact that these services are an absolute necessity to these businesses make them an easy target for selling, but that is now always the case. There are definitely some positives as well as some negatives when selling merchant services.
This guide will show you some of each and hopefully give you some insight as to whether a career selling merchant services is right for you.
Pros
Undoubtedly, there are some very positive aspects of selling merchant services for a living. If you have had a sales job that is similar in the past, you already have known some of these benefits. Here are some of the best things about selling merchant services.
There is always a market
One of the best things about working in the merchant services industry is that there is never a lack of demand for these services. There are always new businesses sprouting up as people chase their passion for owning their own business. And existing businesses are always evaluating their options and ensuring that they are getting the best deal on the market. For that reason, you won’t ever have to worry about the industry as a whole drying up. People will always need to spend digital money and businesses will always need to find a way to accept it.
Set your schedule
For many that are in a commission-based sales job, one of the greatest benefits of it is being able to get to the point where you are working when you want to work instead of punching a time clock when you get to work. When you are a partner in a merchant services ISO agent program, you will be able to set your appointments on a schedule that works well for you.
Build passive income
Finding and signing clients to lucrative merchant processing contracts is hard work, nobody denies that. However, all of the hard work that you put into this process could end up paying out tenfold throughout the years. One of the greatest things about being a merchant services salesperson is that your accounts can earn you passive and residual income long after you have closed them to a contract. This could help you build passive income for years to come and eventually phase out the bulk of the labor that is involved in this career.
High commission rates
When you compare merchant services to other industries out there, you will find that it has a very competitive and comparatively high commission rate compared to those other industries. The high price of the contracts and the fact that they continue to pay out for years to come is what makes these sales so valuable and why some of the best salespeople in the world turn to merchant services when they want to increase their earning potential.
Cons
Just as there are many pros to selling merchant services, there are also some aspects that could prove difficult. You should watch out for these aspects and consider whether they are something that you are able to overcome and overlook.
Highly competitive industry
There is always a lot of demand for merchant services, but this fact also means that there is a lot of competition. One of the hardest aspects of selling merchant services is that you will always have competition breathing down your neck, waiting to provide your client with a better rate. This is really where your ability to create and nurture relationships will come in handy with client retention. This industry is not for those that don’t like competition and healthy capitalist tendencies.
Dependent on success to make money
When you are a merchant services representative in any industry, you know that your ability to make money is heavily dependent on the success that you have when selling your product or service. It’s no different in selling credit card processing accounts. If you want to have a good income, then you will need to become skilled at selling these products. If you don’t feel confident that you can do that, then it might not be the right choice for you.
Though you might hear the term ISO or Independent Sales Organization used a lot in the merchant services business, people don't always use it accurately. Let's take a look at what this term actually means according to credit card companies and banks.
What is an ISO?
Basically, a merchant services ISO program is an entity (a company or a person) who is not a MasterCard or Visa member bank—also known in general as Association members—yet they have a relationship with these banks. This can mean many things. For example, they may find new customers, offer customer service to the merchants, or sell terminals to them.
What is an MSP?
An MSP (Member Service Provider) is more or less similar to a credit card processing ISO program, though this isn't always exactly the case. An MSP is more of a “middle man” usually, a company that is often not an Association member, but who provides services to members.
What Do ISOs and MSPs Do For Their Banks?
First of all, remember that neither MSPs nor merchant services ISO agents are actually banks. The MSP / ISO will contract a processing bank to do this, and each MSP / ISO must have this kind of relationship with a bank to be able to process credit cards.
Under normal circumstances, the acquiring bank will be an Association member with both Visa and Mastercard, and they usually register for both at the same time. ISOs in turn can have relationships with more than one bank. By the way, these processing banks can also engage in vertical integration and become their own ISOs. This isn't common, though, and normally they will just specialize in processing credit cards, since it takes a lot of resources to draw in leads all the time.
An ISO is required to disclose their processing bank on their brochures, website, and other material. Usually, these are somewhere inconspicuous, like the bottom of a page.
How Does an ISO / MSP Register with the Credit Card Companies?
It's not exactly easy. First, the merchant services ISO needs to find a processing bank that will serve as a sponsor. Next, the merchant services ISO has to demonstrate to the companies that they have the means to perform their duties. Afterwards, there's lots of paperwork to do. For example, a merchant services ISO program might have to provide:
- Financial statements / tax returns
- Incorporation documents
- Their business plan
- Their sales material
- A list of their sales agents
On top of all of that, the owners of the companies will also have their credit checked.
What Kind of Fees Does an ISO / MSP Have to Pay For Registration?
Once they are actually approved, the fees are $10,000 upfront. These fees are paid every year as well, as part of a review process.
What Are So-Called Sales Agents?
Many times it's helpful for merchant services ISOs to have an independent sales team, so they will hire sales agents to find interested merchants. According to MasterCard, a sales agent is someone who provides services to a member, but isn't an MSP. In other words, sales agents don't have to be Association members, since the merchant services ISO program is the one that takes care of the processing. Sales agents have to be registered, however, though the fee is quite negligible—something like $50 every year. Sales agents, though functioning somewhat independently, can't advertise as a service provider and have to use the name of their merchant services company.
What Option Works Best?
Is it enough to be a merchant services sales agent? Or should you consider becoming a merchant services ISO or MSP, even though it requires going through all that bureaucratic process? Like anything else, this really depends. How much processing volume do you have? Obviously, you get a better price per transaction as a merchant services ISO, so you'll need to make some calculations and decide for yourself whether the increased profit margin is worth the overhead costs.
Be cautious, though, when looking at proposals from processing banks. There might be some fine print in there that can come back to haunt you. Specifically, look for fees that might cut into your profit, such as minimum processing fees. Minimum processing fees are charged when transaction fees during a certain period don't reach a minimum threshold.
These minimum processing fees can sometimes be really exorbitant, so watch out for them. Sometimes they can run into tens of thousands of dollars per month, and if you can't come up with the transaction fees, you'll be paying the difference yourself.
If you don't have a large portfolio yet, this can really harm you. Let's say the minimum processing fee for you is $6,000 every month. Let's say that, like many ISO's, you make an average of between $0.07 to $0.09 for every transaction. You would basically need to make 66,600 to 85,700 transactions on a monthly basis just to reach the minimum, which is unfeasible if you are a brand new company.
Usually, your processing bank will give you a period of time to build up your clientèle, however. If you think you can manage to reach a volume that surpasses the minimum processing fees by this time, then go right ahead and become a merchant service provider. However, make sure that you calculate everything very carefully.
By the way, since you're kind of expected to increase volume over time, the whole minimum processing fee can increase as well. That's right, a bank can progressively charge you more and more. For example, they may have given you a minimum fee of $4,000 in year 1, but every year that your contract renews, they might increase it by a lot—maybe even by the original amount, so that you're paying $4,000 more every subsequent year.
You can probably see why this would be a problem. Your fees are growing linearly, but your portfolio might not be. In fact, it is unlikely that your business would be able to support that amount of growth every year, unless your company is just so great that people are abandoning their merchant service agreements just to work with you. Either way, never sign an agreement that has fine print like this. Fees that increase like this are not very sustainable and you may get ripped off in the end.
Another (Not Great) Alternative
One thing you can do is to try to find a small bank that doesn't have any minimum fees at all. The problem here, though, is that their pricing might not be as good of a deal as larger processing banks, and their service might not be as reliable.
Besides, these smaller processors often have their own version of a minimum fee requirement—instead of transactions, they require you to bring in a certain number of new clients per month. If you don't comply, then you could stand to lose your residuals. In other words, you could have worked for years to build up a portfolio of dozens of merchants, and you could be bringing in a huge volume for your bank. You might have built up to tens of thousands of dollars per month for yourself, but your bank requires you to bring in five new merchants, and you only brought in four.
What happens? You lose all of your income, just like that. Does that sound fair to you? Your processor still has all of those accounts, but you are left in the dust. It's not really “passive income” if you have to keep adding a certain arbitrary amount of merchants per month, is it?
Conclusions
All of this can be confusing if you are new, but you can probably draw a few conclusions from it and get an idea of your game plan. To put it simply, if I had to start in this business over again knowing what I know now, I would just pick a large ISO and become a merchant services agent for them. This would help me learn about the industry and build up some income, and I wouldn't be risking falling victim to some fine print from my processing banks, or having to pay huge fees just to stay in business. I would work with several merchant services ISOs until I had decided which one was the best fit for me long-term.
After that, I would stop working with all of the other merchant services ISOs and concentrate on the best one exclusively until my volume had increased substantially. Once I thought I could pay all of the entry fees, I would consider becoming a merchant services ISO myself. I would speak with my merchant services ISO and see if they have a sponsorship program. Either way, I would shop around and be a hard negotiator, and not settle with a sponsor until I had a fair deal that I could actually work with.
Last, I'd hire an attorney to look over the paperwork. Yes, attorneys can be expensive, but in a business like this they are worth their weight in gold. You don't want to sign something without understanding all of the ramifications. Once that was settled and the deal seemed right, only then would I sign the agreement.
Do you want to become a merchant services agent, and you are wondering where to start? You might be convinced that this is what you want to do. It is true that payment processing is a highly lucrative industry, and this makes it attractive. Becoming a successful merchant services agent is not easy because you will need some training to learn how to do this successfully.
The earning potential of a merchant services agent is incredibly high, but to get there, you will need to take steady steps towards attaining success. One of the steps is to seek merchant services sales training. Merchant services have some key pillars that you need to be aware of in order to be successful.
The following are the crucial credit card processing sales training structure that will increase your chances of becoming successful in the merchant services industry.
Learn Quality Partnership
This is one of the most critical concepts that you need to be familiar with while pursuing merchant services sales training. As a merchant services agent, you will need to partner with a merchant services provider. Your partnership needs to be solid in order to facilitate success. We can say that the merchant services provider will be the epicenter of your business.
The provider you partner with should be able to offer reliable payment processing services to your merchants without failing. They should also be able to offer the additional perks and tools that you need in the merchant services business.
Some key things that you are going to learn in the quality partnership training are the ability for the merchant services provider to offer good payment structure, offer prompt payments, good communication & support, the handsome share of profit, regular bonuses and modern and technological tools to help you succeed in your business.
A good merchant services provider you chose should be able to provide all these. You will be closer to your success and business goals if you are careful in selecting a quality ISO partnership. A good merchant provider will help you enjoy great profits as well as passive income from your merchant services business.
Pricing Structure
Another key thing to learn in merchant services training is the pricing structure. In addition to being able to make sales and getting new leads now and then, you will want to be sure of the right way to price your products and services. To have meaningful success in the merchant services business, you need to take your time and optimize your pricing.
A good pricing structure will enable you to have the appropriate profit margin. This will help you to keep on running a sustainable merchant services business. With the right pricing structure, you will be able to raise your income as you grow.
Learning about the pricing structure will help you to do things such as offering discounts, upselling, and many more. For now, the pricing structure may not seem to make a notable difference in your business, but as you start to accumulate hundreds and thousands of transactions, you will note the impact. It is, therefore, critical to fully understand the pricing structure in the merchant services sales business.
In Merchant Services, More Options Are the Best
In training to become a merchant services agent, you need to understand that a good merchant services provider should offer as many options as possible. There should not be limits to the payment processing options your merchant services provider is offering.
This is because if sometimes your customers happen to require something, you should be able to get it from your merchant services provider. On the other hand, if there are limits to options they can provide, then you might end up disappointing your customers.
As a good merchant services agent, you should lookout for a provider who allows access to a wide range of options, such as in payment processing. They should offer credit cards, debit cards, cash, ACH, and more payment processing options. If your provider gives you these options, you can offer them to your customers, and this makes them happy.
Several options mean that you will have the flexibility, and you will be able to offer solutions to your customers without running out of options. This is a win-win situation.
Customer Service
This is an important lesson to learn in merchant services sales training. The customer is the most important player in your merchant services business, and therefore they should be your highest priority all the time. As a payment processing agent, you should strive to keep your customers happy, and if you fail to do so, you will have a very hard time. It might even become very difficult to succeed in your business.
You should, therefore, brace yourself for customer service lessons in payment processing sales training. Customer services training will help you master the techniques that successful salespeople use in order to close more sales. They are always keen on the customer's needs and devise ways to fulfill these needs.
You should be able to attend to your customer’s queries in the shortest time possible. It is also critical to realize that when it comes to customer services, your merchant services provider will also play a key role. This gets us back to the previous point of choosing the right partner. If something happens that is beyond your control, you should be able to reach out to your provider for an effective and speedy solution.
Free Terminal for Your Merchants
For success in the merchant services business, the secret is to have a free terminal included. Merchant love bonuses in their payment processing packages. Note that you will be offering a POS which is designed to increase efficiency in payment processing. The terminal you provide should offer exceptional user experience for the satisfaction of your merchants.
For a strong bond between you and your merchants, you should be providing incentives. This will make them feel that they have the right agent by their side. For increased conversion rates, it is highly recommended that you offer a free POS terminal to your merchants.
You want to be a successful merchant services agent, right? The above learning concepts are the key to success in the payment processing business. Therefore you should ensure that you fully understand these in merchant services sales training.
Want to become a merchant services agent but don’t know which merchant services ISO agent program is right for you? Well, why don’t we solve this problem for you? This guide is specifically created to help people who are stepping their toe into the vast sea of merchant processing. By the end of it, you will have a pretty clear idea of how to find a good processor.
10 Things You Need to Consider in a Merchant Services Agent Program
We will tell you 10 factors that you need to consider when looking for a viable, credible merchant services agent program. This way, you will ensure that there are no problems later on in your career as a credit card processing agent. With that said, let’s get started:
1. Fast Funding:
One of the most important things to look for in a merchant services ISO agent program is their funding period. Clients should not have to face delays in terms of funds transfer after a transaction is made. One of the most attractive and compelling features of a good merchant services ISO program is that the merchants get their funds the same day.
This is what attracts most of the merchants as they do not want their earnings to be kept by a 3rd party for more than a day. You will also be able to sell this kind of program better because of the speedy service.
2. Several Discounts:
When you are deciding to become a merchant services agent, go for the processor that offers a cash discount program. Simply put, it is a payment processing tactic where the fee of a particular credit card transaction is offset to the customers. This means that the merchant will not have to pay any transaction fee, the customers are using the facility instead of paying in cash, so it should be them who bear the cost.
The best cash discount program allows merchants to do just that! The algorithm of POS software is already trained to charge the percentage of fees levied on each transaction from the customer. Plus, some of the top merchants also provide free signage that educates customers about the fee on a credit card transaction, so there are no surprises at the end.
3. Dealing in High-Risk Industry:
There are many that become a credit card processor, but they have a very low-risk appetite. This means they will only deal in safer industries and not offer services to risky businesses like medical marijuana stores, travel agencies, and pharmacies etc. Now you might not work with these businesses when starting out, but soon, when your business grows, you will have to get clients from high-risk industries.
So if the credit card processor doesn’t deal with these industries, then you will be limited to a few fields which will put a cap on your growth potential. So instead of finding a merchant dealing with high-risk industries later on, you need to work with one from the start.
4. Assistance in Marketing:
As a credit card processing agent, you will need several marketing resources at your disposal to close sales. One of them is a team assisting you with lead capturing and turning the cold ones into warm leads. A terrific processor will have excellent merchant support that will help you convert more merchants with minimal energy, time, and resource exhaustion.
Plus, some of the excellent credit card processors also have their own landing pages designed to show to your potential customers. These landing pages can take several hundred dollars to make, but the processor will offer you for free, making your conversion process easier.
5. Flexible Plans:
One of the most necessary parts of working with a merchant services ISO program is to get paid properly and on time. You do not want to be underpaid, so make sure to work with a processor that offers a fair share of the income to you. Also, they must have lucrative bonuses if you go out of your way to close a specific number of sales in X amount of time.
You need to properly analyze the contract you will sign with them and check their payment terms, make sure to work with a company that pays on time.
6. Merchant and Income Analytics:
The best part of working with the top credit card processors in the industry is that they leverage technology to make things easier for their agents. A good processor will provide you with your own dashboard that will display various performance metrics like the number of sales you closed, your earnings, number of clients, and more.
Some even go the extra mile and provide data on merchants as well. You might be able to see the number of transactions they make and even get information on individual transactions.
7. Equipment and Software:
Many become a registered ISO for merchant service providers, but they do not work on their equipment and its advancement. The credit card processor must provide you with the necessary technology that you can offer to your clients and seal the deal. A good processor should offer these equipment and facilities:
- Point of Sale terminals to suit the needs of merchants
- Smart online payment options
- Facility of mobile payments
- Support loyalty programs and gift cards
- Fast processing with minimal errors As for the software, they must have up to date, user-friendly software in their equipment, allowing merchants to complete the transaction process smoothly.
8. Excellent Support:
Besides the marketing assistance that we discussed above, the merchant services provider should offer fast, responsive, and friendly customer services. You don’t want to find yourself in a situation where your customers are facing any issues that need to be solved, and you cannot get in touch with the processor’s customer support to fix them.
In this case, even if the problem is not caused by you, you will be the one facing the consequences if you cannot get a customer support agent to solve the problem. The merchant might stop using the processor, and that will result in your financial loss.
So before you decide on working with a merchant, you need to ensure that they have a dedicated customer support team that can quickly answer your questions and solve any problems as soon as possible.
9. Multiple Boarding Options:
Look for a program that provides different boarding options from big payment processing platforms like EPX, First Data and Global Payments. Being able to access these programs means complete peace of mind for both you and the merchants.
Because there will be fewer chances of facing any integration or technological problems when connecting the POS or billing software of the merchant with the platforms your program uses. This will ensure your whole sales process goes smoothly, and you don’t lose a ready-to-convert client at the last moment.
10. Must Be Credible:
Lastly, you need to do your complete due diligence in finding everything about the company you can. They should not have a shady track record, damaged reputation, or bad reviews on the internet.
You need to work with a company that has the face of its CEO attached to it, has a brick and mortar headquarter, and is licensed to operate.
Plus, keep your eyes peeled for any too good to be true bonuses or discounts; these things come with bad surprises later on.
Is There Any Program With These Qualities?
Glad you asked, I was wondering that I have written 10 points for you to look in a company so it might be challenging to find one that meets this criterion. Well, let me make things simple for you by introducting North American Bancard. They are excellent at what they do, and their core focus is to benefit their agents and merchants. Have a look at a few of their key features:
- They have Global Payments, EPX and First Data powered merchant accounts
- Their terminals work with both credit and debit cards. Plus, they support both EMV and NFC based methods of payment
- They also support mobile payments via PayAnywhere technology
- Their PayAnywhere feature also works with storefront point of sale system
- Automated cash discounting
- They have web-based terminals that provide agents with all the details of their performance and the specifics of their merchants
- Very attractive signup and profitability bonuses
Parting Words:
If you have successfully made it to the end, then it means you already know about the key things to look for to find the cream of the crop credit card processing company. We have also suggested the leading program with all the qualities discussed in this guide. So it is fair to say that you have everything you need to get started on your journey to working as a merchant services representative. You just need to take the first step and make a career doing what you really want to do.
Merchant Services Partnerships
If you want to be successful as a merchant services agent or ISO, then you need to have access to a high-quality ISO agent program. ISO agent programs are a concentration of a variety of merchant services that you can offer to your merchants in exchange for a commission from the partner program. Having a good partner program for selling merchant services is essential to having success and being able to attract a high number of merchants to your services. With our insight into merchant services partner programs, you’ll know essential facts about working with partner programs and what you need to do to find one that puts you in the best position for success.
What should you look for in a merchant services partner program?
If you’re looking to be a merchant services agent, then one of the most important steps in the process is finding the right merchant services partner to work with. The merchant services partner program that you work with will have a large part in determining your level of success in the merchant services industry. If you want to get the most out of your merchant services agent experience, then these are the factors that you should be looking for when evaluating potential partner programs to work with. With these things in mind, you’ll find a partner that suits your needs and puts you in the best position to succeed.
Payout dependability
If you don’t get paid accurately and on-time, then you can’t hope to have a healthy business model. Part of the relationship between you and your merchant services partner program that you choose is getting reliable and accurate payouts from your merchant services provider. Without this, you can have cash flow and margin issues. So, when you start to look at potential partners for your merchant services endeavors, you should take into account the reputation that your merchant services provider has when it comes to payout dependability. Ideally, you want to work with a partner program that will pay you fairly, accurately, and on-time.
Support staff
When you are considering what merchant services partner program to choose for your business, you should take more than financials into account. One of the most important things that you should look at is what kind of support your merchant services partner program has to offer. With merchant services being a highly technical field of expertise, your merchants will often need support and help using their solution. When that happens, you want to be sure that your ISO agent program has the support staff in place to help your merchant and make them happy. Without proper support, you might find your merchants being left dissatisfied with both the solution and you. This is a great way to lose clients and business.
Product suite
The merchant services solution that your merchants will select will be largely impacted by what products you have to offer, and that is why the product suite and selection that your ISO partner program has available should play a large part in your decision of which partner to work with. You can’t offer services that you don’t have access to, and that is why you should aim to have access to as many as possible. Do this by exploring the products that your merchant services partner program has available and ensuring they align with your needs and that you will be able offer your merchants the products and services that you wish.
Reputation
One of the best ways to tell if you should be working with any particular merchant services agent program is to find out what kind of a reputation they have with both merchants and agents. Whether a program is good or bad, there are bound to be individuals and businesses that have had experiences with them in business. If you can find those experiences, you can have the knowledge available to you to let you know whether you should be working with that merchant services partner program in the long-term.
Industry specialization
When choosing a merchant services agent program, one of the most important considerations is whether they have a specialty or specialize in any certain industry. If you are in a very specific industry, you’ll want to make sure that your merchant services partner program specializes in your area of business or at the very least, offers services that fit your needs. For general merchant services agents, you’ll want to seek out a partner program that has a wide range of solutions to fit any need.
How Does the Payment Processing Busines Work?
It is estimated that around 100 billion transactions happen every year through credit card. That means the credit card processing company can make huge bucks every month from residuals. But working in the credit card industry is not as easy as you think. There are a lot of moving parts involve when you start a merchant services business. If you want to become a merchant service provider, you need to do many things to join the credit card industry. Let’s have a look together about the merchant service business opportunities.
The Credit Card Processing Industry
When you pursue your career as a merchant services agent, you build a relationship with the banks, payment gateway devices, merchants, and credit card machine developers. When the clients process their credit card transactions, you can charge the fee, which will be your residuals. Let’s see what the main elements in credit card processing are.
Consumer: The one who makes the purchase and has a credit card.
Merchant: The merchant is the business owner who sells services or products.
Payment gateway: It is a technology that connects the payment process company to merchants.
Credit card processor: When you are work in the credit card industry, you are a credit card processor. You will work as a communicator between the card network, merchant, and bank of the consumer to make sure that the transactions comply with the Data Security Standards of the Payment Card Industry.
Card network: This is the credit card brand that the consumers use e.g., American Express, Visa, Mastercard, and others.
Issuing bank: The issuing bank is the bank of the cardholder. It checks to ensure that the consumer’s account has funds and releases them for settlement.
Merchant bank: This is the merchant’s bank, where he will have the account through which funds will move to the transactions the Credit Card Processing Reseller agent process.
Facilitation and Communication
If you have decided to start your career in the credit card industry, you will be a facilitator among the merchant and card network and card holder’s bank. The authorization, settlement, and funding are involved in this process.
- The merchant process the credit card payment of consumer though a payment gateway
- Then the merchant sends the request to the credit card payment processor for the payment authorization.
- The credit card payment processor then submits the transactions to the credit card network like Visa, American Express, finally reaching the issuing bank.
- The issuing bank declines or approves the credit card transaction and sends this status to the merchant through the payment processor and credit card network.
- Then, the payment processor receives the authorized transaction batches from the merchant.
- The payment processor passes these details to the issuing bank through the card network.
- Some charges are deducted from the account of the consumer by the issuing bank, and these funds are transferred to the merchant’s account minus the interchanging fees.
What Is PCI Compliance?
If you want to be the part of the merchant services agent program, you must understand PCI compliance. The PCI compliance is the set of practices you should follow to comply with the PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards). As a ISO agent, you should be offering:
• The equipment and software for PCI-compliant processing such as point-of-sale systems, payment gateways, terminals, and more.
• Quarterly network susceptibility scans
• Help in filling the self-assessment questionnaire.
Fees and Processing
When you offer PCI DSS equipment and software, you can make huge bucks by charging a fee for each transaction's processing. You can purchase wholesale buy rates and sell them to the merchants at a slightly higher rater to make your money.
Before You Start
If you are going to start a merchant services company, find the niche that makes you stand out. There are many payment processing companies like North American Bancard, but you can’t compete with them initially. All you need to develop the customer base in order to establish a long relationship with the local business owners. For instance, if you are working in the food services, you can cultivate a strong relationship with the restaurateurs.
Research the Market
In order to make a great start in the credit card industry, research the local market, and see what sectors are booming. If your skills and experience can match these promising sectors, find the services these sectors are using. You can conduct the free survey to find out either the merchant is satisfied with the existing services on the ten-point scale. You can send them the survey results on their email address. It is a good way to get insight into the local market and the merchants' contact information in your area.
Start Fresh or Franchise
You have to decide whether you will be starting a credit card processing company from purchasing into a franchise or from scratch. When you start fresh, that means you need to complete paperwork, pay startup costs, insurance fees, build relationships with the clients and banks, and much more. While you buy into a franchise, you need to have worked about paperwork, retaining customers, and decisions. Choose the way that is right for you and your career.
Choose a Legal Structure
Choose the legal structure that is suitable for your business strategy, which includes the partnership, sole proprietorship, and more. For legal advice, you can hire a lawyer who has experience in credit card processing startups.
Start a Credit Card Processing Company
There are some steps and legal documents that you will require to start a credit card processing company. It includes business license, Insurance policy, the Contract document, nondisclosure agreement, certificate of incorporation, business plan, and operating agreement. After deciding your niche, and legal structure, register your business with your secretary of state. Moreover, don’t forget to establish the tax identification number with the Internal Revenue Service. All these things are required to start your merchant services business with your credit card history.
Comprehensive Business Plan
Now, define the comprehensive business plan that includes market analysis, marketing strategies, pricing strategies, and competitor analysis. You can get a sample of a comprehensive business plan from the website of the credit card processing company.
Insurance Types Needed
You need Liability insurance, Equipment insurance, Health insurance, General insurance, Business owner policy group insurance and Errors and omissions insurance for starting your merchant service business.
Partner With Other Companies
Now, contact the banks that serve the local merchants and show them your business plan. Try to build a relationship with the small businesses in your area. It’s time to partner with the card network banks to handle the interbank payment processing.
Lease Equipment for Processing
When you are going to start a credit card processing company, contact the companies for equipment leasing. Small businesses often need POS terminals, ATMs, and credit card terminals. You can make money by offering them a choice of buying the processing equipment of leasing them from you.
Merchant Services Sales Reps
Wondering how to become a merchant services agent and just crush it in the sales game? Well, it is both easy and challenging. It’s easy for those who know what they need to do to become a successful sales agent and difficult for those who are clueless.
So to help you have a pretty good idea of things, we have come up with this guide. It will help you up your merchant services game with just a few practical approaches. So with that said, let’s start:
5 Core Elements to Work on to Become a Successful Merchant Services Agent:
1. Decide Your Approach:
One of the most important parts of not just the ISO agent program, but any business, is that you have the groundwork laid out. When you become a merchant services agent, you will have to make a complete business plan and decide your approach before stepping out into the field. There are various aspects that you need to consider, and some of the main ones are:
- What will be your target market? (Individual street-side stores or the ones in malls)
- What will be your target industry? (High-risk industries like CBD or low risk like parking garages)
- How will you make money? (Sell plans only or other things like terminals as well?)
- How will you approach a customer? (Your pitch – most important)
- How will you market your business? (Cold calling, internet marketing, word of mouth, anything else?)
Everyone wants to become a credit card processing agent because of the freedom this job grants; no more bosses micromanaging you! However, this also means that you are mostly on your own in the field. You need to come up with a strategy, decide your approach, take action, and keep refining the strategy based on results.
2. Spread the Word:
Sales business benefits a lot from social networking. The more contacts you have, the more clients you can expect from every direction. People in today’s world don’t blindly trust any business, which is why they ask their friends and family for referrals and usually end up trying out the referred business.
According to BigCommerce; 92% of people believe in suggestions coming from friends/family more than advertising. This shows how powerful referrals can be, which is why you need them! You will work on two types of referrals besides the general business contacts.
- Commission Based: These will be the people you will pay a percentage of your commission for bringing you leads. They can be your relatives, friends, family members or someone you go to the gym with. The gist is, you will tell them to look out for any merchant in need of credit card processing facility, refer them to you, you will educate them, close the deal and share some of your commission with the referrer.
- Merchant Based: These will be directly the merchants. You can visit different merchants in your vicinity, introduce yourself, ask them if they need any help with their credit card processor, and just help them without charging anything. You are actually selling without selling! When they see you are there for them when they need you, they will put trust in you, and sooner or later, either they will switch to your credit card processor or tell their ‘merchant-friends’ about you. Either way, it’s a win-win for you! Making yourself known in the community and increasing your exposure will reward you with sales and opportunities you wouldn’t have thought about.
3. Choose the Right Credit Card Processor:
Choosing the ISO agent partnership is the most careful thing to do. It can either make your merchant sales career or break it. Most of the ISO agent programs will promise to bring the moon for you if you bring sales, but not everyone will really live up to their promises. So to help you find the right program, we have outlined some tips below:
- See if they are offering their customers free add-ons like POS terminal, and signage. These things make it easy for you to sell.
- Do they have fair pricing? The processing fee and their monthly service fee should not be too high that discourage the merchants from taking the plan.
- Do they offer a cash discount program? Here, the merchants can offset any processing fee directly to their customers and not pay anything.
- Are they using the latest equipment and software? How smooth is their POS interface?
- How good is their customer support for both merchants and agents? You want a processor that won’t leave you hanging when you need help.
- Will they work in high-risk industries like CBD, Pharmacy, and Tobacco, etc.? You might not work in these industries now, but when your business grows, you will have to.
Check your contract with them, check your fee schedule, and see how much you will be paid in commission; it should be fair. Also, they should have various bonuses available for achieving good sales.
• You should not be bound to make X number of sales to continue receiving residual income from your previous client; they should be yours no matter what your sales numbers are.
• You should not be bound to only work with them until the contract ends, working with other processors simultaneously should be an option.
You also want to ensure that the ISO agent program you are working with offers amply training resources so you can better equip yourself with knowledge about the product.
Tip: Try exploring our ISO agent program; we fit this criteria and have been in the game for several years. You might find your a perfect match without having to comb through the market.
4. Be a Sponge and Absorb Knowledge:
Be it merchant services sales or any other business; knowledge is power, which is why you need to be the sponge. Absorb as much knowledge as you can about your business, the market, the customers, and, more importantly, the product.
Start by devouring the educational and training material provided by your ISO agent provider. Side note; Shaw Mrchant Group offers a wealth of resources for gaining knowledge and proper sales training.
Once you are done by company training material, take courses on platforms like Lynda, Udemy and Coursera, etc. Not only you need to learn about your market, product, and target audience, but you also need to know about the tactics of selling effectively.
5. Honesty is the Best Policy:
They say honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom, and I say you need to read this whole book. To become a merchant services agent who gets results and is loved by his customers, you need both honesty and wisdom.
You need to have wisdom allowing you to help your potential clients without asking anything in return as they will bring you good business once they trust you. You need to be an absolute truthful person so that merchants can rely on you for their credit card processing needs.
Once they do, they won’t go anywhere, and you’ll be getting continuous residual income. So being wise and honest will only add wings to your business, keep practicing both.
Practical Tips for Selling the Merchant Accounts:
- Learn to Identify Prospects: Rule 101 in a sales agent’s notebook; drop the bad prospects, and focus on good ones. Let’s say you visit 10 prospects, 8 of them are not interested in talking to you, and some may even talk harshly, drop them. Focus on the remaining two who discussed their business with you or at least showed some respect.
- Talk Less Listen More: You need to use your ears more than your tongue. Listen to the pain points of your potential clients, and only talk when you have a solution or a question. Let them feel that they can rant in front of you, and you will listen and solve their issues. Just let them talk themselves into sales!
- Don’t Be Pushy: Do not make your prospects feel like they are being pushed or pressured into making a purchase from you; you might soon get banned from their store. Instead, just have patience, and keep visiting them from time to time. Don’t let them forget you, and once an opportunity comes up, you will be the first one in their minds.
- Be Creative: You cannot sell by selling, this is not the 70’s, and everyone knows the old tactics of selling, so you need to be creative. Let me give you an example of creativity; there was this merchant that had a POS which didn’t support the processing program that the agent was selling. The agent gave him a free POS terminal as his company; (SMG allows it), sold the old one on eBay, and gave full money back to the merchant. You can imagine if the merchant converted or not!
Over to You:
To become a credit card processing agent, you will have to do a lot than just wearing a shoulder bag and using gel in your hair. You need to have a plan, a network of referrals, the right type of processor, a wealth of knowledge, and an honest approach. Only with these core elements, you can make it to the top.
Are you tired of losing a percentage of your sales to the credit card companies? That’s the cost of doing business, right? Where do you draw the line, though? When does it become too expensive to allow customers to pay with credit cards? You can’t just turn credit card paying customers away – that’s bad for business, so what should you do?
Try the dual pricing cash discount program. It helps ease the financial stress on merchants while rewarding cash buyers with a discount. It’s a win-win for everyone.
Understanding the Cash Discount Program
When you use the dual pricing cash discount program, you must make it known that you offer cash buyers a discount on the total cost of the items and customers paying with a credit card pay the full, listed price. This isn’t a surcharge – you aren’t penalizing credit card paying customers. Instead, you’re offering cash discounting or rewarding cash-paying customers.
Here’s an example.
You have a product listed for $20.
John comes in and buys the product for $20, paying with a credit card. John pays $20. Jan comes in and buys the product for $20, paying cash. Jan pays $19.20 because she gets a 4% discount for paying cash.
How Merchants Benefit from the Dual Pricing Cash Discount Program
It may seem strange to advertise that you offer discounts for cash buyers, but it has its benefits:
- You’ll reduce your cost. The fewer credit cards you process, the less your cost will be.
- You’ll have access to your funds faster. With more incentive to pay cash, more customers will do so, giving you instant access to your revenue.
- Fewer credit card purchases means a lower risk of chargebacks.
How the Dual Pricing Cash Discount Works
The process is simple. Just let us know you want to be a part of the Cash Discount Program. We’ll provide you with signage that states the percentage credit card customers will pay if they pay with a credit card.
You go about business as normal, processing payments as you normally do. If you have a credit card paying customer, our terminal will calculate the cost for you. There’s no extra work on your part, and you reward the cash-paying customers with a discount – it’s that easy.
The Cash Discount Program is Great for Business
You may think the cash discount program would turn off your credit card paying customers, but it won’t. A majority of customers don’t mind paying a slightly higher price, (cents on the dollar really) for the convenience of carrying credit cards versus cash.
You and the customers come out the winner in the deal. You show honesty and integrity by providing signage that lets customers know of the price difference if they use a credit card and you reward those that choose to pay cash. Eventually, more customers will catch on and have cash available when they shop at your store - after all, who doesn't love a little discount, right? Take a look below at the summery of benefits:
Lower Processing Fees
The main benefit of a cash discount program is that it results in lower or zero processing fees. While many don’t give a second thought to what the processing fees are on any given transaction, business owners certainly know that these fees do add up and can affect margin in a very real way. When merchants use Edge pricing they are, in effect passing on that processing fee to the customer. Over time, this can save merchants thousands and provide them with a higher margin on their sales.
Discounts for Customers
What customer doesn’t love a discount? Being able to provide every customer that pays in cash with a discount is not only a very marketable promotion, but it helps to make your customers happy. Customers love going to businesses that offer a cash discount because it allows them to feel as if they are getting a good deal and somewhat have control over what they pay at your establishment. When it comes to happy customers, it is very hard to put a price tag on that.
Increased Loyalty/Happiness
When your customers are continuously having positive experiences at your business and are getting to know your establishment as a place that offers a cash discount, that can only help you. This creates loyalty and happiness in your customer base and helps to establish brand and customer loyalty. This is a very valuable asset and it can help to offer consistent cash discounts to your customers.
Easy to Deploy
When you think of implementing a program like this, it can be easy to get overwhelmed and assume that you won’t be able to do it easily. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. In truth, it is growing increasingly easy to deploy a cash discount program and with all of the resources that we provide to our merchants, it is easier than ever.
What’s Included in Our Cash Discount Program?
With our cash discount program POS, you will be able to process a wide variety of payments from all major credit card providers. This offers your customers even more convenience and helps to build loyalty time and time again.
Free POS Equipment
Don’t worry about the cost of upgrading to a whole new system--we have you covered. We provide free POS equipment to our merchants to once again make working with the Edge program as easy as possible. When you work with us, there will be very little to be worried about.
Fast Funding
We are known for providing fast funding to our merchants. It’s hard to operate a business when your cash flow is being restricted, and that is why we put a focus on making payments accurate, concise, and fast to provide you with a business partner that you can trust to keep your financial interests at the forefront.
Flexible Contracts
Worried about getting locked into a long contract? Don’t be. We don’t believe in limiting the options of our merchants and that is why we offer flexible contract options that don’t lock you in for years at a time. With the Edge cash discount program, you’ll have options, which are extremely valuable to have when operating a business. You can pivot at a moment’s notice, should you need to.
Easy to Understand
From a customer and merchant perspective, operating on a new POS system can be complicated and difficult. That isn’t the case with Edge. We have structured this program to make it as easy as possible to understand and use so that any business can use this program to their advantage.
FAQ
Is it legal for merchants to offer cash discounts to their customers?
According to the FTC, it is illegal to inhibit the ability of customers to pay cash. Therefore, programs like cash discounts and surcharging are legal and encouraged.
Does a processing fee drive customers away?
Studies show that this isn’t an issue that consumers are worried about. Most consumers are happy to pay an additional small fee for the convenience of using their card.
What happens if I don’t like the merchant cash discount program?
We have flexible contract options so that you don’t have to be locked into a merchant cash discount program that you don’t like. We love providing flexibility to our merchants and agents. We’re confident that you’ll love our program, though.
What’s the difference between this and surcharging?
The act of providing a discount for those that pay with cash is different than charging an additional fee for credit card users. This is confirmed by many of the major credit card associations.
Why should I choose the merchant cash discount program?
We have been in business for years and have a reputation for providing the best merchant programs.
What resources do I need to ensure that I’m running this program correctly?
We provide our merchants with all of the resources that they need to implement and operate this program, including POS systems, back-end systems, and signage to notify their customers of the change.
As a merchant services agent, you know that one of the largest struggles is finding a way to organize your merchants, monitor their activity, and review your own performance. With a traditional merchant services company, this could fall to you to monitor. However, there is a better solution. The North American Bancard Sales Partner Portal is one of the most innovative partner portals in the industry and it has a robust set of features that allow you to do all of these things and more with ease. With this partner portal, you’ll be empowered to handle your merchant services business and gain full control over the metrics that drive your livelihood.
Feel at home with custom branding
One of the most interesting features of the partner portal is that you are able to brand the portal with your own logo and color to make it feel more personalized and specific to your brand. This feature allows your firm to gain all the reputation and legitimacy of a large corporation just for cooperating with North American Bancard.
Easy to use dashboard
If you have ever dealt with an unnecessarily complicated dashboard that is complicated to use and navigate, then you know the strain that it can put on your workflow. With this dashboard, you’ll never be held back from productivity. This dashboard is one of the easiest to use in the industry and provides you with an easy way to navigate and find the information that is important to your business.
Visualize your progress
When you are making progress and signing on new clients, it is always helpful to visualize your progress and see how far you have come from the beginning of your journey. If you are a visual person that values having these resources, then this portal is perfect for you. It contains visual aids to show you your progress and visualize the performance of your business.
Gain access to marketing materials
Within the portal, you’ll not only find payment information and performance metrics, but also the tools that you need to improve your performance as a representative. There are marketing materials located within the portal that will help you close more sales, connect with your clients, and save time throughout your day by giving you all of the information that you need in one central location. With the help of these marketing materials, you can quickly rise through the ranks to become a highly paid account representative.
Handle support tickets
When your merchants have issues or concerns, it can often be a hassle to try and communicate with them and organize their issues while also documenting them well. That is where the partners' dashboard comes in. The dashboard contains support capability to allow you to handle and facilitate product support inquiries from within the dashboard. There is also a knowledge base within the partner portal to help solve any minor issues and give your customers the care and attention that they deserve.
What to Know about Selling Merchant Processing Services
If you want to enter into the massive merchant services sales industry, then we would like you to stop right there. Before taking the plunge, there are a few things you should know. You need to have a clear idea of this industry and whether a credit card processing sales job is even your cup of tea or not.
We will help you know some simple yet important facts about selling credit card processing in this guide and will also provide you with useful tips to jumpstart your career as a merchant services agent. So with that said, let’s get started:
Why is it Important to Know?
Before we move towards knowing some important facts about the merchant services sales programs, the question that might come to your mind is, why bother knowing these things? Well, to be honest, there are a lot of factors involved when it comes to getting merchant services sales jobs, it’s not as easy as approaching the merchant, pitching the service and closing the deal.
Things can be both easy and difficult, which is why you need to set your expectations straight. So instead of jumping into a river without gauging its depth, it is better that you know how deep it runs. Therefore, we will tell you both the good and the bad of the merchant services sales industry.
These advantages and drawbacks will help you understand what to expect from it and whether it is the right field of work for you or not. So follow along and learn some of the most important things about selling credit card processing.
Benefits of Selling Merchant Services:
There are plenty of benefits in the merchant services careers, which is why many opt for this route. If you are persistent and work very hard, you will enjoy a high income and many benefits that come with it. Here are a few advantages of working in the credit card processing sales industry:
Excellent Earning Potential:
The basic need for everyone is the money, the sole motivating factor that makes you want to work for hours without looking at the clock. Well, the good thing is that this job is based on commissions. So you will be paid for the amount of work you put in and not like corporate jobs where you give 12 hours daily for a fixed pay.
However, if you ask an accomplished merchant services agent, he will tell you that the money doesn’t come easy and is certainly not handed to you on a silver platter. To make a killing in the industry, you need to work very hard, build a network, and be persistent.
There are also several bonuses offered by credit card processors for achieving X amount of sales that add to your overall earnings. So once your business takes off, you can then enjoy a vacation on the beaches of Bali while sipping your fresh piña colada.
Flexible Schedule:
The best thing about working in the merchant services sales industry is that you are your own boss. There is no one looking at you with a microscope waiting for you to make a mistake. You can work on your own terms and in your timings as long as you are getting sales because sales pay the bills in this game.
You can approach any business you want, wherever you want and whenever you want to make your pitch. There will be no one calling you and asking you why you haven’t reached the office yet; your dining table is your office.
Tons of Surprises:
If you are someone who cannot deal with a monotonous routine and the same kind of office-based work, then this is the job for you. You will start your day not knowing what’s in store for you because you get to meet lots of new people in this line of work.
Different merchants will need different tactics and pitches for the deal to close. So you will have to adapt to the situation, work any problems that may arise, and learn something new every day. If you are someone who loves this kind of work, then you will definitely have higher job satisfaction.
Drawbacks of Selling Merchant Accounts:
Remember, nothing, and I repeat nothing is always rainbows and sunshine. Not even rainbows and sunshine are always there on the sky. So you cannot expect the merchant services sales job to be a walk in the park. There will be some drawbacks, just like there are with all types of jobs. If you are someone who is ready to face challenges and come up with new ways to achieve their goals, then you might not be affected by these downsides very much. That being said, let’s see what they are:
Repeated Rejections:
Yes, this will happen. Every sales job comes with complimentary rejections, which an agent has to accept. Selling merchant services is no different. You will likely face two types of merchants when it comes to rejections. The first ones are those who already have a credit card processing provider, and they are satisfied with it.
The second ones will be those who just don’t want this facility or those who don’t have time to talk to you. You can persuade these people to an extent, and some might convert. I know getting rejected is tough, but you will have to take it like a man and move one to another merchant, there are plenty of them out there.
Soaring Competition:
Yes, there are thousands of merchant services agents out there just like you. But don’t let the high competitive environment bring you down. If you have the key ingredients of becoming a successful credit card processing service agent then nothing will stop you from getting ahead of the competition.
Plus, you have to be a bit creative in selecting the location to target, maybe a new mall, or a complex? You will have to figure things out as you go and not leave any stones unturned in getting ahead of the competition.
Things You Can Do To Have a Strong Start as Merchant Services Agent:
Now that you know the good and bad sides of the merchant services sales industry, it is time we give you a few pointers on kick-starting your career.
- Establish Goals: Being a sales agent means you need to manage yourself because there is no one at your back, making plans for you. You need to set targets like closing X amount of deals in Y number of days. And then work with all your strength and capabilities towards achieving the targets. Once you do, reward yourself with something you like.
- Strong Networking: Being a new agent means no one really knows you. So you need to get yourself out there and have more exposure. Visit potential merchants, have a chat with them, help them out with anything related to credit card processing for free, and slowly and gradually build trust. Once they know you are knowledgeable and helpful, they will either get your service or refer their fellow merchants to you.
- Understand What You Offer: Speaking of knowledge, you should first increase it to be able to help and educate merchants. Credit card processing is a vast sea, and you need to cover its every aspect. Learn about the services, equipment, and value you are offering so you can better communicate with the potential merchants and pitch them more effectively.
- Follow Up: No matter how the dealing with a potential merchant went, always follow up. After contacting a merchant for the first time, don’t let them forget who you are or what you offer. This doesn’t mean you start visiting their home, but rather, say Hi every now and then. If, after some time, you feel your efforts are going somewhere, keep pursuing otherwise move on to a different merchant.
- Offer Excellent Support: One of the main things that you will sell is support and not the service itself. When things are a bit technical, like credit card processing, people purchase the person selling them and not just the product/service. This means that they will buy trusting your word, and you will have to be there for them whenever you are required. This will not only retain your current merchants but also build your credibility in the industry.
Parting Words:
Many jump into the credit card processing sales industry hoping to build successful merchant services careers; however, only a handful of them manage to do so. Do you know why? Because the ones that fail expect a lot at the initial level. And the ones that win just keep their heads down until they can live with their heads high. There is a difference in IMPOSSIBLE and IMPOSSIBLE. You just need to be persistent, work hard, and have patience; you will make a successful career a possibility one day.
White-Label Payment Processor
Become a white label payment service provider today and take your business to the next level. If you are a sales-oriented individual with vast experience in the world of payment processing or you are a driven and motivated professional looking for a new challenge, the SMG white label program might be a great fit for you. With one of the most competitive commission structures in the industry, our white label program will see to it that you are rewarded for your efforts.
Put your brand on merchant statements and applications — build your brand with your sub-agents and merchants. Full white label program with your logo and branding on applications, statements, online enrollment, merchant and partner portals.
We at Shaw Merchant Group have an awesome solution which we call Registered DBA. Basically we register your DBA under our registration so there is no huge package of documents for you to fill out, no approval process by Visa and Mastercard and the sponsor banks, and best of all no initial registration fees or annual dues. Here are some details on the “Registered DBA” program:
- Roughly 4–5 weeks to fully set up once we get the signed license document back
- Executed addendum from you saying it’s OK for us to use your brand too.
- This program can run on our standard schedule A’s with bonus and free equipment and has no other obligations from you other than the standard agent agreement
- When we set up the DBA you will have access to EPX/BMO Harris for submitting merchants under your brand. If you use any other processor (Global/First Data) you will sell under their brand name.
What do we brand?
- Paper Applications
- Online Applications (Simplified Enrollment)
- Partner.PaymentsHub for your back office
- PaymentsHub for your merchants — It’s generic when your merchant logs in and then show your brand once inside
- Merchant Support Email — TMS (ticket management system) which emails you and your merchant each time we speak with your merchant and shows the proper brand in the notice and as the from address on the email.
- Merchant Support Phone — Our call centers answer with a generic “merchant services” then once they have the MID identified, they represent your brand.
- Deployment Packages — Generic boxes and welcome docs inside with proper brand
What we need:
- A letter authorizing EPX to register your DBA on your company letterhead.
- A high resolution image of your company logo.
- A certificate of good standing from the state you are registered in. It may not be called a certificate of 'good standing' in some states.
- The ISO Branding request form.
Selling Merchant Services Benefits
Have you ever gone out shopping in your community? Have you ever shopped online at the webstore of one of your favorite local businesses? If the answer is yes, then you’ve been on the other end of a credit card processing solution. You took your credit card or debit card, entered the checkout process, and completed your payment easily and quickly. Every business needs a reliable payments solution--it’s how they accept payments for the goods and services that they render. However, it sounds much simpler than it is. Finding a payments solution that meets the needs of their business can be challenging. You can help your local businesses solve this problem by starting a credit card processing business of your own--selling merchant accounts from home.
What does being a merchant account salesperson mean?
If you’re going to sell merchants services, you first want to know what exactly that means and what it is going to involve. Merchant accounts are services rendered to merchants that are essential to the business to operate such as payment processing and facilitation. As a merchant services representative, you will be the person in charge of identifying businesses that aren’t quite getting as much as they would like to out of their existing processing solution or new businesses that are looking for a reliable partner to start with. You would be speaking with these businesses, presenting them with options, and signing them to merchant services contracts.
While the literal definition is one thing, what you will be doing as a merchant services representative is expanded far beyond that. Yes, you would be selling merchant services to businesses, but the process of making that happen includes much more. As a merchant services sales professional, you will meet with businesses to have a long-form conversation whether in person or on the phone to determine what they need out of a payment processing provider and how you can meet those needs.
As a merchant services representative, you will be critical support staff to businesses all over that need reliable merchant services such as processing and POS systems. In many ways, you would be essential to one of the most important sectors in our economy--small businesses. If you are passionate about helping small businesses and coming up with creative solutions to solve the problems of business owners, then this could be a great career path for you.
Benefits of being a merchant account sales professional
There are many benefits to becoming a merchant services sales rep, and there are definitely reasons for why it is considered one of the most desirable positions to do from home. If you want to become a merchant sales representative, then you can expect to enjoy these benefits as a result.
Earn from home
Perhaps the greatest thing about being in merchant services sales is that you can earn an income from home. Many people dream about earning a living from home, but very few are able to achieve it. There are scams out there that promise this flexibility, but our program is a very legitimate opportunity to earn a full-time living from home or earn some side money as a representative. When you are able to work from home and earn an income, many opportunities for life improvement open up. All in all, working from home as a merchant services representative makes for a very desirable living.
Have flexibility in your schedule
If you value flexibility in your schedule and having more free time to enjoy with friends and family, then being a merchant services representative might be the right option for you. Because you will be earning an income on a commission basis, there is no supervisor to tell you when to work or for how long. This means that while you should be providing basic support and communication to your merchants, you can take a vacation as needed or switch around your hours as you see fit. It’s the ideal situation for anyone that wants to have maximum flexibility in their life and achieve the ideal work-home balance.
High earnings potential
The main reason that so many people find merchant services sales to be such a desirable industry is because the earnings potential is high. The amount of money that you earn in merchant services sales is entirely dependent on how you perform as a salesperson, so the sky's the limit when it comes to your earnings. In addition to regular commissions that you earn from sales, there are also frequent opportunities for performance-based bonuses that you can use to increase your income.
Help your local businesses
One of the main benefits of working as a merchant sales representative is that with the solutions that we have to offer, you’ll be able to help your local businesses. For anyone that is passionate about small and local businesses, this is a great career choice. When you work as a merchant services representative, you’ll be able to work closely with businesses in your area and around the country to find solutions to the problems that they face on an everyday basis. With the help and services that you are able to provide to your clients, you’ll help them function with more efficiency, increased profit, and better customer service. Enhancing your local economy and businesses is truly a passion worth exploring.
No sales experience required
While being a salesperson might be new and intimidating to you, you should know that becoming a merchant services sales rep requires no prior experience and can be done by anyone that has a passion for helping businesses find the solutions that they need. With our training modules and comprehensive suite of solutions, you’ll have everything you need to learn about this industry and thrive while on the job.
Are most merchant account salespeople successful?
If you are thinking of making the leap into merchant services sales, you might be wondering if most people enjoy success. While not everyone enjoys success in sales or is cut out for sales, those that work hard and are determined to help local businesses find the ideal payment solution for them have a higher chance of success than those that are just in it for the income. If you want to have success in merchant sales, you should be ready to make a strong effort and be persistent.
How to Become a Credit Card Processing Agent
If you’ve been considering becoming a merchant services agent for a credit card processing company, you probably already realize that it can be a very lucrative career path. Even better, it’s the kind of work that allows you to make your own decisions and get out of the stuffy office to meet people face to face. As a merchant service agent, you’re basically your own boss and you act as the middle man between the credit card company and the client.
Does this sound like something you could get into? If so, then you’re at the start of an exciting and profitable path. However, as with any other kind of work, there’s always a learning curve, especially if you want to be the kind of agent that clients seek out again and again. In other words, there are certain traits that successful merchant services representative have that help them rise above the rest (and make more money).
Have a Plan
The first thing that you can do for yourself in any endeavor is to have a plan. When you’re a sales agent, you’re basically running a business like any other, though this can require a period of adjustment for those who are transitioning from the lifestyle of an employee.
The fact that you have your own business is both a blessing and a responsibility. Yes, you have more freedom, but having a plan and carrying out every aspect of it becomes much more essential when you have no one else to turn to. Your credit card processor will certainly help you, but the direction that you want to take things is up to you.
What do you need to plan, specifically? Well, the most important thing you will need to decide ahead of time is how you will approach your market. Where will your revenue come from? Will you target people online? Will you do cold calling? Will you perform outreach to businesses in person?
Whatever the plan, choose one or just a few approaches to focus on. Don’t spread yourself too thin. Plan your focus and work your plan until you start getting some results (or not) and then pivot to another focus accordingly.
The point of the plan is to give you some sort of direction, so that you’re never lost in that no-man’s land of wondering what you should do next.
Leverage Your Social Network
Since finding a credit card processor can be an important step for a business owner, they often rely on referrals when they choose an agent to work with. Knowing this, make sure that you’re on everyone’s radar.
etwork and get to know people. Find people to spread the word about the services that you’re offering. You might even offer people pay for the referrals that they send you. It may sound a little weird at first, but it’s not that different from what you’re doing yourself relative to the credit card processing company. Either way, you probably won’t have trouble getting referrals from past clients for free if you’ve made them happy.
Just make yourself known in the community. Offer to help even when there’s no clear benefit for your upfront, and soon enough you will find merchants getting into contact with you. Trust is an extremely important element that cannot be underestimated, and you cultivate that through your connections and through offering people genuine value.
Pick the Right Partner
The decision of which ISO agent program to choose to work with is something that you should consider carefully. Not all credit card processors are created equal. Some might not offer very good customer service, or they might not have a good variety of plans and options, or they may simply not be willing to take on the type of clients that you want to serve.
You have to take many different factors into account. First and foremost, take a look at what the company has to offer your end users. Do they have free terminal plans? Are their fees exorbitant or fair? Play with the interface of the POS systems that they offer if you can. Are they easy to use? Do they use modern software and hardware that is lightweight and secure, or are they stuck in the last century? Try to find an ISO Program that offers equipment that is more or less future-proof, at least for the next few years. Look for a company that values change and is willing to adapt to the industry.
Get to know some merchants and merchant services agents who use the processor and get some feedback. Is the customer service good? Are they responsive and attentive? If you choose a partner that will be prone to abandon you, this can be a huge pain in the neck if something goes wrong, needless to say. Your merchants will be looking to you to keep their transaction systems running smoothly, and you need a partner who will be on your side.
Another thing to be clear on right away is whether or not they are willing to serve your future clients. The fact of the matter is that a lot of merchant services ISO’s will not work with businesses that they deem “high risk,” or businesses that tend to be subject to a lot of charge backs and fraud. Stolen credit cards and other issues are a sad reality of the economy, and in some industries these problems are more common, such as in ecommerce. A merchant services ISO may also refuse to work with a business that deals in “vice,” such as alcohol, tobacco, adult entertainment, and other similar kinds of markets. If you plan on working with clients in such industries, you need a partner who will support you.
If everything else checks out, you will have to go over your contract and fee schedule. Just as you don’t want the fees to be too high overall to avoid gouging your clients, you also want a fair cut of the fees for yourself. Make sure that your merchant services agent program will give you generous options for residuals and bonuses. At the same time, also keep your eyes peeled for any deals that seem way too good to be true. If you can fathom how the ISO is making money because it’s offering sales agents ridiculously good incentives, something is fishy. This is why it’s important to do your research thoroughly before signing up with a partner.
There are a few important things to watch out for in your contract, or else you may endanger your income. Make sure that there are no exclusivity clauses. If your merchant services ISO wants to force you into a exclusive relationship with them, find another one to work with. There is no reason that you should be able to work with more than one partner, and the freedom of being able to switch if one of them becomes irrelevant will make a huge difference for your business.
Something else to watch out for in the fine print are any quota requirements. If your partner requires you to open X amount of new accounts per month, or else you lose your residuals (even if your past clients are still with the company), then run far away. Find a partner company that allows you to rightfully own your residuals. This means that you keep them for the life of the account, regardless of any new accounts you open, and you should also be able to sell your residuals if you would rather have a lump sum.
Finally, find a company that will help train you on all of the equipment and software that they offer, and that will help you read all of the forms that you’ll be working with. You need to really know what you’re doing to be a success in this business—but we’ll talk more at length about that below:
Actually Know What You’re Doing
When it comes to any field—from credit card processing to underwater basket weaving—the number one thing that will make you successful is to serve your customers well. In fact, in a lot of ways, this is the only thing that really matters to your bottom line. Your clients have a problem, and you have to solve it well enough that they’re happy with what you gave them.
The only way that you can do that, though, is by knowing what you’re doing. Make sure to take advantage of all of the training materials that your credit card processor offers. Read the literature and even go to industry conferences and workshops if you can. You will learn huge amounts of information by listening to people who have already been playing the game for a long while.
When it comes to your income, it’s also important to know what you’re doing. Don’t just assume that your credit card processor is paying you what they owe. Learn to read your merchant statement and go through all of the details every month. If you’re confused, your ISO partner should help you. You can also recruit the help of more experienced sales agents.
Be Completely Honest
Trust is important in business. It’s what will keep people coming back. It is what will make people hesitate switching to your competitor. The only way to earn and keep people’s trust long term is to cultivate a reputation for honesty. This cannot be bought and you cannot use advertising tactics to get this. You can only earn it by being completely transparent and honest.
Don’t hide the bigger picture from your clients. Tell them exactly what is going on, exactly how much they are going to pay, and exactly what they can expect with the packages that you’re selling them. Teach them everything that they are willing to learn and show them as much as you can about the equipment and software that you’re giving them.
When a client feels that they can trust you, and they see that you went above and beyond what was expected, you have a loyal customer for life. Considering the potential value of long-term residuals in this business, the difference between being honest and trying to turn someone into a sucker for short term gains could be hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Being a merchant services agent can be a great way to earn a piece of the very large credit card processing pie. The industry will only be growing larger in the next few years, and more opportunity will present itself to those who are highly motivated. Having said that, this is a very competitive field, and you will greatly improve your odds of success by following the guidelines above.
The credit card processing industry is like any other business, and your focus should be first and foremost with the customer. Pick the right ISO agent program, use your social network, and make sure that you’re honest and that you know what you’re doing. After that, the rest should follow.
Pros and Cons of Selling Merchant Services
All around the world, there are thousands of businesses that use vital services that are referred to as merchant services. These are services such as payment processing, which is what allows businesses to accept and process payments so that they can make a profit on their product. Without these services, businesses would be unable to function in the modern world. You might think that the fact that these services are an absolute necessity to these businesses make them an easy target for selling, but that is now always the case. There are definitely some positives as well as some negatives when selling merchant services.
This guide will show you some of each and hopefully give you some insight as to whether a career selling merchant services is right for you.
Pros
Undoubtedly, there are some very positive aspects of selling merchant services for a living. If you have had a sales job that is similar in the past, you already have known some of these benefits. Here are some of the best things about selling merchant services.
There is always a market
One of the best things about working in the merchant services industry is that there is never a lack of demand for these services. There are always new businesses sprouting up as people chase their passion for owning their own business. And existing businesses are always evaluating their options and ensuring that they are getting the best deal on the market. For that reason, you won’t ever have to worry about the industry as a whole drying up. People will always need to spend digital money and businesses will always need to find a way to accept it.
Set your schedule
For many that are in a commission-based sales job, one of the greatest benefits of it is being able to get to the point where you are working when you want to work instead of punching a time clock when you get to work. When you are a partner in a merchant services ISO agent program, you will be able to set your appointments on a schedule that works well for you.
Build passive income
Finding and signing clients to lucrative merchant processing contracts is hard work, nobody denies that. However, all of the hard work that you put into this process could end up paying out tenfold throughout the years. One of the greatest things about being a merchant services salesperson is that your accounts can earn you passive and residual income long after you have closed them to a contract. This could help you build passive income for years to come and eventually phase out the bulk of the labor that is involved in this career.
High commission rates
When you compare merchant services to other industries out there, you will find that it has a very competitive and comparatively high commission rate compared to those other industries. The high price of the contracts and the fact that they continue to pay out for years to come is what makes these sales so valuable and why some of the best salespeople in the world turn to merchant services when they want to increase their earning potential.
Cons
Just as there are many pros to selling merchant services, there are also some aspects that could prove difficult. You should watch out for these aspects and consider whether they are something that you are able to overcome and overlook.
Highly competitive industry
There is always a lot of demand for merchant services, but this fact also means that there is a lot of competition. One of the hardest aspects of selling merchant services is that you will always have competition breathing down your neck, waiting to provide your client with a better rate. This is really where your ability to create and nurture relationships will come in handy with client retention. This industry is not for those that don’t like competition and healthy capitalist tendencies.
Dependent on success to make money
When you are a merchant services representative in any industry, you know that your ability to make money is heavily dependent on the success that you have when selling your product or service. It’s no different in selling merchant services. If you want to have a good income, then you will need to become skilled at selling these products. If you don’t feel confident that you can do that, then it might not be the right choice for you.
One of the first things you are going to need to consider when you start your journey in the credit card processing business is what merchant services ISO program you are going to work with. Whether you are planning to become a merchant services agent or an ISO yourself working under a larger company, it's important to examine all of your options. If you're not cautious, you might find yourself signing up for a bad deal or even getting scammed out of your residuals.
So which is the best program to sign up with? Well, the short answer is that there is no “best” program for everyone. Each ISO is different, and so is each sales agent. Everyone has different goals, and so it's important to find a company that will be a good fit.
However, a lot of agents are seeing success working with Shaw Merchant Group. They offer some great commissions and residuals, and are a great choice if you're a beginner in this field. SMG ISO agent program has a diverse amount of products and services that you can offer to many kinds of businesses, so you don't have to worry about turning away merchants just because they work in a certain industry or are considered “high risk.”
SMG ISO agent program is one of the best in the country and has relationships with many different processing banks, which allows them to be versatile with the kinds of businesses that they accept.
Is Your Merchant High-Risk? No Problem!
Competition is a great thing for customers in a free market, but it certainly reduces profit margins for providers. One way that credit card processors can stand to increase their profits is to expand their range of customers and get into the so-called “high-risk” arena. Indeed, working with overseas customers or customers who run businesses in tobacco, alcohol, or adult industries can be a bit riskier, but the revenue can also be substantially higher. Many times, merchants who are seeking a high-risk account have already been rejected when applying for normal merchant accounts, and they will be more than happy to work with you. Signing up with SMG, you don't have to turn away merchants in this extremely lucrative niche!
How Much Can I Make?
Shaw Merchant Group offers residuals and splits that are similar to what you might encounter if you approach a large ISO directly. The draw here, though, is that SMG allows you to work with many different processors, and greatly simplifies the processes of becoming a merchant services agent. You won't have to sign up with a dozen different merchant services ISO programs just to have a decent amount of options.
Here are some of the great advantages of using Shaw Merchant Group's program:
- Give your clients tons of options when it comes to payment methods
- Get up to $10K for every new account
- Get a large startup bonus
- Get residuals of up to 70%
- Keep track of your accounts with apps and analytics
- Get free training on the services you will be selling
Contact Shaw Merchant Group today and get started!
Merchant services is one of the most lucrative sales industries in the world, and many people are starting to realize the potential in becoming a payment processing company. However, if you are looking into getting into the industry, there are a few pieces of information that you will want to know beforehand like what reselling is all about, what are the benefits, and how you should go about choosing a merchant service provider partnership for your adventure in reselling. Shaw Merchant Group is one of the most reputable reseller programs in the industry and we’re going to show you all of the information that you will need to start on the right path when it comes to being a reseller of merchant services.
What is merchant services reselling?
The first step to getting into becoming a merchant service provider is understanding what exactly merchant services are and what a merchant services reseller program is. Merchant services are services that are rendered to merchants that are essential to doing business and accepting payments. There are unlimited businesses that need these services to function, but that also means that it is a competitive industry. However, success in this industry can mean a lifetime of residual and passive income, and that is why so many people choose to pursue become a merchant services provider, along with the other benefits that it affords.
Merchant services reselling is an activity in which a person or company serves as the intermediary between a business and the merchant services that they need. Reseller sells the services to merchants and sources them from a merchant services provider at a lower rate, securing profit for those that resell the merchant services.
What are the benefits of being a merchant services reseller?
Being a merchant services reseller is a difficult field to succeed in, but there are many reasons to pursue being one. This field comes with a lot of benefits that attract people to becoming a merchant service provider. Here are some of the benefits that you can enjoy when you choose to be a merchant services reseller.
No overhead
Being a merchant services reseller means that you won’t have any overhead as a businessperson. Since you are keeping nothing in stock and you won’t have to keep any equipment in-house to provide the merchant services that you offer, your risk is reduced and you are less vulnerable to business losses.
Help local businesses
One of the main benefits to being a merchant services reseller is that it is a rather fulfilling career. With the ability to provide businesses with reliable merchant services, you can feel fulfilled in your job and help your local community.
Earn a high income
People who are highly drawn to becoming a merchant service provider are often done so because of the potential and ability to earn a high income that is not limited by anything other than your success in merchant services and your ability to convince businesses to use you for their merchant services. Commissions are how you earn money with providing merchant services and the difference in price between what you're selling the services for and what you are buying them for. With that in mind, it is one of the most lucrative industries that you can be in.
What should you look for in a merchant services reseller program?
If you are going to be a successful merchant service provider, then you need to work with a reliable merchant services ISO partner. Having a good ISO program to support you will allow you to offer premium and superior service that meets the needs of your clients and ensures that they will come back for more as needed.
Payouts
You always want to work with a merchant services ISO program that provides timely and accurate payouts. Running a merchant services business isn’t profitable without receiving a reliable stream of payments, so make sure that the company that you partner with, such as Shaw Merchant Group, offers reliable and accurate payouts.
Business tools
If you want to have the best chance of success possible in selling merchant services, then you need to work with a partner that has the business tools to make it happen. These include marketing materials, literature, and other tools to help you bring in a reliable steam of clients. Shaw Merchant Group has one of the most comprehensive suite of business tools out there to provide you with the resources that you need.
Online reputation
You should always verify the reputation and trust that your ISO partner maintains if you want to have success as a merchant service provider. As a independent agent, you are only as good as the program that you work with. Working with a program that has a good reputation among merchants is essential to having success in your own business.
Our registered DBA program will save you thousands in fees
Put your brand on merchant statements and applications — build your brand with your sub-agents and merchants. Full white label program with your logo and branding on applications, statements, online enrollment, merchant and partner portals.
We at Shaw Merchant Group have an awesome solution which we call Registered DBA. Basically we register your DBA under our registration so there is no huge package of documents for you to fill out, no approval process by Visa and Mastercard and the sponsor banks, and best of all no initial registration fees or annual dues. Here are some details on the “Registered DBA” program:
- Roughly 4–5 weeks to fully set up once we get the signed license document back
- Executed addendum from you saying it’s OK for us to use your brand too.
- This program can run on our standard schedule A’s with bonus and free equipment and has no other obligations from you other than the standard agent agreement
- When we set up the DBA you will have access to EPX/BMO Harris for submitting merchants under your brand. If you use any other processor (Global/First Data) you will sell under the their brand name.
What do we brand?
- Paper Applications
- Online Applications (Simplified Enrollment)
- Partner.PaymentsHub for your back office
- PaymentsHub for your merchants — It’s generic when your merchant logs in and then show your brand once inside
- Merchant Support Email — TMS (ticket management system) which emails you and your merchant each time we speak with your merchant and shows the proper brand in the notice and as the from address on the email.
- Merchant Support Phone — Our call centers answer with a generic “merchant services” then once they have the MID identified, they represent your brand.
- Deployment Packages — Generic boxes and welcome docs inside with proper brand
What we need:
- A letter authorizing EPX to register your DBA on your company letterhead.
- A high resolution image of your company logo.
- A certificate of good standing from the state you are registered in. It may not be called a certificate of 'good standing' in some states.
- The ISO Branding request form.
Selling Your Merchant Account Residual Portfolio
If you’ve put in the leg work required to build a successful credit card processing business, then you are probably at a point where nothing feels impossible. However, to continue growing your business or jump to another venture to make even more money, you will need an injection of capital. Credit card processing client portfolios are great for building income over the long term, but don’t do much for those that want to get a fast injection of capital to build businesses. If you want to get a lump sum or a loan against your residual portfolio, you can do that. All you have to do is list your credit card processing business for sale and get a buyer or lender to borrow you money or give you money against your portfolio assets.
Though the concept is pretty straightforward, you should still learn as much as you possibly can about this process to ensure you do it safely and effectively and that you get what you deserve from your credit card processing business for sale. This guide will go over some of the most important concepts and points you will need to know if you hope to successfully sell your portfolio of residual income.
Preparation Is Key
If you hope to have success in selling your credit card processing business, then you need to be sure that you have your ducks in a row. This means doing the preparation work and familiarizing yourself with what is possible and what is not when it comes to your residuals portfolio. By going through this process, many credit card processing business owners discover things about their residuals portfolio that they previously didn’t know. This information is vital for anyone that wishes to succeed in selling thier credit card processing business. Follow these basic steps as a launching pad for the sale of your credit card processing business.
Verify Residuals Ownership
If you want to sell your residuals portfolio and credit card processing business, then the first thing that you will need to do is verify that you indeed own your residuals. Many merchant services agents and owners operate under the assumption that they do--until they see the fine print. Working with certain ISOs and other companies could prevent you from selling your residuals. So, instead of wasting your time pursuing something that might not even happen, make sure that you verify that you are authorized to own and control your residual portfolio.
Selling Your Residuals
When you are hoping to sell your credit card processing business, you will need to not only ensure that you own the residuals and portfolio you are looking to leverage into cash, but also that you have the right to sell that portfolio of residuals. This is done by simply looking at the contract that you are entered into. You will need to verify that you have the full right to control this portfolio and pass it on to someone else or use it as leverage in a cash transaction. With this knowledge in hand, you’ll be able to enter any arrangement with full knowledge of what you are able to do with your portfolio of residuals.
Ask About Borrowing
Selling is one thing, but borrowing against your portfolio is another. You will want to make sure that you are able to borrow against your portfolio, which is similar to leveraging what is in your portfolio for a cash infusion. Some processing companies allow this and others don’t--it is specific to who you are working with. In addition to borrowing against your assets with an external lendor, you might also explore the option of borrowing directly from the payment processor. Many companies have programs that will allow you to do this easily and affordably.
Things to Know When Selling Your Residuals
If you are hoping to list your credit card processing business for sale and leverage your residual portfolio into cash, then there are some things that you will need to know ahead of time to ensure a successful transaction. These concepts will teach you more about how to have success when selling your credit card processing business or leveraging your portfolio into the cash you need to pursue your business ventures.
Qualification
One thing that you will need to be aware of before you sell your residuals portfolio is whether you qualify for a sale of your residuals. For many partnerships, you will need to have a business that generates $1000 or more per month in residuals in order to be considered for a sale of your residual portfolio or a lending option that is centered around your residuals portfolio.
Buyout Ratio
If you have determined that you are going to sell your residuals portfolio and you are eligible for such a sale, then you will need to be familiar with the buyout ratio. Basically, the buyout ratio dictates how much you will receive from the sale as it relates to what your income is from the residuals portfolio. For many portfolios, this number lies between 12 and 24 times what the monthly income is from your residuals. This is what you should generally expect to receive when you sell your residuals portfolio.
Earn Out
Earn out is similar to a buyout, only that you will continue to earn your residuals and gradually be phased out. The payout is paid over a certain amount of time. This allows you to continue earning from your portfolio while also receiving a lump sum up front. This allows for the best of both worlds and makes it easier to make the transition.
Grow Your Business And Gain Capital By Listing Your Credit Card Processing Business For Sale
If you have a successful credit card processing business and have become a merchant service provider and you are looking to sell, then listing your credit card processing business for sale or entering into a lending agreement that uses your credit card processing business as leverage are two of the best ways. Now that you know more about these options, you have the power and knowledge necessary to make your cash infusion and business expansion dreams a reality.
How to be Sucessful at Selling Merchant Services
Wondering how to become a merchant services agent and just crush it in the sales game? Well, it is both easy and challenging. It’s easy for those who know what they need to do to become a successful sales agent and difficult for those who are clueless.
So to help you have a pretty good idea of things, we have come up with this guide. It will help you up your merchant services game with just a few practical approaches. So with that said, let’s start:
5 Core Elements to Work on to Become a Successful Merchant Services Agent:
1. Decide Your Approach:
One of the most important parts of not just the ISO agent program, but any business, is that you have the groundwork laid out. When you become a merchant services agent, you will have to make a complete business plan and decide your approach before stepping out into the field. There are various aspects that you need to consider, and some of the main ones are:
- What will be your target market? (Individual street-side stores or the ones in malls)
- What will be your target industry? (High-risk industries like CBD or low risk like parking garages)
- How will you make money? (Sell plans only or other things like terminals as well?)
- How will you approach a customer? (Your pitch – most important)
- How will you market your business? (Cold calling, internet marketing, word of mouth, anything else?)
Everyone wants to become a credit card processing agent because of the freedom this job grants; no more bosses micromanaging you! However, this also means that you are mostly on your own in the field. You need to come up with a strategy, decide your approach, take action, and keep refining the strategy based on results.
2. Spread the Word:
Sales business benefits a lot from social networking. The more contacts you have, the more clients you can expect from every direction. People in today’s world don’t blindly trust any business, which is why they ask their friends and family for referrals and usually end up trying out the referred business.
According to BigCommerce; 92% of people believe in suggestions coming from friends/family more than advertising. This shows how powerful referrals can be, which is why you need them! You will work on two types of referrals besides the general business contacts.
- Commission Based: These will be the people you will pay a percentage of your commission for bringing you leads. They can be your relatives, friends, family members or someone you go to the gym with. The gist is, you will tell them to look out for any merchant in need of credit card processing facility, refer them to you, you will educate them, close the deal and share some of your commission with the referrer.
- Merchant Based: These will be directly the merchants. You can visit different merchants in your vicinity, introduce yourself, ask them if they need any help with their credit card processor, and just help them without charging anything. You are actually selling without selling! When they see you are there for them when they need you, they will put trust in you, and sooner or later, either they will switch to your credit card processor or tell their ‘merchant-friends’ about you. Either way, it’s a win-win for you! Making yourself known in the community and increasing your exposure will reward you with sales and opportunities you wouldn’t have thought about.
3. Choose the Right Credit Card Processor:
Choosing the ISO agent partnership is the most careful thing to do. It can either make your merchant sales career or break it. Most of the ISO agent programs will promise to bring the moon for you if you bring sales, but not everyone will really live up to their promises. So to help you find the right program, we have outlined some tips below:
- See if they are offering their customers free add-ons like POS terminal, and signage. These things make it easy for you to sell.
- Do they have fair pricing? The processing fee and their monthly service fee should not be too high that discourage the merchants from taking the plan.
- Do they offer a cash discount program? Here, the merchants can offset any processing fee directly to their customers and not pay anything.
- Are they using the latest equipment and software? How smooth is their POS interface?
- How good is their customer support for both merchants and agents? You want a processor that won’t leave you hanging when you need help.
- Will they work in high-risk industries like CBD, Pharmacy, and Tobacco, etc.? You might not work in these industries now, but when your business grows, you will have to.
Check your contract with them, check your fee schedule, and see how much you will be paid in commission; it should be fair. Also, they should have various bonuses available for achieving good sales.
• You should not be bound to make X number of sales to continue receiving residual income from your previous client; they should be yours no matter what your sales numbers are.
• You should not be bound to only work with them until the contract ends, working with other processors simultaneously should be an option.
You also want to ensure that the ISO agent program you are working with offers amply training resources so you can better equip yourself with knowledge about the product.
Tip: Try exploring our ISO agent program; we fit this criteria and have been in the game for several years. You might find your a perfect match without having to comb through the market.
4. Be a Sponge and Absorb Knowledge:
Be it merchant services sales or any other business; knowledge is power, which is why you need to be the sponge. Absorb as much knowledge as you can about your business, the market, the customers, and, more importantly, the product.
Start by devouring the educational and training material provided by your ISO agent provider. Side note; Shaw Mrchant Group offers a wealth of resources for gaining knowledge and proper sales training.
Once you are done by company training material, take courses on platforms like Lynda, Udemy and Coursera, etc. Not only you need to learn about your market, product, and target audience, but you also need to know about the tactics of selling effectively.
5. Honesty is the Best Policy:
They say honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom, and I say you need to read this whole book. To become a merchant services agent who gets results and is loved by his customers, you need both honesty and wisdom.
You need to have wisdom allowing you to help your potential clients without asking anything in return as they will bring you good business once they trust you. You need to be an absolute truthful person so that merchants can rely on you for their credit card processing needs.
Once they do, they won’t go anywhere, and you’ll be getting continuous residual income. So being wise and honest will only add wings to your business, keep practicing both.
Practical Tips for Selling the Merchant Accounts:
- Learn to Identify Prospects: Rule 101 in a sales agent’s notebook; drop the bad prospects, and focus on good ones. Let’s say you visit 10 prospects, 8 of them are not interested in talking to you, and some may even talk harshly, drop them. Focus on the remaining two who discussed their business with you or at least showed some respect.
- Talk Less Listen More: You need to use your ears more than your tongue. Listen to the pain points of your potential clients, and only talk when you have a solution or a question. Let them feel that they can rant in front of you, and you will listen and solve their issues. Just let them talk themselves into sales!
- Don’t Be Pushy: Do not make your prospects feel like they are being pushed or pressured into making a purchase from you; you might soon get banned from their store. Instead, just have patience, and keep visiting them from time to time. Don’t let them forget you, and once an opportunity comes up, you will be the first one in their minds.
- Be Creative: You cannot sell by selling, this is not the 70’s, and everyone knows the old tactics of selling, so you need to be creative. Let me give you an example of creativity; there was this merchant that had a POS which didn’t support the processing program that the agent was selling. The agent gave him a free POS terminal as his company; (SMG allows it), sold the old one on eBay, and gave full money back to the merchant. You can imagine if the merchant converted or not!
Over to You:
To become a credit card processing agent, you will have to do a lot than just wearing a shoulder bag and using gel in your hair. You need to have a plan, a network of referrals, the right type of processor, a wealth of knowledge, and an honest approach. Only with these core elements, you can make it to the top.
Looking to Become a Credit Card Processing Agent? Here are the Guidelines:
Are you excited to become a credit card processing agent? Do you want to start a credit card processing company? If your answer is YES, then you have come to the right place.
In this article, I am going to teach you ways to start a successful credit card processing company. I am also going to take you through the fine details of planning, setting up, and starting a credit card processing company.
You are going to learn about what it takes to become a successful credit card processing agent, how to conduct market and niche research, how to create a great business plan, how to get funding for your venture, and also tips to run a successful credit card processing company.
It is important to note that when you become a merchant service provider you will be helping corporate and businesses to process payment for their customers.
Your credit card processing services will involve offering the platform and equipment to facilitate the sending, approval, and processing of payments and transactions between customer’s bank accounts and your clients' bank accounts.
What It Takes To Become a Credit Card Processing Agent:
The credit card processing industry is very dynamic, and the success of becoming a merchant services agent is both easy and hard.
There are a few things that you need to know; some of these include having a clear understanding of how selling credit card processing works. You will also need to have deep knowledge of how credit cards work and what they do.
Another overly important thing that you will need to understand is your market and, most importantly, your niche market. This way, you will be able to connect with your customers on a personal level. In addition, you will also be able to create a solid relationship with banks for financial transactions and payment processing.
Market Feasibility and Niche Research
It is critical to note that any successful venture always starts with thorough research. When you want to become a credit card processing agent, you will need to do thorough market research.
Understand the type of services or products you will be offering and where your clients are and their needs.
Make sure that you look at the services offered by your competitors, their rates, and also how satisfied their customers are with the services they get.
The few steps you can take to become a merchant services reseller are to first create a survey on several businesses in your area, determine the most common services they use, and evaluate the satisfaction level of customers with their current payment providers.
Another important step that you need to take is to gather client information, such as phone numbers or email addresses. These details will help you when you start sending out pitches.
Crafting a Comprehensive Business Plan
For you to become a credit card processing agent and be successful in it, you will need to come up with a detailed business plan.
It is okay if you are not a seasoned writer, but you can hire one to do the work for you. Better still, there are several business plan templates available online that you can use.
There are several details that need to be included in your business plan; some of these details include:
- How you intend to run your venture
- The executive summary about your business
- How you intend to raise startup capital
- Products and services you will be offering
- Marketing and sales analysis
- SWOT analysis
- And more
Ideally, the business plan for a credit card processing company can serve as proof to investors and stakeholders that you are serious about with your venture as the document shows all the strategies.
A great business plan can help you win funding from various investors and banks.
How to Finance Your Credit Card Processing Business
Most business requires a startup capital; the same case applies to credit card processing companies.
To become a credit card processing agent, you need to consider where you are going to get funding to start your venture. You will also need to cater for all the operational costs until you start realizing some profits.
According to research, on average, a minimum of $51,000 is needed to start a credit card processing company.
There are options that you can use to get financing for your credit card processing company, some of these options include;
- Getting a loan from banks
- Approaching investors
- Getting funding from business partners
- Using your savings or selling assets to raise funds
- Sourcing some funds from friends and family members.
Launching Your Merchant Services Reseller Company
Once all the above are set up, you can go ahead and launch your credit card processing company. There are other finer details that you will need to consider before you do this. These include finding the appropriate location for your business, understanding the requirements which you must have beforehand, and understanding the manpower needed to run the business.
To become a merchant services reseller, you should fully implement your business plan. The best way is to strictly follow the plan without cutting corners.
Tip: Due to the competitive nature of the credit card processing business, it is critical to ensure that your business stands out.
Put more efforts to stand out among your competitions. The best way to do this is to have a business network. You can reach out to organizations and corporations to widen your reach and customer base.
Marketing Plan for Your Credit Card Processing Company
- Just like any other business, a marketing plan is a must. You can do all the above work, but if you don’t come up with an effective marketing plan, you might fail.
- Take your marketing strategies seriously. The following are some effective marketing ideas that you can use.
- Use social media platforms to spread the word about your business
- Reach out to stakeholders, clients, and managers of big corporations
- Make sure that your business is listed in local directories
- Use TVs, magazines, newspapers, and radio to advertise your business
- Start bidding for available contracts
To further increase your reach to potential clients, you can create business cards, flyers, pamphlets, or business website.
Tips To Help You Run a Successful Credit Card Processing Business
In order to succeed in starting a credit card processing business, understand that you will not only be providing requirements and services to help process payment for customers BUT also, you will be selling yourself. As a credit card processor, you will need to clearly show potential clients why they need your services. Show them the benefits they will get from your services. Never seize to reach out to potential customers. In addition, ensure that you do a follow up on those pitches. To simplify the process of becoming a credit card processing agent, North American Bancard provides all the tools you need for a successful credit card processing business.
Best Merchant Services Partnership
If you want to be successful as a merchant services agent or ISO, then you need to have access to a high-quality ISO agent program. ISO agent programs are a concentration of a variety of merchant services that you can offer to your merchants in exchange for a commission from the partner program. Having a good partner program for selling merchant services is essential to having success and being able to attract a high number of merchants to your services. With our insight into merchant services partner programs, you’ll know essential facts about working with partner programs and what you need to do to find one that puts you in the best position for success.
What should you look for in a merchant services partner program?
If you’re looking to be a merchant services agent, then one of the most important steps in the process is finding the right merchant services partner to work with. The merchant services partner program that you work with will have a large part in determining your level of success in the merchant services industry. If you want to get the most out of your merchant services agent experience, then these are the factors that you should be looking for when evaluating potential partner programs to work with. With these things in mind, you’ll find a partner that suits your needs and puts you in the best position to succeed.
Payout dependability
If you don’t get paid accurately and on-time, then you can’t hope to have a healthy business model. Part of the relationship between you and your merchant services partner program that you choose is getting reliable and accurate payouts from your merchant services provider. Without this, you can have cash flow and margin issues. So, when you start to look at potential partners for your merchant services endeavors, you should take into account the reputation that your merchant services provider has when it comes to payout dependability. Ideally, you want to work with a partner program that will pay you fairly, accurately, and on-time.
Support staff
When you are considering what merchant services partner program to choose for your business, you should take more than financials into account. One of the most important things that you should look at is what kind of support your merchant services partner program has to offer. With merchant services being a highly technical field of expertise, your merchants will often need support and help using their solution. When that happens, you want to be sure that your ISO agent program has the support staff in place to help your merchant and make them happy. Without proper support, you might find your merchants being left dissatisfied with both the solution and you. This is a great way to lose clients and business.
Product suite
The merchant services solution that your merchants will select will be largely impacted by what products you have to offer, and that is why the product suite and selection that your ISO partner program has available should play a large part in your decision of which partner to work with. You can’t offer services that you don’t have access to, and that is why you should aim to have access to as many as possible. Do this by exploring the products that your merchant services partner program has available and ensuring they align with your needs and that you will be able offer your merchants the products and services that you wish.
Reputation
One of the best ways to tell if you should be working with any particular merchant services agent program is to find out what kind of a reputation they have with both merchants and agents. Whether a program is good or bad, there are bound to be individuals and businesses that have had experiences with them in business. If you can find those experiences, you can have the knowledge available to you to let you know whether you should be working with that merchant services partner program in the long-term.
Industry specialization
When choosing a merchant services agent program, one of the most important considerations is whether they have a specialty or specialize in any certain industry. If you are in a very specific industry, you’ll want to make sure that your merchant services partner program specializes in your area of business or at the very least, offers services that fit your needs. For general merchant services agents, you’ll want to seek out a partner program that has a wide range of solutions to fit any need.
Benefits of Merchant Services Sales Jobs
When it comes to merchant services sales jobs, there is a lot to love. This is the reason that it is such a popular industry. Merchant services has long been one of the most lucrative and enjoyable fields, but that doesn’t mean it has its drawbacks. For most people, the risk is well worth it to enjoy the benefits that often come along with working in merchant services sales jobs. Here are some of the many benefits that you can enjoy when you choose a career in merchant services sales and use our free tools to find your next merchant services sales job.
Income
One of the greatest benefits of being in merchant services sales is that the income potential is basically unlimited. If you want the benefit of working in a field where your only income limiting factor is how hard you are willing to work, then this is the field for you. In merchant services sales, you are generally paid out on a commission basis. This means that for every sale you make, there is money involved for you. If you are looking for a field where your income can reach sky-high limits, then merchant services sales could be the ideal landing place for you.
Flexibility
Another amazing benefit of working in merchant services sales is the flexibility that this career often allows those that are in it. When you work in merchant services sales, you generally work for your own company or as a contract employee. This means that you are generally able to set your own schedule and enjoy the benefits of a great career while also getting a work-home balance that you’ve always wanted. It is the ideal solution or anyone that values flexibility highly in their work-home life.
Work Life
When you work in merchant services sales, you work for yourself. This means that not only do you have a lot of schedule flexibility, but also that your work life is more pleasant and geared towards how you actually want to spend your day. Instead of being beholden to a supervisor, set schedule, and set of rules that you don’t want to follow, you will be free to run your merchant services business as you please to provide you with a much more pleasant work life.
Rewarding
For some people, it is very important that they feel happy and fulfilled in their career with merchant services sales. In the case of this career field, it is pretty easy to achieve that sense of fulfillment. As a merchant services representative, it will be your job to work with small and medium-sized business wonders to find the solutions to the problems that are holding them back when it comes to payment processing. Through your work, you will be able to help small businesses operate more efficiently and improve their business. This bolsters the economy and helps the backbone of the economy all while providing you with a lucrative and rewarding career.
Finding Merchant Services Sales Jobs
To enjoy all the benefits of merchant services sales jobs, you first need to know exactly what to look for when partnering with a merchant services company to offer their services to your clients. This brief list of the main factors in finding a merchant services sales job with a company that will help you to succeed will give you some of the most important factors to look for in a merchant services company.
Area
Though many merchant services sales reps can work remotely from just about any location, it is still important to consider where your merchant services company is located. Much of this will depend on whether any in-office work is required and what travel is required. If you can work completely remote with the company that you have chosen, then this is not much of a concern at all. You can easily find which area your company has offices in simply by asking.
Reputation
These days, it is easier than ever to learn more about a company and the reputation that they have in the industry. Simply do some online research to determine what others have to say about the company and whether they consider the company to be a good partner to their agents.
Customer Support
One of the most important aspects in getting and keeping merchant services clients is the ability to provide them with high-quality and responsive customer support. Typically, this is the responsibility of the company that you have partnered with to offer the merchant services. Therefore, one of the first priorities that you should have when assessing merchant services companies to work for is their reputation and quality of the customer support.
Payout & Commission
Another factor that you should evaluate when choosing the next merchant services sales job for you is the payout and commission. It is important to select a merchant services sales job that has a high commission structure and is well-known for paying accurately and on-time. It’s important to make sure that they have a trusted payout structure in place so you can ensure you are paid for your efforts.
Our Merchant Services Sales Jobs
If you’re looking for the best merchant services sales jobs that fit this criteria, then you are in the right place. We provide merchant services sales jobs lists and other resources that help you to find an amazing career.
Best Merchant Services Company to Work For
It is easy to become a credit card processor; just file some papers, set up a shop, and start charging high fees from the merchants. And if you are unlucky, you might start working for such companies as an agent and not earn to your full potential. So if you want to find the best merchant processing companies with extremely lucrative offers for both the merchant and agent, then this guide is your best resource.
We will discuss why you need to be careful when choosing the service provider. Plus, we will also provide you details about the best credit card processing company to work with so you can start a merchant services business and see your profits soar. That being said, let’s get started:
Why Do You Need to Be Choosy About the Merchant Processing Company?
There are several issues that you can face with a credit card processor that can shut your business before it even starts. Here are a few problems agents face with many merchant credit card processors:
- Payment Delays: One of the leading problems that many agents who start a merchant services business face is that their credit card processing company holds payments for too long. Whether for security reasons or for lack of funds, the companies usually pay very late.
- Lack of Support: Many don’t have good agent support. If you need to inquire about something on an urgent basis, you will either have to wait, or you might not get connected even after several attempts.
- No System in Place: For many credit card processors, there is no robust system like a dashboard providing agents with insights to their progress, available funds, and active merchants. This puts a lid on the agent’s ability to improve by monitoring progress.
- Low Profitability: By selling merchant services, agents get commissions and bonuses; however, some merchant processors simply don’t pay very well. Agents get very low payments for the amount of work they put into bringing sales.
- No Attractions: In order to sell, you need to show some attractions to the merchants like upgraded processing software, low fees, and some starting out gifts, and so on. There are many merchant processors who don’t offer much, which can make it difficult for the agent to pitch the program to the merchants.
Now that you know what makes many credit card processing companies a bad choice, you need to become a credit card processor company’s agent that offers great benefits to both their agents and the merchants. One such company is Shaw Merchant Group.
So What’s Shaw Merchant Group?
Unlike most of the credit card processing companies that offer ‘discounts’ on the credit card fees, Shaw Merchant Group diminishes the concept of fee altogether. That’s right; they help merchants avoid fees! Their mantra is simple but highly effective; they transfer all the fees to the customers that use a credit card facility.
For instance, if someone makes a transaction of $100, and the fee is 2.9%, then instead of the merchant paying $2.9, the customer’s card will be charged for that fee. Now there will already be signage explaining this policy, so the customers already expect to be charged.
It is fair to beneficial to the merchant and fair to the customer because the merchant can now enjoy higher profits while the customer pays a small fee for using the credit card option when they could use cash payment.
Why is Shaw Merchant Group the Best Credit Card Processing Company to Work For?
If you are looking for the best credit card processing company to work with, then you cannot go wrong with Shaw Merchant Group. They have been one of the trailblazers in the industry for over a decade and are backed by well-reputed banks.
So let’s see what they have to offer to their merchants:
- Diverse Product Range: They offer a wide range of products fit for every kind of merchant. This means you will not have to turn down a potential sale just because you didn’t have the technology they were looking for. From EMV enabled terminals to POS systems and mobile card readers, they offer a range of products for all kinds of industries.
- Relations With Several Banks: One of the best parts of working with our ISO agent program is that they work with several banks such as Bancorp Bank, Pennsylvania, BMO Harris N.A, Illinois, and Wells Fargo Bank, California, etc. This allows them to work with all kinds of businesses, so you have a huge potential customer base to target.
- High-Risk Businesses: If your potential customer/merchant is in a high-risk industry like tobacco, they might’ve been rejected by other processors. However, NAB works with such businesses, so you have a whole new niche to target.
- Extremely Lucrative: Shaw Merchant Group offers a unique credit card processing solution where merchants offset the fee on to the customers, as we discussed above. So even if your potential merchant is already using a processing company, you can pitch them the one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to save 100% on their credit card processing fee; everybody likes higher profits!
- FREE Equipment: This is another benefit that SMG gives to the vendors, making it easier for you to pitch to all kinds of merchants. Upon signing up with SMG, the merchant can get a free credit card terminals equipped with advanced software that is already programmed to adjust transaction fee in the customer’s bill. Plus, they also offer free signage to educate the customers.
- Excellent Profitability and Bonuses: As a merchant services agent, you will get a lot more than 50–70% in residual income. First, you will get a signup bonus that can go up to $20k based on your initial performance. Plus, you get a bonus on the profits generated in the starting months. Your earnings will be multiplied by 14 and can go up to $10K.
Miscellaneous Benefits:
- A straightforward dashboard to see everything from your profits to the number of active merchants and their stats
- Receive free merchant services sales training for the services you sell
- Free ready-made lead generation website to help you attract more merchants
- Several affordable medical benefits
- Multiple payment processing platforms including First Data, Global Payments, and the new EPX
- Up to $1 million funding for merchants
Parting Words:
Now that you know why Shaw Merchant Group is the best credit card processing company to work with, we suggest that you take a step towards selling merchant accounts and successfully start a merchant services business with SMG supporting you.
Merchant Services Sales Training
Do you want to become a merchant services agent, and you are wondering where to start? You might be convinced that this is what you want to do. It is true that payment processing is a highly lucrative industry, and this makes it attractive. Becoming a successful merchant services agent is not easy because you will need some training to learn how to do this successfully.
The earning potential of a merchant services agent is incredibly high, but to get there, you will need to take steady steps towards attaining success. One of the steps is to seek merchant services sales training. Merchant services have some key pillars that you need to be aware of in order to be successful.
The following are the crucial credit card processing sales training structure that will increase your chances of becoming successful in the merchant services industry.
Learn Quality Partnership
This is one of the most critical concepts that you need to be familiar with while pursuing merchant services sales training. As a merchant services agent, you will need to partner with a merchant services provider. Your partnership needs to be solid in order to facilitate success. We can say that the merchant services provider will be the epicenter of your business.
The provider you partner with should be able to offer reliable payment processing services to your merchants without failing. They should also be able to offer the additional perks and tools that you need in the merchant services business.
Some key things that you are going to learn in the quality partnership training are the ability for the merchant services provider to offer good payment structure, offer prompt payments, good communication & support, the handsome share of profit, regular bonuses and modern and technological tools to help you succeed in your business.
A good merchant services provider you chose should be able to provide all these. You will be closer to your success and business goals if you are careful in selecting a quality ISO partnership. A good merchant provider will help you enjoy great profits as well as passive income from your merchant services business.
Pricing Structure
Another key thing to learn in merchant services training is the pricing structure. In addition to being able to make sales and getting new leads now and then, you will want to be sure of the right way to price your products and services. To have meaningful success in the merchant services business, you need to take your time and optimize your pricing.
A good pricing structure will enable you to have the appropriate profit margin. This will help you to keep on running a sustainable merchant services business. With the right pricing structure, you will be able to raise your income as you grow.
Learning about the pricing structure will help you to do things such as offering discounts, upselling, and many more. For now, the pricing structure may not seem to make a notable difference in your business, but as you start to accumulate hundreds and thousands of transactions, you will note the impact. It is, therefore, critical to fully understand the pricing structure in the merchant services sales business.
In Merchant Services, More Options Are the Best
In training to become a merchant services agent, you need to understand that a good merchant services provider should offer as many options as possible. There should not be limits to the payment processing options your merchant services provider is offering.
This is because if sometimes your customers happen to require something, you should be able to get it from your merchant services provider. On the other hand, if there are limits to options they can provide, then you might end up disappointing your customers.
As a good merchant services agent, you should lookout for a provider who allows access to a wide range of options, such as in payment processing. They should offer credit cards, debit cards, cash, ACH, and more payment processing options. If your provider gives you these options, you can offer them to your customers, and this makes them happy.
Several options mean that you will have the flexibility, and you will be able to offer solutions to your customers without running out of options. This is a win-win situation.
Customer Service
This is an important lesson to learn in merchant services sales training. The customer is the most important player in your merchant services business, and therefore they should be your highest priority all the time. As a payment processing agent, you should strive to keep your customers happy, and if you fail to do so, you will have a very hard time. It might even become very difficult to succeed in your business.
You should, therefore, brace yourself for customer service lessons in payment processing sales training. Customer services training will help you master the techniques that successful salespeople use in order to close more sales. They are always keen on the customer's needs and devise ways to fulfill these needs.
You should be able to attend to your customer’s queries in the shortest time possible. It is also critical to realize that when it comes to customer services, your merchant services provider will also play a key role. This gets us back to the previous point of choosing the right partner. If something happens that is beyond your control, you should be able to reach out to your provider for an effective and speedy solution.
Free Terminal for Your Merchants
For success in the merchant services business, the secret is to have a free terminal included. Merchant love bonuses in their payment processing packages. Note that you will be offering a POS which is designed to increase efficiency in payment processing. The terminal you provide should offer exceptional user experience for the satisfaction of your merchants.
For a strong bond between you and your merchants, you should be providing incentives. This will make them feel that they have the right agent by their side. For increased conversion rates, it is highly recommended that you offer a free POS terminal to your merchants.
You want to be a successful merchant services agent, right? The above learning concepts are the key to success in the payment processing business. Therefore you should ensure that you fully understand these in merchant services sales training.
Selling Payment Processing Services
If you want to enter into the massive merchant services sales industry, then we would like you to stop right there. Before taking the plunge, there are a few things you should know. You need to have a clear idea of this industry and whether a credit card processing sales job is even your cup of tea or not.
We will help you know some simple yet important facts about selling credit card processing in this guide and will also provide you with useful tips to jumpstart your career as a merchant services agent. So with that said, let’s get started:
Why is it Important to Know?
Before we move towards knowing some important facts about the merchant services ISO agent programs, the question that might come to your mind is, why bother knowing these things? Well, to be honest, there are a lot of factors involved when it comes to getting merchant services sales jobs, it’s not as easy as approaching the merchant, pitching the service and closing the deal.
Things can be both easy and difficult, which is why you need to set your expectations straight. So instead of jumping into a river without gauging its depth, it is better that you know how deep it runs. Therefore, we will tell you both the good and the bad of the merchant services sales industry.
These advantages and drawbacks will help you understand what to expect from it and whether it is the right field of work for you or not. So follow along and learn some of the most important things about selling credit card processing.
Benefits of Selling Merchant Services:
There are plenty of benefits in the merchant services careers, which is why many opt for this route. If you are persistent and work very hard, you will enjoy a high income and many benefits that come with it. Here are a few advantages of working in the credit card processing sales industry:
Excellent Earning Potential:
The basic need for everyone is the money, the sole motivating factor that makes you want to work for hours without looking at the clock. Well, the good thing is that this job is based on commissions. So you will be paid for the amount of work you put in and not like corporate jobs where you give 12 hours daily for a fixed pay.
However, if you ask an accomplished merchant services agent, he will tell you that the money doesn’t come easy and is certainly not handed to you on a silver platter. To make a killing in the industry, you need to work very hard, build a network, and be persistent.
There are also several bonuses offered by credit card processors for achieving X amount of sales that add to your overall earnings. So once your business takes off, you can then enjoy a vacation on the beaches of Bali while sipping your fresh piña colada.
Flexible Schedule:
The best thing about working in the merchant services sales industry is that you are your own boss. There is no one looking at you with a microscope waiting for you to make a mistake. You can work on your own terms and in your timings as long as you are getting sales because sales pay the bills in this game.
You can approach any business you want, wherever you want and whenever you want to make your pitch. There will be no one calling you and asking you why you haven’t reached the office yet; your dining table is your office.
Tons of Surprises:
If you are someone who cannot deal with a monotonous routine and the same kind of office-based work, then this is the job for you. You will start your day not knowing what’s in store for you because you get to meet lots of new people in this line of work.
Different merchants will need different tactics and pitches for the deal to close. So you will have to adapt to the situation, work any problems that may arise, and learn something new every day. If you are someone who loves this kind of work, then you will definitely have higher job satisfaction.
Drawbacks of Selling Merchant Accounts:
Remember, nothing, and I repeat nothing is always rainbows and sunshine. Not even rainbows and sunshine are always there on the sky. So you cannot expect the merchant services sales job to be a walk in the park. There will be some drawbacks, just like there are with all types of jobs. If you are someone who is ready to face challenges and come up with new ways to achieve their goals, then you might not be affected by these downsides very much. That being said, let’s see what they are:
Repeated Rejections:
Yes, this will happen. Every sales job comes with complimentary rejections, which an agent has to accept. Selling merchant services is no different. You will likely face two types of merchants when it comes to rejections. The first ones are those who already have a credit card processing provider, and they are satisfied with it.
The second ones will be those who just don’t want this facility or those who don’t have time to talk to you. You can persuade these people to an extent, and some might convert. I know getting rejected is tough, but you will have to take it like a man and move one to another merchant, there are plenty of them out there.
Soaring Competition:
Yes, there are thousands of merchant services agents out there just like you. But don’t let the high competitive environment bring you down. If you have the key ingredients of becoming a successful credit card processing service agent then nothing will stop you from getting ahead of the competition.
Plus, you have to be a bit creative in selecting the location to target, maybe a new mall, or a complex? You will have to figure things out as you go and not leave any stones unturned in getting ahead of the competition.
Things You Can Do To Have a Strong Start as Merchant Services Agent:
Now that you know the good and bad sides of the merchant services sales industry, it is time we give you a few pointers on kick-starting your career.
- Establish Goals: Being a sales agent means you need to manage yourself because there is no one at your back, making plans for you. You need to set targets like closing X amount of deals in Y number of days. And then work with all your strength and capabilities towards achieving the targets. Once you do, reward yourself with something you like.
- Strong Networking: Being a new agent means no one really knows you. So you need to get yourself out there and have more exposure. Visit potential merchants, have a chat with them, help them out with anything related to credit card processing for free, and slowly and gradually build trust. Once they know you are knowledgeable and helpful, they will either get your service or refer their fellow merchants to you.
- Understand What You Offer: Speaking of knowledge, you should first increase it to be able to help and educate merchants. Credit card processing is a vast sea, and you need to cover its every aspect. Learn about the services, equipment, and value you are offering so you can better communicate with the potential merchants and pitch them more effectively.
- Follow Up: No matter how the dealing with a potential merchant went, always follow up. After contacting a merchant for the first time, don’t let them forget who you are or what you offer. This doesn’t mean you start visiting their home, but rather, say Hi every now and then. If, after some time, you feel your efforts are going somewhere, keep pursuing otherwise move on to a different merchant.
- Offer Excellent Support: One of the main things that you will sell is support and not the service itself. When things are a bit technical, like credit card processing, people purchase the person selling them and not just the product/service. This means that they will buy trusting your word, and you will have to be there for them whenever you are required. This will not only retain your current merchants but also build your credibility in the industry.
Parting Words:
Many jump into the credit card processing sales industry hoping to build successful merchant services careers; however, only a handful of them manage to do so. Do you know why? Because the ones that fail expect a lot at the initial level. And the ones that win just keep their heads down until they can live with their heads high. There is a difference in IMPOSSIBLE and IMPOSSIBLE. You just need to be persistent, work hard, and have patience; you will make a successful career a possibility one day.