How can you grow your portfolio? This is a question that is not as simple as it was 3 years ago. The answer to this question 3, 5 or 10 years ago was simple. Walk into more businesses, lower your rates even further and strong arm someone into saying yes RIGHT NOW! Things are changing in a big way and this mentality is out of date and dying fast. Here are my 3 tips for growing your merchant services portfolio into the future.
#1 – Get Organized. This is the information age and yet, sadly, most independent sales professionals are working with very little information. I personally like the podio CRM database, because it is very cost effective and easily customizable. No matter what system you use, you must collect and use data such as, who is interested, what company they are currently using, the owner’s name, the owner’s personal interests, the employee names, etc. Then, you must have follow up systems in place. Like it or not, the sales cycle is getting longer. If you want to make lots of sales, most of them are not going to be made on the first visit and many of them will be made through a relationship building process that may take weeks or even months, so collecting and using information effectively is a key as our industry and the solutions we provide become more complex.
#2 – Get Online. The simple truth is that everyone is become educated online, including your prospects and the odds are that they will go with the company that educated them. In our industry we still have people bickering over a penny on the authorization fee when the external reality is that most credit card processing companies are stuck in the 90’s in terms of online presence with a static website and no serious online presence. This is a BIG issue!!!
Obviously our company has been well ahead of our competitors in this area. We are in the process of increasing our YouTube, Twitter and Facebook presence in a big way. All that being said, you must find a company that is taking online presence seriously and is looking to leverage their online presence to benefit you rather than their inside sales team if you want to grow your portfolio over time. I am afraid that many independent sales people are with processors who have an end game of generating inbound leads for an inside sales team. Watch out for this! Find a company that is serious about partnering with outside, independent sales professionals.
#3 – Get Trained. If you really want to grow your merchant portfolio, cheaper price is no longer enough. You need to understand EMV Compliance, PCI Compliance, Mobile Payment Technology and above all, solution selling techniques. You must become an industry expert! Take the time to read blog articles, news articles, watch videos, listen to podcast episodes and read sales books. If you want to grow your portfolio, you must grow personally! What have you learned in the last week, month or year that is transforming your sales approach? If the answer is “nothing” then your portfolio will decline over time unless you get serious about gaining knowledge that your clients will find useful. I love this industry! It is increadible what can be accomplished.
Today I spoke to an individual sales partner that has 20 sales for the month of July and is on track to break our all time sales record of 27 deals in one month! His residual income is going to grow at a rate of close to $1,000 per month and as he implements new technology solutions like web design and touch screen POS systems, this residual will be secure as long as he stays organized, online and trained. I hope you experience similar success!
Have a great day in the field!
James Shepherd