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Inspiration

Want easy sales? dress. Let them know the best times to reach you. Better yet,
make appointments to call at mutually agreeable times. Also, if
Make things easy a prospect calls you and you're not available, return the call at
your earliest convenience. Promptness goes a long way toward
leading a prospect to saying yes to you.
for merchants 3. Handle all details: Don't leave any loose ends. If something

needs to be clarified, confirmed or double-checked, do it. Don't
leave it to the merchant. And if a third party needs to be con-
SOs and merchant level salespeople sulted, do the footwork yourself.
(MLSs) are always seeking to better their 4. Provide a scenario: Give a vivid, detailed example of how
chances of closing sales. But how can your service will solve one of your prospect's pressing needs.
I they improve the odds that prospects will Let the merchant see how signing with you will bring relief.
say yes to their offerings? According to Paul Some sales reps are superb at engaging prospects, but they fail
H. Green, founder of The Green Sheet Inc., the to do the preparation needed to provide compelling examples
answer is to make each prospect's job easier. of their offerings in action. They deal in generalities and jargon,
which makes them appear deficient when merchants compare
It is, after all, up to merchants to select POS them with MLSs who provide compelling scenarios that relate
systems, payment processors, and providers for specifically to them.
data collection, loyalty program partners and a
host of other value-added services. Naturally, To sum it up, Green wrote, "If two
ISOs and MLSs have the expertise to ease this products are up against each other
burden. and one requires jumping through
hoops while the other is simple,
"As we all know, everyone wants his or her you know which one you would
job to be easier," Green wrote in Good Selling TM: pick!" Kate Gillespie, President and CEO
The Basics. "So if you can make it simple for the
prospect to sign with you instead of someone
else, you'll be ahead of the game."
Four actions that lead to yes

Green offered the following four steps to make
it easier for you and your potential merchant
customers:
1. Be prepared: Provide all papers, bro-
chures and agreements necessary. If your
competitor only verbally quoted rates, pre-
pare a document with the rates and other
terms included, Green advised. The decision
maker you're meeting with needs to have
something to show the boss. Your rates in
black and white are a lot better than some-
one else's verbal quotes even if those quotes
are lower.
And remember, the overall value you pro-
vide is more important than rates. You
might have a POS system tailored to a mer-
chant's vertical. Put in writing exactly how it
will enhance the merchant's business. If this
information is available on a website, don't
just refer the merchant to the site, call it up
on your mobile device, and go through the
benefits point by point. You'll be far ahead
of reps who make claims without backing
them up with specifics that have proven to
be effective.
2. Be accessible: Give prospects your direct
office number, mobile number and email ad-

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