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Features

The Green Sheet Advisory Board

What it takes to thrive in payments today – Part 2

his is the second in a series of three articles ment is subject to cyber-attacks, and once their system is
sharing responses members of The Green Sheet compromised, it will take years before the marketplace will
Advisory Board offered to the following ques- start trusting them again – if the provider survives at all.
T tions:
4. Cherish each relationship whether it is a partner, vendor
1. What top three tools are most critical for MLSs to or client. These relationships require time and money to
succeed in payments today? obtain and are expensive to replace.

2. Do ISOs need the same tools, or are other types of • Be stable. This goes for not only the solution(s) pro-
aids more essential to them? vided, but for how your business operates and in-
teracts within its daily ecosystem. People want to do
3. And for equipment, software and systems provid- business with companies and individuals who have
ers, what are their most critical needs in terms of a steady, consistent and reliable approach to running
tools of the trade? Are these different for long-time their business.
payment players than for startup payment facilita- • Always continue to innovate and be seen as an inno-
tors and independent software vendors breaking vator within the industry. Technology changes rap-
into payments? idly and today's market-leading solution can be easily

4. Given the degree of cooperation needed in pay- eclipsed by the next idea if constant innovation is not
ments today, what top three qualities must all es- a core principle of a payment technology company.
sential players on the payments value chain bring Darren Schulman
to the table to foster success for themselves, their 6th Avenue Capital
partners and merchants?
1. In this age of technology, when customers expect
Part 1 of this series appeared in The Green Sheet, May 14, everything to be fast and come with a great user interface, a
2018, issue 14:05:01. The final portion will appear in an good MLS needs to be personable and responsive to their
upcoming issue. Thanks to all who participated. customers' needs; knowledgeable about the products

Steve Sotis they sell; and provide a great customer experience with
enthusiasm.
eProcessing Network LLC
1. Try to minimize the number of provider relationships An MLS also needs to be resilient. They will hear many
you need to manage while still offering your merchants the "nos" while looking for sales. It's extremely important
solutions they want in an effort to maximize efficiencies to maintain a positive attitude and demeanor and keep
and remain competitively priced. pushing until you hear a "yes."
• Work with a solutions provider with a solid cus- 4. The top three qualities are the same as the top three
tomer service history. All the work you do to sell tools that I expect my colleagues to deliver: be personable,
the merchant can unravel quickly if the chosen so- be knowledgeable and be enthusiastic. With that in mind,
lution provider cannot properly support their solu- all the links within the payments value chain need to
tion. understand the goal, which is to treat your merchant well,
• Stay current with the solutions on the market; this and the rest will be easy.
refers to both new solutions and enhancements to
existing solutions. Technology is changing at an It's also important to clearly communicate the needs
ever-increasing rate, and merchants need to find of your merchant to your product specialist. Be sure to
solutions that help them stay agile and competitive avoid the "telephone game," which can lead to confusion
within their market. and/or misunderstandings that can cause an MLS to
lose a merchant's business. Deliver to the merchant what
2. Using MLSs has some issues, but when it comes to feet they asked for and maintain a relationship with them.
on the street at the lowest possible cost, they can be a good Remember, there's always another MLS out there plotting
fit for the right ISO. to take your merchants away. The more you communicate
and follow up with your merchants, the longer they will
3. For both old and new players the most important issue is stay with you – and be more likely to provide referrals for
security, security, security. Any provider handling a pay- new business.

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