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Education

The enduring power Here is an example of body text in draft form that could fit
any merchant.
of email Dear [fill in merchant's name],

I hope this finds you safe. Today, we are all facing
difficult times. I wanted to let you know that, as
your payment processing partner, I stand ready
to support you in any way possible. Working
together, we will survive and thrive once these
times end.
I would like to talk with you and hear how you
are handling the current restrictions today how
you are preparing to ramp up when the pandemic
ends.

[At this point, insert a sentence that best fits the
merchant's vertical. For a restaurant: I know many
By Jeff Fortney merchants like you are only providing curbside service
Signature Payments or delivery. If you are, and would like me to share your
numbers with others, please advise. For a retailer: Many
ately, I've been revisiting the use email as a sales merchants are unable to open their doors today. If you
tool. At a time when, in-person interactions are are one of those, let me know. I will keep you informed
severely restricted, email is an essential outreach of the changes and opportunities you can do now,
L tool, yet when we press Send, it's likely no one like online ordering, that can help you still generate
will open the message immediately. Some merchants business.]
won't ever read it, viewing email as bothersome or old hat
compared to text messages and platforms like Instagram. Please stay in touch and reach out at any time. Let's
work together.
Still, emails offer excellent benefits. They can be longer
than any text, create a paper trail that can't be found This draft gives you an idea what you should say. You can
with Instagram, and, when written with care, they can improve upon it and make it your own. Also, this should
communicate nuances and be easier to understand than be the first email in a series; others can be more specific.
texts or posts on social media. So, email remains a valuable
tool—if you know how to use it. Send it out

Some of you are already expert in marketing with email and Write your email in Word or other format that you can
work with ISOs that provide CRM tools with sophisticated, copy and paste into an email message. You can further
powerful email list management features. Others may be refine the text, if needed, after you paste it in.
new to the industry and working with little resources
at your disposal. This article will provide a review for There are two easy ways to send the email using tools
experienced email marketers; for the inexperienced, it will offered by your email provider. The first is to address each
serve as a quick-start guide. message individually. This is time intensive, but it allows
for customization. The second is to use the BCC function.
Create a good email message This will require you to keep the message generic, but you
can send many messages at once. Address the email to
To use email effectively, three things are necessary: an yourself, and paste the addresses into BCC.
email list, a message that applies to all of your merchants,
and a good grasp of how to use your email provider's Also, make sure you turn on Read Receipts for all outgoing
features. In "It's critical to talk with your merchants now," emails. Then you'll know who has opened your messages
The Green Sheet, Nov. 9, 2020, issue 20:11:01, I discussed how when you follow up. Remember, email might not be a
to create a merchant database, including email addresses, flashy or trendy tool, but it works especially well at this
so I'll delve into crafting an email here. time.

Critical to any email message is the subject line. For
example, today I would suggest a topic along the lines of, Jeff Fortney is vice president ISO relations for Signature Payments. A
"How are you doing?" This shows empathy, which you long-time payments industry executive and mentor, Jeff is focused on
can further demonstrate in the body of the message, while strengthening and developing partnerships and evaluating new busi-
also reminding them you are their partner and offering ness opportunities. He can be reached at 214-458-1379.
information that will help them get through this time.

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