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Education

The difference Regroup for B2B

Many ISOs are experts in B2C accounts, but few can
between selling claim the same in B2B. This is not anyone's fault. B2C has
been a cash cow for years with overwhelming demand
B2B and B2C and industry adoption, whereas plastic acceptance and
use within B2B has yet to be fully explored by the ISO
channel. Why is that?

The rigors of running an ISO don't lend themselves to
cultivating new channels, especially ones perceived to
be as complex as B2B. If the same selling principles from
B2C are applied in B2B, they yield less than stellar results.
Unlike B2C, B2B payments on card have stiff competition
in the form of checks, ACH, wire transfer and, to a lesser
extent, debit.
Suppliers believe credit payments are the most expensive
alternative they can offer. ISOs selling B2B fall right in
the "supplier bias" trap when they sell processing without
positioning credit into the payment cycle as an alternative
to term payments. Other than check, ACH and wire, term
is the greatest threat to plastic acceptance in the B2B world.
So, what do you do if you're in this predicament? The
worst thing is to do nothing. The B2B opportunity is too
By Roger McNamara great. By some accounts, there is a $20 trillion market for
Guide2Interchange LLC B2B payments, and today only 8 percent of B2B payments
are on plastic. That says there is a ton of opportunity for
pulled up to the airport arrivals terminal to meet those able to remove themselves from the carousel of B2C.
a colleague had arrived on an early morning flight
and would be working with me for the day. I had The temptation to do nothing is strong. Don't succumb
I been signing lots of accounts. For me, business in to that urge; the market is crying out for payments
B2C was good, really good—too good according to some, consultants who understand B2B and can talk intelligently
because compared with my peers, I was an anomaly. The about where credit best fits into the payments cycle. We
person boarding my Ford Taurus wanted to see if I was also need to articulate what that means to suppliers and
legit or somehow cheating the system. their buyers.

As we headed off, he asked me to conduct business like I There is unfortunately a pricing perception issue in B2B
would on an ordinary day. We went to an area I knew but that did not manifest in B2C. Being able to explain value
hadn't worked before, and began cold calling as I would versus the competitive forces is essential. Suppliers are
normally do. By 12:30 p.m., we had signed five accounts, looking for experts in payments, not credit card sellers.
and my colleague was getting tired. When we returned to You're looking for suppliers that you won't find on Main
the airport for his flight home, his last words were, "You Street.
are pretty good at this." I replied that it was all about the
opportunity. Educate yourself on where these suppliers are in
abundance. Learn to talk their language. Doing so will
For many years, that fantastic opportunity existed in B2C. set you apart from your competition and put you on the
Long before aggregators and fintechs, it was possible to road to success in this category. In the end, the only thing
know all the service providers in your town or market, similar in selling a B2C merchant and a B2B supplier is the
and there was even a little friendly competition. Today, application they sign.
the B2C landscape has greatly changed, and there is
a smaller pie to divide. Increased pressure to acquire
accounts has led to an all-out assault on price, creating Roger McNamara, president, Guide2Interchange LLC, is a 25+-year
what our industry coined as "the race to zero." veteran of the payments industry, most recently as director of busi-
ness development with American Express in the United States. He
Merchant level salespeople find their books of business has sold more than $200 billion worth of card processing and now
under constant assault and pressure. Legions of agents leads a B2B merchant sales training organization. Contact him at
ply the same territories, calling on the same accounts on Guide2Interchange@gmail.com or 561-379-3151.
every main street, back street and cross street across the
country.

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