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CoverStory

Thomas Aronica Allen Kopelman
Biller Genie Nationwide Payment Systems Inc.

1. We have spent the year ensuring that our platform was 1. We have to keep working and calling on business own-
scalable with our development and marketing efforts. We ers, diversify the products we are selling, offer solutions
have been extremely introspective and due to this, we can that make sense and are cost-effective to the merchants.
withstand and thrive regardless of economic conditions People are out of work, businesses have closed up—but
now, people are going back to work, opening up new busi-
2. Contactless, frictionless and self-service will be the nesses all the time. Sell ecommerce—this has always been
driving trends in our industry. The easier we can make growing but it's growing faster now.
electronic transitions between buyers and sellers, the
more productive we will be. 2. I think that in the next couple of years we will see some
alternative payments enter our space. These companies
3. We can embrace change to ensure that we are providing will have to be smart and integrate into shopping carts,
real value to our merchants and their end-users. Getting gateways, etc.—payment apps like Zelle, PayPal, wallets,
out of the commodity mindset is paramount in the success bitcoin, Venmo, etc. I think we will see more ways to pay.
of any fintech company in today's world. Some small businesses might be using these now, but if
they are integrated into the rails for First Data, TSYS, etc.,
4. Know your customers. Understand their needs and how or gateways, that will make those alternative payment
you can provide services that make their lives easier. It is methods easier for merchants to use.
not about just throwing new products at your merchants;
it's about being deliberate and matching the right solu- I remember when I first started in this business over 20
tions to each customer. years ago, merchants would get several deposits, one for
Visa/MC another for Discover, another for AmEx another
Jared Isaacman for Diners Club and another for debit, JCB, etc. If you ac-
Shift4 cepted all of those payment types in one day, you would
get four, five, six deposits in one day. ... After a while, deb-
1. We were very fortunate to launch a successful IPO dur- it went in with the Visa/MC. ... Next came Discover and
ing the pandemic, which strengthened our balance sheet AmEx. ... Now merchants get one deposit.
and positioned us strongly as we look toward the future.
This has also enabled us to make significant investments Merchants do not want to deal with getting multiple de-
in technology and capabilities that will help our partners posits in one day—again. Once things were in one deposit,
and merchants find success in the best and worst of eco- merchants took Discover and AmEx when they didn't want
nomic circumstances. to deal with them before. It accelerated their acceptance at
many merchant locations. Another trend is cash discount-
2. There has been a rapid pull-forward of payments digi- ing and surcharging. Merchants who did not want to do
tization, especially in our core verticals of restaurants, this are now switching. COVID accelerated this as well.
hospitality, stadiums and theme parks. These mobile-first
solutions create a better customer experience, and compa- 3. Call on your merchants and offer them ecommerce so-
nies that are able to deliver these solutions, like Shift4, will lutions. At some point, they will get on the web. The pro-
benefit from this rapid adoption. cessors can not ignore the alternative payment networks;
figure out a way to integrate them into our systems.
3. Payments and financial technology companies can ac-
celerate the economic recovery by continuing to invest in 4. You need to diversify your portfolios. Don't just sell POS
technology solutions and capabilities that help merchants into restaurant and retail. Learn to sell into other verticals,
adapt to changing consumer preferences. and partner with someone who can train you or help you
close other types of clients. Take advantage of any and all
By facilitating better commerce experiences, it will help learning opportunities. There are going to be all types of
encourage consumers to return to their normal spending new businesses opening up in the next year or two. Learn
behaviors in order to jumpstart the economy. some new tricks. A great book I recommend is Who Moved
My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson. The cheese in this busi-
4. The payments industry is no longer about saving mer- ness is always moving.
chants money on credit card rates, as it has been for the
last 20 years. It's about delivering value through technol- Justin Milmeister
ogy. To stay competitive, payments professionals need to Elite Merchant Solutions
embrace technology and become consultative to their mer-
chants. 1. Throughout COVID and due to economic uncertainty
being so high, our management team has successfully
been able to cut unnecessary expenses. This has allowed
us to build a fairly substantial reserve which we continue

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