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Education

No. 3. –Documentation eral liability insurance for your business. Some busi-
ness partners require this for you to work with them.
Get it in writing! Handshake deals might work in a highly Some business owners are very litigious today. Be sure
interdependent, agrarian business community, but they you have your insurance agent spell out exactly what
don't work in the payments industry. Memorialize all your is covered and what is excluded. You may also need
agreements on paper with signatures. errors and omissions (E&O) coverage if you do any pro-
Agent agreement fessional consulting or custom development.
Take your time with this agreement. DO NOT RUSH. The first three
You may be living with this agreement and its effect
on the value of your portfolio for years. In my expe- To review, as a professional payments sales agent, the first
rience, most agent agreements are written pretty one- three things you will need are:
sided. Make sure an industry attorney on your team
(see above) reviews it for the legal stuff. Also, have an 1. Team: A team of people who contribute to your suc-
unbiased industry expert review it for the deal points. cess
It's OK to have an expert negotiate it for you. 2. System: A sales and support system with all files
Vendor agreements backed up
3. Documents: Written agreements with your partners,
The same guidelines that apply for agent agreements ISOs, vendors and all others.
also apply for agreements with vendors, such as equip-
ment suppliers, loyalty programs, etc. In the second installment of this series, I'll cover the fourth
Financial statements and fifth requirements to complete the "Five things every
You should be able to produce an income statement and professional payments agent should have."
a balance sheet for your business. Most agents don't
have many assets aside from their merchant portfolio. Mark Dunn is an independent consultant and president of Field Guide
Enterprises LLC. He has been in the payments industry for 34 years.
Business insurance
Contact him at mark@gofieldguide.com .
If you visit a merchant's premises, you will need gen-

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