The Green Sheet Online Edition
November 11, 2020 • 20:11:01
Readers Speak : Beware of 'turnkey' and 'custom'
We wish to thank Steven Foster, founder of KnowByLity Financial Services, for contacting us. KnowByLity develops custom mobile, desktop and customer experience platforms. Foster recently urged businesses seeking white-label solutions to realize providers and their customers can have very different understandings of the terms "turnkey" and "custom." He recommended learning a few fintech basics and offered the following tips:
"Be sure the program is not one-size-fits all. The platform and software provider should clearly understand why the business wants to start a program, what their specific marketing goals are, and who the customer base is. They also should allow for flexibility in the program should data show that changes should be made. Any provider that presents a proposal without asking lots of questions upfront is not the right partner—for anyone.
"Ensure upfront that the software works seamlessly with the business’s existing systems, websites, etc.
"Find out the level of expertise the provider’s executive team has in the fintech and prepaid card realms. Be sure the organization has dedicated compliance and risk assessment plans, a highly skilled IT team and a collaborative and innovative corporate culture.
"The business’s logo, brand colors and fonts should be applied to all interface points to exact specification, even the API reference. Likewise, the business’s own domain names/URLs should be reflected.
"Improving the customer experience and revenue growth are the overriding goals, so data mining is essential. The provider should measure and monitor information and provide reports that are actionable.
"The right white-label provider absolutely must have relationships with sponsor banks, acquirers, central payment networks and other service providers and be well-versed in alternative payment methods. They must also have relationships with regulatory bodies and be adept in acquiring and maintaining licenses and ensuring all compliance rules are adhered to."
What advice do you have?
Do you know of common pitfalls in your sector of the payments industry? Share your knowledge with our readers right here. Send up to 300 words on your topic to greensheet@greensheet.com. We look forward to hearing from you. 
Whether you want to upgrade your POS offerings, find a payment gateway partner, bone up on fintech regs or PCI requirements, find an upcoming trade show, read about faster payments, or discover the latest innovations in merchant acquiring, The Green Sheet is the resource for you. Since 1983, we've helped empower and connect payments professionals, starting with the merchant level salespeople who bring tailored payment acceptance and digital commerce tools, along with a host of other business services to merchants across the globe. The Green Sheet Inc. is also a proud affiliate of Bankcard Life, a premier community that provides industry-leading training and resources for payment professionals.
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