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February 24, 2022

How to Sell Merchant Services: 6 Tips for Closing Deals

Samantha Hubay

Written by:

Samantha Hubay

How to Sell Merchant Services: 6 Tips for Closing Deals

As a merchant services salesperson or Agent, you’re in a unique position:

32.5 million businesses need your services.

That’s because any business looking to process credit cards, debit cards, or other forms of electronic payment needs to partner with a merchant services provider.

That means selling merchant services should be easy, right?

Not so much. Merchant services sales are just as tough as any other sales type. Our goal as a merchant services provider is to provide our Agents and sales professionals with the tools and knowledge they need to succeed! In this post, we’ll explore selling tips for working with prospects and closing the deal.

 

1. Go for the gold (prospects).

Successful selling requires casting a wide net. Once you pull that net in, you’ll have to pick through the catch and toss back prospects who aren’t the right fit. Remove any disqualified merchants and you’ll be left with the Gold Prospects. These are prospects who are willing to talk with you about their merchant services needs. Or, better yet, maybe you’ve pulled in a Platinum Prospect; a merchant who actually wants to talk with you about merchant services.

When you get your hands on a Gold or Platinum Prospect, don’t let them go! Make sure you thoughtfully keep in contact with them and (here’s the most important part) get a copy of their merchant statement. This may require many phone calls or several visits to the business, but don’t give up. Eventually, you’ll get that statement and gain the merchant’s trust once they see how much money you can help them save.

 

2. Learn to relish the silence.

This can be a tough one, but it can also make your job easier.

When meeting with a prospect, stay aware of how much you talk and how much you listen. Take a look at this data from Gong:

Talk to Listen Ratio Image
Source: Gong

The data shows that top salespeople have a talk-to-listen ratio of about 46:54. This suggests that reps who listen more than they talk find more success than reps who talk first and listen later. So, before launching into your pitch, take a moment to let the prospect tell you what they need. And if there is silence once your pitch is over, relish in it. Take a moment to breathe and give the prospect time to think about all the information you just brought to the table.

You just finished the best pitch of your life and while you’re holding for proverbial applause, the prospect says, “we’ll think about it.” While it may sting, you must resist the urge to turn to desperate, hurried, or pushy sales tactics. Make a gracious exit and start the follow-up process with your prospect. Be patient. The sale may be won when you least expect it.

 

3. Be bold, creative, and organized.

To excel in today’s competitive landscape, you have to get creative. Dare to boldly think outside the box and find a way to make the sale work. For example, if you can’t offer cost savings, find some way to offer an extra service. Work with your merchant services provider to customize a deal that will delight the merchant.

Especially if you’re offering merchants custom deals, staying organized will be essential. Without diligent organization, you might reach out to the wrong prospect about the wrong deal. You could even forget to follow up with a Gold or Platinum Prospect and risk stalling the process – or worse - damaging the relationship. Keep your calendar and merchant files organized to avoid headaches and heartaches like these.

 

4. Try your hand at sales targeting.

You may find this tip especially useful if you are making a cold call or a first contact over the phone.

Sales targeting refers to the process of researching, identifying, attracting, and prioritizing businesses that are most likely to buy your product. You can take this targeting one step further to pinpoint a specific business type in a specific city or area. Here’s an example of how you could start a targeted phone call to peak the merchant’s interest right away.

“Hi, my name is Sally. I’m calling all the locally owned pizza spots in the area right now to let them know about an incredible cost-saving opportunity. I actually just got off the phone with Justin from Best Pizza right down the street from you guys.”

Not only can this approach give you some immediate credibility, but it can also help you become THE merchant services expert in your area.

 

5. Start with value.

No person, business owner or otherwise, wants to invest in something if they can’t see its value. So, you can’t expect a prospect to give you their hard-earned money for something you just tell them is going to be great. You have to show them how great it is!

Lead with the value you can provide, whether you’re talking to a prospect over the phone, in person, or on video. For example, EMS Agents can provide enhanced benefits to their merchants, such as:

  • Same-Day Funding
  • Cost-Saving Cash Discount & Surcharge Programs
  • The Fastest Approval Rate in the Industry
  • Complimentary Rate Reviews
  • A Free Terminal Placement Program

These are all examples of value-added features that can put your offering ahead of the competition.

 

6. Guide the merchant through their paperwork.

The final tip we have for you today is for when you’ve closed the sale. The merchant has verbally agreed to enter into a contract with you, and all that’s left is for them to sign on the dotted line. The easiest thing would be to send them the paperwork and wait for them to sign and return it. However, if you’re not careful this can stall the deal for far too long. Without you there to guide them through the process, a prospect may just shrug and stash the paperwork away.

So, here’s what you do.

Once you’ve closed the sale, say something along the lines of:

“Okay, great! I’m going to email the paperwork over to you. In case you have any questions, I’ll stay on the line while you pull it up. That way we can go through everything together.” 

If they say:

“I don’t really have time right now to go through it with you.” 

You say:

“No worries, how about we set an appointment for tomorrow at 2:00 PM?” 

Now here’s the key – don’t send the paperwork until right before that 2 PM meeting. This way, you have less chance of the merchant canceling the meeting and insisting that they will get you the paperwork soon.

 

We hope you find these six tips helpful to your merchant services sales strategy. For more selling tips like these, check out these posts:

Focus on Sales Success with an Effective Action Plan

Getting Past the Gatekeeper | Sales Tips for Merchant Services Agents

How to Improve Your Merchant Services Sales Pitch in 2021

 

Source: CC Sales Pro

 

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