One Quick Tip To Prevent The Payment Technology Specialist Blues

Good Monday morning everyone. I know working in the merchant card processing business can be tough at times. The grind of trying to sell to merchants, the frustration when things aren’t going right, the disappointment of losing a big deal–it can all wear you down.

When you started in merchant credit card processing services, you probably had a lot of enthusiasm, but when you’ve been at it for a while, and you hit a rough patch, that enthusiasm can start to wane.

There’s no magic bullet of positivity to prevent this from happening. Nothing helps you get through tough times like a conviction to be resilient. However, I have found that doing one thing can help prevent me from getting the merchant card processing blues.

Don’t celebrate until the merchant is installed.

Sounds easy, right? But it’s not. Take this example.

You’ve been fortunate enough to sign a multi million dollar annual merchant. The pricing negotiation went well, and there’s a large profit coming your way. You put together the paperwork, submit it to underwriting, and start thinking about what you’re going to do with the money.

But the next day you discover that your credit card processor has turned down the merchant for excessive chargebacks and restricted nature. Carried away by your excitement, you hadn’t examined the merchant impartially, and you hadn’t seen these obstacles before signing him.

Now, not only are you dismayed about the lost deal, but your disappointment impacts your performance moving forward. You become skeptical of any large merchants who may want to sign with you in the future, and for the next week, you don’t have your A-game during sales calls.

How do you prevent this scenario? Well, you do can two things. First, examine every merchant objectively, asking yourself if there’s anything that may raise red flags with your credit card processor.

More importantly, though, don’t let the size or profit of a merchant carry you away. Before a large merchant is installed, think of them in the same way you’d think of a mom and pop merchant. That way, you’re not crushed if the deal doesn’t pan out. And if does pan out, well, you still have lots of time to celebrate.

Do you have any tips for preventing disappointment in the merchant card processing business? What do you do to keep an even keel? Let me know with a comment.