Welcome to post number 936.
If you’ve been following the PayLynx blog, you know I’ve been at this for a while. Between this site and others, I’ve hammered out over 1,500 posts. But here’s a confession from behind the keyboard: for every published post you see, there are dozens of drafts sitting in the “incomplete” folder—half-baked ideas, “perfect” opening lines that went nowhere, and deep dives into interchange optimization that I just never hit “publish” on.
As merchant services sales professionals, we do the exact same thing with our pipelines.
We treat our leads like I treat my drafts. We wait for the “perfect” moment to call, or we over-analyze a statement for three days before presenting it because we want the proposal to be flawless.
1. The 80% Rule
In blogging, a finished post that is 80% perfect is infinitely more valuable than a “masterpiece” sitting in my drafts folder. In sales, an imperfect conversation today is worth more than a perfect presentation next month.
If you’re waiting until you know every feature of a merchant’s POS system or every line item of their current contract before you reach out, you’re just staying in the “draft” phase.
2. Volume Creates Momentum
You don’t get to 1,500 posts by being precious about every single word. You get there by showing up.
- The Blog Lesson: Quantity eventually leads to quality.
- The Sales Lesson: Your 100th cold call will be better than your 1st, but you can’t skip the first 99.
3. Clear the “Draft” Folder
Look at your CRM right now. Who are the merchants you’ve been “meaning to follow up with” once you have more information?
- The business owner who asked for a quote three weeks ago.
- The lead you ghosted because their current pricing was actually pretty competitive and you didn’t know how to beat it.
- The “check back in six months” lead that is now seven months old.
Stop letting them sit in the draft folder. Hit “send.” Make the call.
The Reality Check: Whether it’s writing or selling, the biggest hurdle isn’t the competition or the industry—it’s the “save for later” button.
I started this blog to share what I’ve learned in the trenches of the payment industry. 936 posts later, the biggest lesson is simple: Done is better than perfect.
Now, go close that “draft” in your pipeline.
Happy Selling,
David
