What Are Merchant Services Sales?

We get this question from potential sales people every day: What are merchant services sales and how do I make money selling credit card processing?

Whenever you use your credit card to pay a business for a product or service that business pays a fee to take the transaction. A portion of the fee goes to the issuing bank, a portion goes to Visa, MC, Discover, or American Express, and a portion goes to what is called the service organization or ISO. Beacon Payments is an ISO and our job is to facilitate the setup of merchant accounts so businesses can accept card transactions. We make a portion of the sale whenever a card is run through one of our clients’ terminals or payment systems.

To stand out in this competitive market, it's essential to approach sales with a helpful approach and focus on what the client truly needs.

Why Asking the Right Questions Matters

Many of us enter the field of merchant services and start by telling potential clients how we can help them with their credit card processing needs. What we forget to do is ask questions. Lots of questions. 

Asking the right questions during your sales process not only helps build trust but also positions you as a partner who understands and can address the specific challenges of your clients. Here’s how asking strategic questions can boost your sales:

• Identifies Client Pain Points: Knowing what challenges clients face with their current setup allows you to present your solutions in a way that directly addresses those issues.
• Reveals Business Needs: Different businesses have unique requirements based on their industry, size, and payment volume. The right questions can help you tailor your approach.
• Builds Credibility: Demonstrating that you are thoughtful and thorough with your questions shows that you’re not just pushing a sale—you’re invested in finding the best fit for your client.

Key Questions to Ask

Start with Open-Ended Questions

The initial conversation sets the tone for everything that follows. Open-ended questions encourage detailed responses and help you get to the heart of your client's pain points. For example, instead of asking if they’re happy with their current payment processing, try:

• “What challenges are you facing with your current payment system?”

This invites the client to elaborate, giving you valuable insights into their frustrations and needs.

Probe for Specifics

Once you’ve identified the general issues, it’s time to dig deeper. Specific questions help you understand the full impact of the problems they’ve mentioned. For example:

• “Can you describe how these challenges affect your day-to-day operations?”

This question clarifies the severity and frequency of the issues, helping you position your solutions in a way that addresses their most urgent problems.

Explore Their Goals and Objectives

Understanding what the client is hoping to achieve is critical to tailoring your pitch. Ask about their goals and what they want to improve:

• “What improvements are you hoping to see in your payment processing system?”

Knowing their objectives allows you to focus on how your service can deliver results in areas they care most about, whether that’s faster transactions, better security, or lower fees.

Discuss Budget and Decision-Making

Budget constraints and decision-making processes often determine how far a deal progresses. By tactfully inquiring about both, you ensure that your proposal is feasible and targeted at the right stakeholders. Consider asking:

• “What is your budget for upgrading your payment system?”
• “Who else is involved in the decision-making process?”

These questions help you tailor your pitch to their financial limitations while also ensuring you’re talking to the right people or knowing who else needs to be included.

Clarify Next Steps

Keeping momentum is essential in sales. As you approach the conclusion of your conversation, direct questions about the next steps can guide both you and the client toward a smooth closing process. Ask:

• “When is the best time for us to review a proposal together?”

This not only signals your interest in moving forward but also keeps the process on track by locking in a time for follow-up.

The Power of Asking the Right Questions

Asking questions that are targeted and thoughtful can make a significant difference in your sales outcomes. When clients feel heard and understood, they are more likely to trust your recommendations and see you as a resource they can rely on. These conversations help you build rapport and align your offerings with their needs, which increases the likelihood of closing the deal.

Implementing the Right Questions into Your Strategy

When integrating these questions into your sales approach:

• Listen Actively: Pay attention to the answers your client provides and use them to guide the conversation.
• Adapt Your Solutions: Tailor your presentation to address their specific pain points and highlight the features that matter most to them.
• Provide Examples: Use case studies or testimonials to illustrate how your services have solved similar problems for other clients.

Effective questioning does more than just gather information. It demonstrates your commitment to solving the client’s problems, builds rapport, and positions you as a trusted advisor rather than just a salesperson.

Join Our Network of Independent ISO Agents

We grow our business through our network of independent sales people who are building their own book of business within our business. Whenever they set up a client to accept credit cards we share the profit with them. Their job is to go talk to clients - most of whom already accept credit cards, and help them negotiate a lower price. We will put together a proposal for the independent sales person and help them close the deal. Then they start earning residual income every month off of the transactions that are being run through the terminal.

The beauty of what our sales people do is that they are building their own company and they earn passive income off of every client that they have already signed up. They sell the client once and then earn an income for as long as that client is with us!

To learn more, apply today and one of our sales managers will reach out to you to discuss getting you set up as one of our newest agents!