Treat Your MLS Right

I look forward to reading Ed Freedman's "Street Smarts^SM" column in each issue of The Green Sheet. It is very helpful as a learning aid. It has inspired me to write to you about my thoughts regarding the industry, especially the processor-MLS relationship.

I am new to the bankcard processing industry. I have operated in the positions of National Sales Manager; Director, Sales and Marketing; and Vice President, Sales and Marketing in the industrial process control industry and the high-tech defense electronic industry the last 30 years.

I am fascinated by the bankcard industry but also frustrated at the same time. In my prior industries, the manufacturer's rep was number one in the food chain. This person was your lifeline - lose him or her and your company or product line was short-lived.

In those industries, both the sales rep and manufacturer have a means of interviewing each other before deciding to join forces. That type of initial communication just doesn't seem to exist as easily in this industry, perhaps because of the many ISO/MLS players.

Whether you're selling pipes, valves, radar systems or bankcard processing services, your main premise is that your ISO or MLS is your reason for being. The sooner we treat these people as professionals, the more success we as ISOs will enjoy.

There are many ways this can be accomplished. Start by simplifying your proposal package; don't overkill by including extraneous information. Use the old "KISS" formula - Keep It Simple, Stupid. I have seen information packages that would take a rep a week to read. I needed a magnifying glass to read some of the text.

Review your contract and reduce it to simple terms so that it is easily readable and understandable. The same holds true for rate charts and commission policies.

Remember that, as an ISO, your image can be made or broken by your representative on the front line. Your MLS is an extension of your company's executive offices. The MLS has to be skilled in handling merchants and also has to be well trained in your products and services.

You want to develop long-term relationships with your MLS family, and the way to do that is to make it easy for them to communicate with you, simplify your procedures and forms, and deliver what you promise. If you make it as easy as possible to sell your products/services, everyone is a winner.

Herb Mordkoff

National Sales Manager

Federated Payment Systems

Finding Information Fast

You helped me out once before and I hope that you can help me again. About a year ago there was an article on a company that did business evaluations for ISOs. Do you know who they are or are there any you could suggest? Also, do you know what they would charge?

Debbie

Debbie:

Without a company name it will be difficult to track this information down. However, please try our site search engine, Fast Finder, by entering "business evaluation." You might strike gold at: www.greensheet.com/search.cgi

Editor