t's a tough market out there for merchant level salespeople (MLSs). Increasing competition has forced agents to lower the price of bankcard processing or give POS terminals away, which decreases profit margins. To improve their odds of closing deals, many agents have begun selling value-added products and services. But if everyone's doing it, how can MLSs truly differentiate themselves from the competition?

"Salespeople are always looking for a way to distinguish themselves," said Alan Gitles, CEO of Landmark Merchant Solutions, a full service merchant account provider.

"When they walk into a merchant location, what do they say today to get the business? They're either competing on price, or in some cases, they offer something like a gift card or loyalty program."

Gitles said his company offers a solution that almost any merchant would value, whether it's a traditional brick-and-mortar or online business: a free 15-page Web site custom-designed and built by Landmark and delivered within 10 days.

The company will also host and support the Web site, which includes a shopping cart, domain name and up to five business e-mail accounts, also at no charge.

"There are no hidden fees for this service," said Joe Garza, Vice President of ISO Marketing for Landmark. "The Web site is part of the package when merchants sign up with us to do credit card processing."

Gitles said Landmark has provided thousands of merchant customers with Web sites. On www.LMSalesCenter.com, you can view examples of the colorful sites the company created for many of its merchant customers.

Alan Gitles and several partners founded Landmark in 2001. Gitles has more than 10 years' experience in bankcard processing; he previously was the founder and CEO of ISO American Midwest and later, American National. Most of his current partners worked with him at American National.

His partners are: Andy Birsa, Vice President of Risk; Tim Candelaria, Vice President of Sales; Mike Cimilluca, Vice President of Technology; Joe Garza; Bill Keefe, Chief Operating Officer; and Larry Neems, Chief Financial Officer.

Combined, this team has more than 100 years' experience in the acquiring industry.

Landmark processes Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover credit cards as well as ATM and debit cards; it also offers check guarantee and Internet check processing for merchants all over the United States.

The company targets mainly brick-and-mortar merchants and online or in-home businesses, but it will accept most types of merchant accounts up to a certain processing limit and as long as they don't have an open bankruptcy filing.

However, it will not work with adult, travel, multi-level marketing merchants or businesses located outside the United States.

"We are a vertically integrated ISO; not only do we own the BIN and ICA, we do all of the approvals and risk management. We manage risk very well by looking at transactions and deposits on a daily basis," Gitles said.

Gitles and his partners researched the competition thoroughly and found that there were a lot of good programs in the industry. But, he said, "If you look at our competition, they are mostly wholesalers, meaning, they offer buy rates and they are a processor only. We're a processor and a sales company. We have our own W-2 sales force."

Landmark employs a W-2 sales force of about 50 people who make outbound phone calls and produce over 400 approved merchant accounts per month.

All reps must undergo a weeklong training program and a three-day boot camp. The company also has a state-of-the-art telecommunications system that can accommodate up to 100 separate outgoing calls simultaneously.

In June 2004, Landmark thought its program was so good that it decided to branch out to work with the ISO/MLS sales channel, too. The company is now actively recruiting 1099 sales agents from around the country.

"We have a terrific back office, we have liberal credit policies for merchants, and we're good at providing service and support," Gitles said. "Some agents might feel threatened by our sales force, but others who understand opportunity will view it as, 'Here's someone who finally understands how tough it is to be out in the field.'"

"We think we have our finger on the pulse of what a salesperson's issues are," Garza said. "We understand their concerns and the problems they face, and we know how to help them overcome that. We know what it takes to close a sale."

Landmark also supports its MLS partners through a lead generation program. There is an initial 30-day trial period, but once both Landmark and the agent think the partnership is a good fit, the program will begin. Landmark provides agents with leads (free of charge) in the territories in which they want to sell and also makes all the calls.

The company does not set up appointments, but it will find out which merchants want a follow-up visit and then will provide the agent with the names and contact information for those businesses. Landmark will also pay all of the labor, list costs and long distance charges to generate leads for the sales center.

"These are very qualified leads," Garza said. "We speak only with the business owners. We make sure that they are not only interested in credit card processing, but that they want someone to come out and see them."

MLSs working with Landmark make their money from buy rates; MLSs earn 100%.

Landmark also serves as a reseller of POS equipment. The company buys products such as the Dassault Talento and NURIT 3010 hand-held wireless terminals in large volumes and sells them to its MLS partners. Landmark will download the applications, ship the terminals and provide training over the phone.

"We do all this so the salespeople can stay out in the field and sell," Gitles said.

Landmark provides a terminal help desk that is open 24/7/365 and a dedicated customer service department specifically for ISOs/MLSs.

This company believes it truly knows the sales process, frustrations included, so it offers its agent partners a program to overcome the obstacles they face each day.

"Salespeople will bang their heads against a wall trying to compete on price," Garza said. "We help them show merchants that we're in it to help them make sales. We tell our agents: You're not just selling a commodity, but you're providing something to help the merchants' businesses. "

"It resonates with our customers," Gitles said.