The Green Sheet Online Edition
January 12, 2026 • 26:01:01
Street Smarts
New ways to market your brand in 2026
If you have not done this already, it's time to sit down and look at how you marketed yourself and your business last year. Think about what worked and what didn't work, whether it was a trade show, networking or other sales activity. What products and services did you sell the most? Was it ecommerce payment gateways, POS devices for specific verticals or maybe Clover for restaurants? Hint: don't say processing.
Identify your bestselling products and services and how you sold them so that you can level up your selling in 2026. I've said it before, but if you want to start strong, don't ignore the basics of personal branding. Don't expect people to take you seriously if you're old school. Here are some proven ways to polish your professional image:
- Get a domain: Generic is out. Personal branding is in. Having a simple one-page website and dot.com email are basic requirements in 2026. Get rid of AOL, Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail addresses. Email addresses like thecreditcardguy@gmail.com or johndoe290@gmail.com impress no one.
- Strengthen your social media presence: Become familiar with platforms and how to use them. For example, Facebook is good for promoting your company page, and LinkedIn is good for establishing a personal presence. These platforms enhance discoverability much like Yellow Pages used to. They also lend themselves to interaction.
- Use modern business cards: Promote yourself and your brand with a simple paper or electronic business card. No one cares that you sell for 10 different ISOs. They care about how you show up, solve their problems and, most of all, how they can reach you.
Lead with your technology
When I say that merchants buy technology first and worry about processing second, I'm told, "Allen you are wrong." Let me show you why I'm right.
It seems whenever I visit social media groups I see complaints about how we have to switch merchants from Toast, Stripe, QuickBooks, Shopify and Square. These companies are promoting technology first with processing as a byproduct; merchants don't care about processing because they want the technology to help them run their businesses. They want the tech so much that they're willing to pay a premium price for embedded processing.
Why am I bringing this up? Because the best way to promote yourself in 2026 is to lead with technology that is yours, not someone else's. Forget agnostic solutions. Agnostic is out and processor-owned software and POS systems are in. There is no other way forward. Post frequently If you have not figured out how to post comments and blogs on social media, it's time to get started. Having a presence on social media is the best way to showcase your knowledge of business in a tech-driven world. Showcase what you love, no matter how silly you think it might be, because your personality can be your best differentiator.
Here are recommended ways to engage on these platforms:
- LinkedIn: Have a profile and post a news article or blog two to three times a week.
- Substack: Start a blog on this platform and slowly grow your readership.
- Reddit: Join a sub-reddit group; this can also be a useful way to find clients.
- Facebook: Have a company page and post two to three times a week.
- Instagram:Share the same content you post on Facebook two to three times a week.
- Podcast guest appearances: Do not go on too many payments podcasts. It's better to go on local and business podcasts, particularly podcasts about business types you like to help and then repurpose that content to your social media.
Frequency is everything
What do you want people to find when they search for you online: nothing or information that is useful and smart? In this electronic age, having a professional online presence is tantamount to success.
Set aside at least an hour a day to network, learn, create and comment on these platforms. Focus on platforms where you're most likely to find your customers and start small. Choose one platform and get comfortable with it and then gradually add others as you grow.
Post frequently to show consistency, dedication to your craft and, most of all, that you care about your business and your industry. If this isn't your thing, consider using Canva and other free tools to automate some of these activities or hire a virtual assistant.
When I hear reps say, "These things cost too much money," I remind them that they're making good money and can certainly afford to reinvest in promoting their personal image and professional brand.
As actor and comedian Rob Schneider says in The Waterboy … You can do it!
Want to know more? Keep reading The Green Sheet and consider following me on LinkedIn, where we can share ideas and support each other. 
Allen Kopelman, a serial entrepreneur, is co-founder and CEO of Nationwide Payment Systems Inc. and host of B2B Vault: The Biz to Biz podcast. Email him at allen@npsbank.com and connect on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/allenkopelman/ and Twitter @AllenKopelman.
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