The Green Sheet Online Edition
May 25, 2026 • 26:05:02
Street Smarts
How you can use AI to strengthen marketing and merchant engagement
Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a practical tool for payments organizations. For many ISOs and merchant level salespeople (MLSs), marketing often takes a back seat to the day-to-day demands of managing portfolios, supporting agents, onboarding merchants and maintaining processor relationships. Yet in an increasingly competitive payments landscape, consistent communication and brand visibility can be critical differentiators.
The challenge is that most ISOs operate with lean teams and limited marketing resources. Developing original content, maintaining social media channels, building email campaigns and analyzing results all require time that many small organizations simply do not have. That is where AI is beginning to reshape how payments organizations approach marketing.
AI is no longer just a buzzword reserved for large enterprises with extensive budgets. Today, affordable and accessible AI-powered tools are helping ISOs automate repetitive marketing tasks, create content more efficiently, improve customer engagement and uncover valuable insights from merchant data. For organizations looking to grow without significantly increasing overhead, AI can offer a practical advantage.
Streamlining content creation and merchant communications
One of the most immediate benefits of AI is content creation. Many ISOs struggle to consistently produce newsletters, blog articles, social media posts, merchant education materials and sales collateral. AI writing tools such as ChatGPT, Jasper and Copy.ai can help generate first drafts for these materials in a matter of minutes. An ISO can input topics such as surcharging, PCI compliance, fraud prevention or contactless payments and quickly receive a foundation for an article, email campaign or social media series. Of course, AI should not replace industry expertise or compliance oversight. Payments is a highly regulated industry, and accuracy matters. However, AI can dramatically reduce the time spent developing content from scratch, allowing marketing and sales teams to focus on refining messaging, tailoring communications to their audience and strengthening their overall strategy.
Making professional design more accessible
Graphic design is another area where AI is making marketing more accessible for smaller organizations. Many ISOs do not have dedicated designers or the budget to outsource every marketing project. Platforms like Canva AI now allow users with little or no design experience to create professional-looking flyers, social media graphics, presentations, email banners and tradeshow materials
These tools help organizations maintain a polished and consistent brand presence without investing heavily in creative resources. For ISOs and MLSs competing in crowded markets, professional branding and presentation materials can play an important role in building merchant confidence and credibility.
Improving email marketing efficiency
Email marketing continues to be one of the most effective tools available to ISOs, particularly when it comes to merchant retention and lead nurturing. Most email marketing platforms already include AI-driven functionality that many organizations may not even realize they are using.
Platforms such as Mailchimp, HubSpot, Constant Contact and Klaviyo can automatically optimize send times, personalize subject lines, segment audiences and even generate portions of email copy. This functionality becomes especially valuable when building automated drip campaigns. Rather than manually following up with every prospect or merchant, ISOs can create campaigns that automatically send educational content over time based on user behavior or interests. A prospect interested in cash discount programs, for example, can receive a sequence of emails explaining program benefits, compliance considerations, and implementation strategies without requiring manual outreach from the sales team.
Using AI to simplify social media management
Social media management is another area where AI can help reduce the burden on already stretched teams. Maintaining an active presence on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram can feel overwhelming for many organizations, especially when content needs to be created consistently.
AI-powered tools built into platforms like Meta Business Suite, Hootsuite, and HubSpot can assist with scheduling posts, generating captions, identifying trending topics, and recommending optimal posting times. For ISOs recruiting agents or building referral partnerships, this consistency can be particularly valuable. A strong and active social presence helps reinforce credibility while keeping the organization visible to merchants, partners and prospective sales agents. AI tools also make it easier to repurpose existing content across multiple channels, allowing organizations to maximize the value of every article, online seminar or announcement they create.
Turning merchant data into actionable insights
Beyond content and communication, AI is also helping ISOs make better use of the large amounts of data already stored within their CRM and portfolio management systems. Many organizations collect substantial merchant data but struggle to turn that information into actionable insights. AI-powered analytics tools can help identify trends, segment merchants by behavior or industry, track campaign performance, and uncover upselling opportunities.
For example, AI may help identify merchants that could benefit from additional services such as business funding, payroll solutions, upgraded POS systems or fraud prevention tools. It can also help organizations identify merchants at risk of attrition, allowing sales and support teams to proactively strengthen those relationships before accounts are lost.
Starting small and scaling strategically
For organizations hesitant to adopt AI, the best approach is to start small. Rather than attempting to overhaul an entire marketing operation, ISOs can begin by identifying one area where time is consistently being mismanaged. Whether it is drafting social media posts, creating email campaigns or organizing marketing data, AI tools are already available within their systems that can help simplify the process.
Importantly, AI should not be viewed as a replacement for human expertise or relationship-building. In the payments industry, trust and personal relationships remain essential. Instead, AI should be seen as a tool that allows teams to operate more efficiently, communicate more consistently and focus more energy on strategic growth initiatives.
As competition within the payments industry continues to intensify, ISOs and MLSs that embrace practical AI solutions may find themselves better positioned to strengthen merchant relationships, improve operational efficiency and scale their marketing efforts more effectively. And if exploring AI tools still seems overwhelming, there is always an experienced marketing professional in the wings to provide support and guidance. 
Jaki Kackert is a seasoned marketing professional with experience supporting organizations across the payments and financial services industries. Through expertise in content marketing, digital strategy, public relations, and communications, she helps ISOs and Resellers build marketing strategies that attract, retain, and grow merchant portfolios. For more information please visit www.kackertmarketing.com or reach out to Jaki at jbkackert@gmail.com
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