Using Regulatory Changes to Grow Your Merchant Services Program

In an industry that’s always changing, it’s important to find ways to leverage the recent regulatory changes surrounding the Durbin Amendment and debit card processing interchange. While the interchange caps have reduced income for larger issuers with assets in excess of $10 billion, some merchant services programs have been able to use their lower rates to their advantage.

Add to that recent marketing campaigns such as Bank Transfer Day and Better Name for Banking and it’s easy to see how small community banks and credit unions are able to benefit from the larger banks indecision about how they plan to make up the revenue lost as a result of the Durbin Amendment.

This new cap on debit interchange is beneficial to merchants and can help you grow your merchant services program, providing you take the right approach. This is a time to embark on a new opportunity. For example, if you haven’t marketed to your commercial consumers yet, now is the time to sell your merchant services program by informing possible clients about the chance to reduce costs. Because of this change in the merchant services industry, it’s a great time to create interest around your business. You can also ride the growing wave of negative sentiment towards the big banks and their miscellaneous fees by promoting your services to new customers.

Although this is a great time for new customer acquisition, don’t forget the importance of retaining strong relationships with your current customers. If you have not already done so, let your current clients on interchange pass through pricing they will automatically reap the benefits of the new debit card processing changes. Enjoy this opportunity to better your customer service by utilizing good communication, making the client happy, and protecting your business from competitors.

Additionally, be aware of certain companies taking advantage of the Durbin Amendment be granting false information to consumers. Because of these difficulties and because Durbin is such a new change, you need to be prepared to answer any questions your consumers may have. Be sure to educate yourself over the topic.

About The Author
Nick Karcher is a Relationship Manager with Clearent. He began his career in merchant services as an Account Executive and later started his own Independent Sales Office, growing an impressive portfolio before joining the Clearent team. Nick currently manages Account Executives and Relationship Managers who service both referral and agent banks.

Clearent is a different kind of merchant account services provider, offering a flexible proprietary acquiring platform and best-in-class service for not only your organization, but your merchants as well. Learn why you should choose Clearent.