The payments market has become increasingly competitive in the past few years, and many merchants receive daily solicitations from payment vendors claiming they have the lowest prices in town. How can your community bank retain your merchant accounts, even when your customers are being bombarded daily with advertisements from your competitors?
Proactive Service and Transparent Pricing
According to studies, it costs roughly five times more to acquire a new client than to maintain a relationship with a current account. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when every penny counts, it’s important to provide excellent customer service to your merchant accounts, so that you can keep their business even when your competitors are advertising directly to them.
Beyond keeping in touch with your customers on a regular basis and making sure they have all the tools necessary for their businesses to succeed, it’s important to be proactive about addressing their concerns before they even voice them to you. By the time they open their mouths and say that they have decided to make a change to a different payment processor, like Square, QuickBooks, or Stripe, it’s likely already too late to save your account. Why? Because when your competitors approach your customers, they’re putting forth their best efforts to sway your customer in their direction by using advertising tricks, like offering a lower price that excludes the hidden monthly fees. Sure, the quoted price might be lower than your pricing, but that doesn’t include the $50.00 of hidden add-on and administrative charges that will show up on their first bill.
So how do you address customer concerns before they even express them? The Celero system allows you to monitor how your merchant accounts are using your payment processing solutions. If you notice a sudden dip in the number of times they are processing with your institution, it’s a good idea to check in with them. It could be that their business has hit a snag or they’re going through a dry spell, and in this case, you can take this time to talk to them about how you can help them through their tough time. You can discuss some of Celero’s money-saving solutions and how to get started. On the other hand, a dip in transactions might mean they are processing with your competitors. In this case, you can take this time to ask them how you can better serve their needs. Reminding them about the countless advantages of processing with your bank will help to solidify your business relationship.
If you notice that your merchant accounts are downloading financial statements, it could mean that they are shopping around for other payment processing vendors. Competitors will often ask for a financial breakdown of what they are paying their current vendor, so that they can try to undercut your pricing. If you contact your customer and they tell you that they’re considering making a change, it’s important to remind them of your transparent and straightforward pricing model. Even if a vendor offers a lower price, it doesn’t mean it’s the better deal. With Celero payment solutions, we offer simple pricing without any of the hidden fees other payment vendors sneak into their contracts. Discussing pricing concerns with your customer will help you get a feel for how your bank can better serve them, and it will give you a chance to get your customer to stay with you.
Innovative Payment Solutions
The growth of your financial institution is dependent on the growth of your commercial accounts, so it’s important to provide them with payment solutions that will help them succeed during these tough times. If you’re not already utilizing Celero’s payment processing solutions, please contact us today. We are here to help you nurture relationships with your commercial customers and we offer 24/7 customer service support.