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88
Education
I realize quickly that first I have to teach people how to
pronounce the name. It is not sign-a-pay or sig-nay-pay.
So I create materials that address our signaficantly different
products and services. I use the word signaficant a lot.
Does that create attention and boost sales? Absolutely not.
All it does is reinforce and build the brand. But I haven't
yet defined the brand.
I'm at a loss. The industry is crowded enough so that
virtually every ISO or MLS need is being addressed by
someone, somewhere. I pace. And I change direction.
I ask, What makes us different? I come up with two
things: First, we are small, and our top people are therefore
involved in every telephone call and every decision.
They are good, intelligent, experienced people who know
what they are doing.
Is that enough to build a brand? I think not, because if we
grow, that will change. And I certainly don't want to build
a brand that, by its very nature, starts to die the minute it
starts to grow.
Our second difference: John Martillo. He came to the
United States from Ecuador. He sold encyclopedias out
of a kiosk in a mall. He entered the payments industry
selling credit card processing to bodegas (small grocery or
But how do I turn this
into a brand? Well, it
does imply that John
knows how to build a
successful ISO. Who
doesn't want to be
attached to success? It
means he knows what
it is like to be in the
trenches. It means he has
the financial strength and
control to offer flexible
funding to ISO partners.
I throw that at the wall.
It doesn't really stick.
mini-mart-type stores in neighborhoods where Spanish is
a dominant language) in Queens. He built Cynergy into
an industry-leading acquirer and became a multimillionaire
in his 30s.
But how do I turn this into a brand? Well, it does
imply that John knows how to build a successful ISO.
Who doesn't want to be attached to success? It means
he knows what it is like to be in the trenches. It means
he has the financial strength and control to offer flexible
funding to ISO partners. I throw that at the wall. It doesn't
really stick.
And then a thought occurs to me. John's English isn't
great. It was a lot worse when he began his career 15 years
ago. He succeeded, in part, because he did business with
merchants who spoke Spanish. Today, the Spanish-speaking
population is the fastest-growing market segment in
this country.
To the best of my knowledge, there is no business in the
payments industry totally and completely dedicated to
serving the needs of this market. And no one is better
qualified to do it than John.
Is this my hole waiting to be filled? SeñorPay, a division
of SignaPay devoted exclusively to the Latino merchant
market, launches next month. And if my instincts and
months of research are on target, I may have just developed
a brand that can work. What do you think?
Nancy Drexler is the Vice President, Marketing for SignaPay
Ltd., an ISO headquartered in Dallas. Reach her at
nancyd@signapay.net.