--- title: Build a Profitable Merchant Services Portfolio Now description: A profitable merchant services portfolio balances best practices without falling into bad habits. Learn how to build yours! image: https://blog.payroc.com/hubfs/blog/merchant-services-portfolio.jpg --- [Skip to Content](https://blog.payroc.com/how-to-build-the-most-profitable-merchant-services-portfolio#main-content) ![USA - Current Region](https://payroc.com/wp-content/themes/payroc/assets/us-flag.svg) US - [![USA flag](https://payroc.com/wp-content/themes/payroc/assets/us-flag.svg) United States](https://payroc.com/) - [![Canada flag](https://payroc.com/wp-content/themes/payroc/assets/ca-flag.svg) Canada](https://payroc.com/en_ca/) [EN](https://payroc.com/en_ca/?utm_content=language-button) [FR](https://payroc.com/fr/?utm_content=language-button) - [![United Kingdom flag](https://payroc.com/wp-content/themes/payroc/assets/uk-flag.svg) United Kingdom](https://uk.payroc.com/) - [![Puerto Rico flag](https://payroc.com/wp-content/themes/payroc/assets/pr-flag.svg) Puerto Rico](https://dynamicspayments.com/) Partner‑Driven. People‑Powered. Global‑Simplified. [![Payroc - Homepage](https://blog.payroc.com/hs-fs/hubfs/payroc-logo-black.png?width=77&height=59&name=payroc-logo-black.png "Payroc - Homepage")](https://payroc.com/) Search - Sign in Back Gateways [Payroc Gateway](https://payments.payroc.com/merchant/selfcare/) [IBX](https://gateway.ibxpays.com/vt/login.aspx) [Worldnet](https://payments.worldnettps.com/merchant/selfcare/) [Caledon](https://dashboard.caledoncard.com) [iTransact for Agents](https://gateway.itransact.com/h/cp/user_sessions/landing) [iTransact for Merchants](https://gateway.itransact.com/h/cp/user_sessions/landing) [Third-party Gateways](https://payroc.com/third-party-gateways/) Systems [Payroc Insights](https://payroc.partnerengage.com/Account/Login) [Roc Services](https://services.rocpos.com/) [Roc Terminal+](https://terminalplus.rocpos.com/) [Sales Portal](https://sales.payroc.com/Login.aspx) [MSPWare](https://nxgen.mspware.com/Beta#/Login) [Third-party Systems](https://payroc.com/third-party-systems/) - [Contact us](https://payroc.com/contacts/) Menu - Platform Back Move Money [Payment Processing Power every payment journey](https://payroc.com/payment-processing-services/) [Omnicommerce Gateway Process securely, everywhere](https://payroc.com/solutions/gateway/) [Pricing Programs Cut processing costs](https://payroc.com/payment-processing-options/) [Global Payment Orchestration Optimize payments wherever you sell](https://payroc.com/solutions/payment-orchestration/) Run the Business [Payroc Capital Access fast, flexible funding](https://payroc.com/merchant-financing-solutions/) [Invoicing & Billing Simplify billing and accelerate cash flow](https://payroc.com/invoicing-and-billing/) [Point-of-Sale Systems Find the right POS solution](https://payroc.com/point-of-sale-systems/) [Giving & Donations Accept donations, run campaigns](https://payroc.com/donations-and-giving/) [Data & Analytics Access and understand payment data](https://payroc.com/payment-analytics/) Integrate & Build [Integrated Payments Get more from embedded payments](https://payroc.com/integrated-payments/) [Integration Essentials Add payments fast with prebuilt tools](https://payroc.com/solutions/prebuilt-integrated-payment-solution-for-saas/) [Payroc Cloud Integrate POS devices via the cloud](https://payroc.com/solutions/cloud/) [Full Stack Choose tools to build your way](https://docs.payroc.com/solutions#full-stack) [Developer Experience Simplify your integration path](https://payroc.com/solutions/developer-experience/) [Direct ERP Integrations Connect payments to ERP systems](https://www.bluesnap.com/partners/?_partner_category=erp-crm) - Who We Serve Back Partner With Us [Software Providers Upgrade your payments partnership](https://payroc.com/industries/saas-vendors/) [ISOs & Agents Help merchants grow while earning more](https://payroc.com/industries/sales-partners-agent/) [Financial Institutions Drive commercial growth with merchant services](https://payroc.com/industries/financial-institutions/) [Referral Partners Earn residual income from referrals](https://payroc.com/industries/referral-partners/) Process With Us [Small & Midsize Businesses Accept payments, manage business easily](https://payroc.com/industries/merchants/) [Enterprise Streamline complexity, optimize profits](https://payroc.com/enterprise-payments/) Build With Us [Developer Experience Simplify your integration path](https://payroc.com/solutions/developer-experience/) - Who We Are Back [About Us Get to know Payroc](https://payroc.com/about-us/) [Events Connect with us on the road](https://payroc.com/events/) [Careers Join our award-winning team](https://payroc.com/about-us/careers/) [Our Community See our community involvement](https://payroc.com/about-us/our-community/) [Our Team Get to know our leadership](https://payroc.com/about-us/our-team/) - Resources Back Learn [Blog & Insights Read industry insights](https://blog.payroc.com/) [Case Studies See how businesses grow with us](https://payroc.com/case-studies/) [Product Updates Stay up to date on launches](https://payroc.com/product-updates/) [Feature Log Explore product enhancements](https://payroc.com/feature-log/) [News & Press Explore news and announcements](https://payroc.com/about-us/awards-and-press/) Support [Support Center Get answers to your questions](https://support.payroc.com/) [Security & Compliance Explore and access trust resources](https://payroc.com/security-and-compliance/) - Developers Back [Developer Portal Access sandbox and API keys](https://developers.payroc.com/) [Payroc.ai Get helpful resources for developers](https://payroc.ai/) [Developer Docs Explore guides and AI skills](https://docs.payroc.com/) [Back to Blog](https://blog.payroc.com) # How to Build the Most Profitable Merchant Services Portfolio Posted on Dec 18, 2023 By [John Burns](https://blog.payroc.com/author/john-burns) - [**Retail**](https://blog.payroc.com/tag/retail) - [**Sales Playbook**](https://blog.payroc.com/tag/sales-playbook) - [**ISO/Agent**](https://blog.payroc.com/tag/iso-agent) ![How to Build the Most Profitable Merchant Services Portfolio](https://blog.payroc.com/hubfs/blog/merchant-services-portfolio.jpg) Share this: - - - Selling merchant services is a tough industry. As an agent, you want to create a profitable portfolio, but it’s not as simple as focusing solely on pricing and solutions. Both play a big role, but there are other factors that also help predict profitability. Creating a strong portfolio requires strong relationships and strategic thinking. ### Build Trust The trust bond with your merchants is critical. They need to know you’re being honest and upfront about everything — from the rate they’ll pay to who they should call with questions. Notably, if you’re viewed as a trusted advisor, your clients will be less likely to meet with a competitor even when there’s a potentially better price involved. In those situations, you want a relationship where your client comes to you first because they understand the value you provide — instead of jumping ship. To that end, always be responsive. When your merchants call, pick up or call them back quickly. ### Set Proper Expectations Make sure to manage merchants’ expectations. For example, if a merchant tells you they have only 5 minutes to talk to you about a new service or product, you may want to suggest finding another time to talk, because it’s important that the merchant understands what you have to say and that your time is valuable as well. This is your first impression and, quite possibly, the only chance you have to convince a merchant to do business with you. The more you can show that what you have to offer will add value to their business, the more likely they will view it that way, too. Also, make sure to manage expectations about what your solution can and cannot do. Explaining what is not possible or realistic is just as important as what is possible. This establishes boundaries with your client from day one. ### Create Win-Win Scenarios Looking for a good lead-in product? Start with surcharging. The savings are often too good for merchants to pass up. Surcharging models provide choices to merchants and their end customers — the choice of how the merchant wants to accept payments, and the choice of how the end consumer wants to pay. Surcharging accounts are also more profitable for agents, so it's a win-win. At Payroc, we offer RewardPay, a compliant surcharging model that only surcharges credit cards — debit cards are never surcharged. With RewardPay, you can eliminate 80% to 85% of the merchant’s cost of credit card acceptance. While you do have to charge for debit cards, when compared to standard pricing models, the program can save merchants between 50% and 70% overall. ### Emphasize the Value of Service Another important strategy is to emphasize the value you provide beyond pricing. Many merchants — especially new prospects — will cut right to the chase by asking about your lowest rate. That conversation can easily lead to having all your clients paying the lowest rate and generating little revenue for your business. And make no mistake: Those clients will still require the same service level as any other merchant! It's important to set up the expectation that your services aren’t free and then deliver value. If you live up to that promise, the cost will be worth it for your clients. Instead of reacting to a conversation about rates, take a moment to refocus. Redirect the conversation to talk about fair pricing and, more importantly *value*. Emphasize the unmatched service you provide and how your partnership can help grow their bottom line. Merchants who understand and appreciate the service you provide are more likely to refer other clients. ### Set Up Support Systems It’s one thing to say you provide support, but it’s another to actually *deliver*. This is where the rubber hits the road in building trust. Does that mean you have to resolve every client issue yourself? Of course not. Most agents and ISOs aren’t support specialists. But you should be the primary point person for clients to reach internal support resources. For example, Payroc has multiple support teams who handle everything from technical issues to general questions. And our sales support is extensive. We offer regular webinars on new product releases, a product resource library to keep agents informed, and a full team of product sales managers who serve as subject matter experts for each product that Payroc offers. This allows our agents to help resolve merchant client issues as soon as possible. ### Be Willing to Say ‘No’ Don’t get into the habit of saying “yes” to everything. If your merchant asks about features and functionality and you can’t provide it, tell them. You may not always win the deal by being honest, but the more time you spend on support trying to address unmet expectations, the less time you spend building your business. If a merchant feels they’ve been lied to, they will probably leave. ### Start With a Familiar Industry Every agent wants merchants with high credit card sales volume. But that may not be easy to find right out of the gate. Agents don’t typically break into this industry by immediately landing big clients. Instead, be willing to start a little bit smaller, build trust, develop solid relationships, learn and then lean on existing clients as references to grow your business. So as a new agent, where do you start? Many successful agents started by building a solid book of business in a single industry. This can be especially helpful for agents with no merchant services experience. In fact, some agents work only with specific industries, such as restaurants, salons and spas, or retailers to name a few. By focusing on a single industry, you can get an in-depth understanding of the challenges and address them with solutions. And once you’re proficient in one industry, you’ll find that some challenges are universal. That’s when you can leverage your knowledge and experience into other industries. The key to building a profitable merchant services portfolio is to create a win-win with your clients. That includes leveraging a clear strategy that establishes you as a trusted partner. As their businesses grow, so will yours. ## Get started with Payroc No matter where you are in your payments journey—whether you're a merchant, agent, referral partner, or software developer—we're here to help. [Contact us](https://payroc.com/contacts/) Platform Move Money - [Payment Processing](https://payroc.com/payment-processing-services/) - [Omnicommerce Gateway](https://payroc.com/solutions/gateway/) - [Pricing Programs](https://payroc.com/payment-processing-options/) - [Global Payment Orchestration](https://payroc.com/solutions/payment-orchestration/) Run the Business - [Payroc Capital](https://payroc.com/merchant-financing-solutions/) - [Invoicing & Billing](https://payroc.com/invoicing-and-billing/) - [Point-of-Sale Systems](https://payroc.com/point-of-sale-systems/) - [Giving & Donations](https://payroc.com/donations-and-giving/) - [Data & Analytics](https://payroc.com/payment-analytics/) Integrate & Build - [Integrated Payments](https://payroc.com/integrated-payments/) - [Integration Essentials](https://payroc.com/solutions/prebuilt-integrated-payment-solution-for-saas/) - [Payroc Cloud](https://payroc.com/solutions/cloud/) - [Full Stack](https://docs.payroc.com/solutions#full-stack) - [Developer Experience](https://payroc.com/solutions/developer-experience/) - [Direct ERP Integrations](https://www.bluesnap.com/partners/?_partner_category=erp-crm) Who We Serve Partner With Us - [Software Providers](https://payroc.com/industries/saas-vendors/) - [ISOs & Agents](https://payroc.com/industries/sales-partners-agent/) - [Financial Institutions](https://payroc.com/industries/financial-institutions/) - [Referral Partners](https://payroc.com/industries/referral-partners/) Process With Us - [Small & Midsize Businesses](https://payroc.com/industries/merchants/) - [Enterprise](https://payroc.com/enterprise-payments/) Build With Us - [Developer Experience](https://payroc.com/solutions/developer-experience/) Developers - [Developer Portal](https://developers.payroc.com/) - [Payroc.ai](https://payroc.ai/) - [Developer Docs](https://docs.payroc.com/) Who We Are - [About Us](https://payroc.com/about-us/) - [Events](https://payroc.com/events/) - [Careers](https://payroc.com/about-us/careers/) - [Our Community](https://payroc.com/about-us/our-community/) - [Our Team](https://payroc.com/about-us/our-team/) Resources Learn - [Blog & Insights](https://blog.payroc.com/) - [Case Studies](https://payroc.com/case-studies/) - [Product Updates](https://payroc.com/product-updates/) - [Feature Log](https://payroc.com/feature-log/) - [News & Press](https://payroc.com/about-us/awards-and-press/) Support - [Support Center](https://support.payroc.com/) - [Security & Compliance](https://payroc.com/security-and-compliance/) --- **System status** All systems operational Payroc WorldAccess, LLC or its subsidiaries (“Payroc”) is a registered Independent Sales Organization (ISO) of Fifth Third Bank, N.A., Cincinnati, OH, Peoples Trust Company, Vancouver, BC, Canada, PNC Bank, N.A., Pittsburgh, PA, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Concord, CA, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Canadian Branch, Toronto, ON, Canada, Citizens Bank, N.A., Providence, RI, Merrick Bank Corporation, South Jordan, UT, Woodforest National Bank, The Woodlands, TX and KeyBank, N.A., Cleveland, OH. Payroc is a registered Encryption Support Organization (ESO), Payment Facilitator (PF), Third-Party Servicer (TPS), Merchant Service Provider (MSP), and a Third-Party Agent (TPA) of Fifth Third Bank, N.A., Cincinnati, OH. - - - - [![Payroc BBB Business Review](https://payroc.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/bbb-accredited-business.png)](https://www.bbb.org/us/il/tinley-park/profile/payment-processing-services/payroc-0654-90002110/#sealclick) Copyright © 2026 Payroc WorldAccess, LLC - [Legal](https://payroc.com/legal/) - [Accessibility Statement](https://payroc.com/accessibility-statement/) - [Reviews](https://payroc.com/reviews/) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "John Burns", "url" : "https://blog.payroc.com/author/john-burns" }, "dateModified" : "2025-08-01T20:33:06.391Z", "datePublished" : "2023-12-18T21:52:46.000Z", "headline" : "Build a Profitable Merchant Services Portfolio Now", "image" : [ "https://blog.payroc.com/hubfs/blog/merchant-services-portfolio.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.payroc.com/how-to-build-the-most-profitable-merchant-services-portfolio", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.payroc.com/hubfs/payroc-logo-navy-1.png" }, "name" : "Payroc" } } ```