How to Develop World Class Payment Professionals

As any fintech founder will attest, the four Ps of marketing — Price, Product, Placement, and Promotion — are still relevant in today’s ever-changing payment industry. But can your marketing mix alone set you apart in this cutthroat environment? While the classic four Ps are important, the real difference-maker is outstanding service. Your employees’ engagements with prospects and customers not only drive sales but also spur the most powerful marketing tool in existence: word of mouth. There’s no shortage of advice on how to develop a world-class payment team. That said, the most impactful and eye-opening principle we’ve ever heard is: Do unto your employees as you would have them do unto your customers. In other words, set the standard for customer engagement through firsthand experience. If you want your employees to deliver world-class service, treat them to a world-class culture internally. Consider this the “Golden Rule” of marketing. It’s so simple, but, unfortunately, cultivating a high-performance team is not as easy as it sounds. That’s why we’ve outlined how fintech leaders can approach this challenge by looking inwardly at their internal processes.How Fintech Leaders Can Develop World Class ServiceIn an ideal world, your company would come fully outfitted with industry-renowned payment professionals who know your products/solutions inside and out. Alas, reaching this point can be an arduous, time-consuming process. Fast-growing fintechs already have a lot of moving pieces and evolving needs. There are products to develop, KPIs to meet, and customers to acquire. Finding, vetting, and properly onboarding talent can slip through the cracks. Not to mention ongoing training and skill development. However, before you can foster a culture of world-class customer service, you need to foster a culture of world-class employee service. Your employees want to be valued. In fact, it’s the most important factor of job satisfaction alongside a sense of belonging. “Value” usually translates to recognition and development. That starts with giving them the proper tools, resources, and training to succeed at their jobs at the onset. You’d be hard-pressed to find a successful payment founder or CEO that believes payment training isn’t important or necessary. In theory, upfront training should drive faster integration and development, which should lead to higher productivity and sales efficiency. The logic is sound, yet most companies fail to incorporate this concept into their day-to-day operations. So, we’ve outlined a few questions to help you assess your company’s existing payment training and procedures.

1. How does your current employee experience, payment training, and onboarding process affect the attraction and retention of your customers?

Almost 60% of employees report having zero workplace training — instead, they teach themselves. Equally as concerning, more than four in ten new managers say they haven’t received any training at all. That’s not a recipe for success. Left to their own devices, employees not only waste time trying to learn their roles but struggle to meet performance expectations. So, what is your process like? Would you say your sales team is adequately prepared to communicate with customers? How do you think their preparedness affects your customer relationships?

2. How could improving your overall employee experience, onboarding process, and payment training impact productivity within your organization?

In the payment space, it takes the typical new sales hire roughly 9 to 12 months to assimilate into their role and feel knowledgeable enough to confidently oversee customer accounts. Imagine if you could trim that learning curve in half. What would that do for your win rates, employee satisfaction, and broader revenue goals? The right payment training program can make that happen.

3. To what extent does your existing employee product expertise and industry knowledge influence your customer experience?

Deep knowledge and understanding of products have a direct impact on win rates, deliverables, and the overall customer experience, especially in sales, service, and product development. No team wins 100% of their opportunities, but it’s beneficial to explore why you’re winning and losing. Could inadequate training and a lack of customer confidence be the result? Are your sales teams able to answer diverse customer problems – or at least know how to locate the solutions?

4. What types of analytics are you using to evaluate the effectiveness of your current onboarding and training methods?

Quantitative data from sales figures can be helpful, but don’t overlook direct, qualitative feedback from your sales team and product developers. How effective is your onboarding and payment training programs? When was the last time you evaluated them? What kind of feedback are you getting from new salespeople and product developers?Immersive Payment Training That’s Personalized to Your BusinessWorld-class onboarding can produce a world-class sales team. However, most fintechs employ one of two onboarding approaches: they either rely on generalized, ad hoc workshops or they set up internal programs facilitated by existing sales directors. The former is convenient and informative from a high-level perspective — but payment training isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution because no two companies are the same. Ignoring your business’s nuances sets new employees up for failure. The latter is more personalized, but it places a heavy burden on existing sales leaders, who must weigh the opportunity cost of putting time into training new hires versus pursuing sales. A half-hearted program typically leads to half-developed personnel. Instead, fintech leaders can outsource this integral step to external payment professionals. Gain the Lead offers an immersive, multi-week payment training program that not only explores the broader industry but also caters to the specific nuances and procedures of your organization. Your employees gain 24/7 access to an instructor — no need to inconvenience leadership — while you receive a dedicated blueprint for training future hires. If you’d like to learn more about our expertise-based mentoring program and change management consulting, you can schedule a free consultation today.