The Mercury Mindset

Small and medium-sized merchants are being overwhelmed with new ways to pay, new standards and regulations and more options at the point of sale than ever before. It was an attempt to tackle this challenge that brought together Mercury Payment Systems, Barclaycard and others, to brainstorm an idea for what the new point of sale should be. Our idea took first place at a recent industry conference.

The conference, the “Innovation Project,” organized by Pymnts.com, brought together the top minds in the payments industry for a two-day summit on the future of commerce.

The ThinkAThon competition brought together teams from across the industry to compete to solve a modern day payment problems with new ideas.

Our challenge: How can merchants, issuers, acquirers, networks and perhaps even consumers work together to reach the best solution most efficiently?

The answer we found was in mobile phone numbers. In addition to a pass code, the number could replace the 16-digit credit or debit card number to supplement the POS.

The idea is that the new POS technology would be built on an open platform that attach all personalized payment preferences, loyalty information, shopping preferences, etc. to the new payment token – mobile phone number and PIN.

This provides a common means for merchants to issue loyalty, offers, etc., while also protecting the consumer’s identity and information.

Of course, in order for this idea to work, we believe acquirers will need to create deployment standards for this platform, networks will need to adapt their rules so as to accept this new consumer identification system, and merchants will need to deploy it across all channels and train consumers.

No one on our team took on the challenge to build the open network (yet), but we are honored that the industry took notice of our idea. Mobile-empowered consumers are driving changes with how merchants interact with their customers.

It was an interesting challenge and we congratulate all the winners.

Integrity. It’s something many businesses talk about but few live up to. That’s why we’re so excited to announce that our reseller partners have selected Mercury Payment Systems as a 2013 Best Channel Vendor by Business Solutions Magazine. Again. This is the fifth year in a row we’ve won this award.

We are so honored that this esteemed award, determined by BSM readers, recognizes Mercury for product reliability and service and support for our payment processing services.

Mercury was selected to win the award in an annual reader’s survey to determine the best channel vendors. VAR subscribers rated vendor partners across seven categories:

• Adequate margins
• Channel friendly
• Channel program
• Product features
• Product innovation
• Product reliability
• Service and support

As an organization, we are deeply committed to nurturing strong relationships with our channel partners. We look to provide our partners with the best solutions, services and support that complement their business and allow them to remain competitive.

This award not only validates that we’re on the right track, it shows us that our partners value our relationships as much as we value theirs.

Thank you for awarding our integrity. We’ll make sure we spend every day of 2013 living up to our reputation.

Mercury is making it even simpler for retailers and merchants to increase revenue and customer retention though social and mobile technology. We’ll be demonstrating our MecuryLoyalty program, as well as emerging technologies and security innovations at the National Retail Federation (NRF) Big Show, now through Jan. 16 at Jacob K Javits Convention Center in New York, located at Booth #2461.

MercuryLoyalty was designed specifically to give small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) the same loyalty marketing opportunities as big box retailers. Using MercuryLoyalty, merchants of all sizes can attract new customers and retain and grow their existing customer base by improving customer engagement – all automatically through their existing POS system.

“Existing customers are an amazing source for incremental revenue, yet many merchants miss out because creating and maintaining an effective customer loyalty program has been too cost-prohibitive and complicated,” said John Berkley, senior vice president of product management for Mercury, who will be demonstrating Mercury’s technology at the show.

“With an ever-expanding list of mobile and social payment options, it can be confusing for merchants to know which solution is best for the future of their business. MercuryLoyalty takes the guess work out of process by integrating emerging commerce technologies with whichever solution they already have, thereby extending their existing investment,” Berkley said.

Mercury pioneered the model of direct POS integration with its payment processing technology, and has more than a decade of experience in making the process seamless for ISVs across all verticals.

Mercury employs a dedicated integration team to support developers through the entire integration process, so regardless of the platform they’re integrating to, Mercury has the tools, expertise and support processes in place to get the job done efficiently. This ensures Mercury’s partner can make more money and better serve their customers, faster.

MercuryLoyalty is the industry’s first card-less loyalty solution that integrates mobile and social technology into the point-of-sale. For merchants using MercuryLoyalty, customers simply sign in at the POS using a mobile device and are instantly credited and rewarded for their transaction.

The data from the purchase is bundled with their previous shopping history – including info from any previous card-based loyalty system – and stored in memory for the life of the POS. In addition, MercuryLoyalty supports Mercury’s patent-pending, closed-loop coupon redemption process.

Together, these tools provide cumulative intelligence that helps merchants reduce operating costs and support issues while creating highly customized offers to loyal customers based on past purchases and anticipated future needs.

Stop by Booth 2461 and enter a drawing for a $500 Visa gift card. We look forward to seeing you there!

Happy Holidays!

The most important shopping day of the season is fast approaching. It’s not Black Friday. It’s not Cyber Monday either. It’s Small Business Saturday®.

For the third year, American Express is hosting Small Business Saturday on November 24th. We encourage all of our small business partners to take part in this exciting event.

Small Business Saturday encourages consumers to shop local, benefitting small businesses, the community and the local economy.

Spread the word. Visit ShopSmall.com to get free signage, sample social media posts and much more
from American Express. It’s an excellent opportunity to promote your business and attract new customers. Encourage your fellow small businesses to rally for Small Business Saturday too.

Let’s make this the biggest day of the year for small business.

Get the tools and industry insights you need to take your business to the next level. Sign up for Mercury’s monthly Third Thursday webinar.

The Third Thursday webinar features a panel of industry experts and members of Mercury’s leadership team. Each webinar highlights new topics for discussion so each session is fresh and relevant. Topics vary from the latest Mercury products and sales strategies, to insight about upcoming industry trends and challenges.

The webinar takes place at 1:00 p.m ET on the third Thursday of each month. Can’t make it? No problem. Listen to a recorded session at your convenience. Click here to see this week’s upcoming webinar topics. You can also use this link to register, listen to a past webinar, or suggest a new topic.

Sign up and join in!

It’s a good day for Mercury. We have been named Colorado’s Technology Company of the Year by the Colorado Technology Association (CTA). The award was presented to Mercury at the annual Apex Awards Ceremony in Denver, October 24, 2012.

The award recognizes Mercury for being a leader in our industry by creating innovative products, and showing leadership in product development, financial responsibility, community involvement, and overall performance.

Mercury was selected from over 50 nominated companies including Comcast Colorado and GoDaddy.com.

“To be chosen as Technology Company of the Year by our peers, colleagues and neighbors in the Colorado Technology Association is a real honor,” said Matt Taylor, CEO of Mercury.

The award prompted a congratulatory press release from Colorado Senator Michael Bennet, calling Mercury an innovative leader in payment processing. He also recognizes Mercury for being a leading employer in Durango, creating jobs for hundreds of Coloradoans.

Read the full press release.

It’s official. Mercury partners with the best in the business.

Last week, RSPA announced the Vendor Awards of Excellence at the RSPA RetailNOW 2012 expo. The awards are based on member votes, which makes winning a peer-based vote of confidence! And we have nothing but confidence in our outstanding award winning partners who took honors in seven categories:  hardware, software, hardware & software, technology distributor, consumables, reseller support services, and electronic payments/financing.         See the full list of winners.

We took home our own awards as well. Mercury won the Gold Medallion for the third consecutive year. The Gold Medallion is awarded to the vendor with the best overall score in all categories. Prior to 2010, no payment processor had ever won the Gold Medallion. Bringing it home three years in a row is an incredible honor. And the fact that it comes from our partners makes it very dear to us.  In addition to winning the Gold Medallion, we also won the top award in the Electronic Payments/Financing category for the fourth year in a row.

During RetailNOW, we took the opportunity to recognize the achievements of our partners. During our dealer meeting we announced Mercury’s Top Partner Awards. Winners were selected from three finalists in 13 categories; five developer awards, and 8 reseller awards.

Rookie of the Year
Developer: Data Business Systems
Reseller: Apollo Merchant Services

Developer awards
Future POS—Cutting Edge Solutions
MICROS Systems
Retail Pro International
CRS-USA

Reseller awards
POS Solutions, NJ
Esber Cash Register
CRS Texas
Cash Register Systems, OK
Delaware Business Systems
RCS, Houston
Integrated Payment Solutions

Congratulations to all of our partners who earned much deserved awards at RetailNOW 2012!

Mercury’s point-of-sale (POS) partners who are attending the RSPA RetailNOW show next week in Las Vegas are in for a treat. MercuryLoyalty™ will be released.

While the term “loyalty” may conjure different things among business operators, to Mercury it means leveraging consumers’ mobile phones to give merchants a powerful, yet simple, way to grow their businesses and keep their customers coming back. It also includes seamless card based functionality.

High level, here’s a look at MercuryLoyalty:

• POS integrated mobile and social based loyalty program
• SaaS based measurement and communication platform
• Mobile number replaces a plastic loyalty card
• Automated and convenient customer registration process
• Streamline business processes and cut down on check-out times
• One-click customer segmentation
• Hands-off customer data collection
• Engage customers with relevant opt-in offers
• Supports SMS text, email, and social media
• Full ROI measurement – campaign analysis
• Integrated into MercuryGift and credit card processing
• Enhances security and eliminates operator error at POS
• Alternate card based functionality supported

Full release details will be available next week. Contact Mercury for information.

Did you know that RSPA members get a say in electing members to the Board of Directors? The annual election is held at the RetailNOW conference in Las Vegas. This year’s election takes place on Monday, July 30th, 10:15-11:45 a.m.

There are two great reasons to vote this year. One: Voting allows you to have a voice in the leadership of RSPA. Two: Tom Reichart.

Tom Reichart, Mercury’s VP of Business Development, won a seat on the board in 2009 and is up for re-election this year. Use your vote to retain Tom on the RSPA Board of Directors.

Why re-elect Tom?

• He is passionate about the retail technology industry
• He has been active in the industry for over 40 years
• He has been a member of RSPA since it’s inception 15 years ago
• Since joining the board in 2009 he has helped the membership committee increase membership by 300 members
• He is passionate about technology innovation and how it can help VARs and ISVs achieve their business goals
• He has an uncanny ability to connect with people (ask to see his rolodex!)
• He has a gift for understanding reseller businesses and their needs
• He helps resellers grow their business with the latest technology solutions and subscription based revenue

Tom is an asset to every company he works with. He is a valuable member of the Board of Directors and should be retained for another term. If you’re attending RetailNOW, stop by the welcome reception Sunday, July 29th, 6:30-8 p.m. to meet Tom, and be sure to vote on Monday!