Merchant Sales Podcast

Payroll is one of the most overlooked revenue opportunities for payment professionals. In this episode, James Shepherd talks with Evan Perdikouris, President of Nexroll, about how payroll fits naturally alongside payments and how agents can generate new residual income without becoming payroll experts. They break down the economics, the best merchant targets, and simple referral strategies that de...

In this episode, James Shepherd sits down with Blake Wilson for a behind-the-scenes conversation on a rare evolution in merchant services - an ISO scaling the traditional agent channel while simultaneously transforming into a SaaS and technology company. They dig into what it really takes to choose a vertical, build or buy software the right way, and execute integrated partnerships without losing...

In this week’s episode of the Merchant Sales Podcast, James Shepherd sits down with Chris Del Grande, payments entrepreneur and ISO operator, for an in-the-weeds conversation on scaling merchant portfolios through the 1099 agent model. They break down what it really takes to grow at scale - where agents struggle, how ISOs can better support them, and why the 1099 channel remains one of the biggest...

As the industry shifts gears into a new year, James Shepherd sits down with Allan Noe for a timely conversation focused on growth, goal setting, and building the right partnerships to scale an ISO. Allan brings deep experience helping payments businesses grow through strategic relationships - including associations, bank referral programs, and other partnership-driven models that create long-term...

As the payments industry looks toward 2026, many agents and ISOs are realizing the traditional agent model is under pressure. In this episode, James Shepherd sits down with Keith Sampson for an honest conversation about burnout, goal setting, and why chasing high splits often leads to unsustainable businesses. Keith shares lessons from building and exiting companies, navigating personal and profes...

In this week’s episode of the Merchant Sales Podcast, James Shepherd sits down with Juan Ortiz for a motivating and strategy-packed conversation on setting goals for 2026 and choosing the right vertical. Juan shares practical guidance for agents and ISOs on how to focus, niche down, and build a plan that actually drives measurable growth in the coming year. Together, they dig into the challenges r...

In this week’s episode, James Shepherd sits down with Allen Kopelman, CEO of Nationwide Payment Systems and host of the B2B Vault podcast, for a wide-ranging discussion on the biggest shifts reshaping merchant services today. From the Visa/Mastercard settlement and VAMP chargeback rules to the growing pressure on ISOs to own their tech stack, Allen shares what he’s seeing firsthand — and why agent...

In this week’s episode of the Merchant Sales Podcast, James Shepherd welcomes back Steven Morris for a direct and practical conversation about the mistakes agents commonly make when entering the merchant services industry. Steven shares real-world insights from the front lines, what slows agents down, what causes deals to fall through, and how new reps can build a stronger foundation for long-term...

In this episode, James Shepherd delivers a straightforward, easy-to-understand explanation of what credit card processing is and how it works, from the basics of authorization and settlement to the role of processors, acquirers, and merchant accounts. Whether you're new to payments or need a refresher, this is the perfect foundational guide to help you understand the moving parts behind every tran...

In this week’s episode of the Merchant Sales Podcast, James Shepherd shares a replay from a recent live event with partners at TCG, diving deep into today’s high-risk landscape—and why VAMP is creating massive disruption for Shopify merchants. James breaks down what high-risk accounts really are, how VAMP is triggering holds and shutdowns across Shopify, and why this shift is driving a surge of me...

As the payments landscape continues to evolve, how should ISOs, agents, and software providers approach 2026—by going all-in on vertical-specific solutions or by refining generalized offerings that can serve a wider market? In this solo episode, James Shepherd shares hard-earned insights from his experience running both CCStorage, a vertical-specific solution, and Stackably, a more generalized tec...

This week on the Merchant Sales Podcast, James Shepherd revisits a topic many thought was long gone — leasing. With today’s advanced and often expensive POS hardware, leasing is once again becoming a smart tool for ISOs and agents to close deals and increase adoption. James sits down with Robert Ensminger to discuss modern leasing strategies, real-world use cases, and how to position leasing as pa...

Don’t miss the replay of our live event where James Shepherd, Jon Shirey, and Gabe Pinchev introduced a powerful new opportunity for agents and ISOs: reselling FieldPulse through the Full Stack Payments app. You’ll see how FieldPulse helps contractors in industries like HVAC, plumbing, and electrical manage scheduling, invoicing, and payments—all in one simple platform. With full dual pricing supp...

In this week’s episode, James Shepherd takes listeners behind the curtain of a new strategic partnership between Netevia and Stackably—a collaboration designed to target three highly specific verticals through custom-built technology and focused marketing. James is joined by Ben Shirey, who leads Stackably, and Isail Flores from Netevia, who brings more than a decade of experience working in these...

Don’t miss the replay of our live event where I sat down with Jon Shirey, CEO of Full Stack Payments, and Greg Olesnycky, Founder & CEO of Micros Restaurant Systems, to unveil a powerful new partnership built for the enterprise restaurant space. In this session, we explored how agents can now access high-volume and multi-location restaurant accounts that were previously out of reach—and how to tur...

Don’t miss the replay of our live event where James Shepherd, Jon Shirey, and Ben Shirey introduced Stackably—a new brand built to help agents win and retain more merchant accounts. You’ll get a first look at Payment Stack, a simple, all-in-one solution with free hardware, software, dual pricing, and native apps for both merchants and their customers. It’s the first of many feature sets designed t...

Stablecoin is more than hype—it’s creating real opportunities in high-risk and e-commerce. In this episode, James Shepherd sits down with Stan Pacovsky of Payment Servers to explore how stablecoin payments are being applied today and what the future could look like. Then, Patti Murphy joins James for Today in Payments with insights on the latest industry shifts, including changes in B2B transactio...

Should software be processor-agnostic, or is there an advantage when processors own and operate the technology? In this episode, James Shepherd sits down with longtime industry expert Allen Kopelman to unpack the differences, tradeoffs, and future of payments software. They explore how these models impact agents, ISOs, and merchants—and what’s really driving the debate behind the scenes. Plus, don...

Integrated payments are reshaping the industry, but success looks very different depending on whether you’re an ISV or an ISO. This week, James Shepherd sits down with Ashley Willson, a consultant who works with both software companies and ISOs, to share her unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities in integrated payments. With experience on both sides of the equation, Ashley offers p...

Consumer financing has become a critical offering for merchants—and an opportunity for ISOs, agents, and ISVs to differentiate. In this week’s episode, James Shepherd interviews Bob Lovinger from FlexBuy to explore their white label consumer financing solution and recent acquisition of Koalafi’s coaching finance division. Learn how FlexBuy helps merchants provide access to capital, increase conver...

What does it really take to build an ISO capable of boarding 600+ new merchant accounts every month? In this week’s episode, James Shepherd sits down with Dustin Magaziner of PayBright to explore the strategies, systems, and mindset behind scaling an ISO to that level. From operational challenges to growth tactics, Dustin shares a behind-the-scenes look at what’s working today in the industry. The...

Ever wondered what it takes to move from a retail ISO to a wholesale ISO—or what a Payfac actually is? In this week’s episode, James Shepherd sits down with Kyle Morgan to unpack the mechanics of payments behind the scenes. Learn why faster funding for merchants comes at a cost, how the flow of funds works, and the differences between wholesale ISOs and Payfacs. Then, James is joined by Patti Murp...

It is no secret that ISOs are looking for integrated payments partnerships, while ISVs want access to payments industry distribution, but so far, these partnerships have not lived up to the hype. In this week's episode, James Shepherd shares the 6 reasons why ISOs and ISVs have not worked well together so far and what both sides can do about it. Then, James is joined by Patti Murphy for a Today in...

Are industry conferences worth your time and money? In this episode, James Shepherd sits down with John Newton, chief organizer of the Western States Acquirers Association (WSAA), to talk about how to decide whether to attend, the value of sponsoring versus being an attendee, and proven strategies to maximize networking opportunities. James also shares why some of his best deals and connections ha...

As stablecoins gain traction, it’s time to revisit the role of Bitcoin in the payments industry. This week, James Shepherd and Patti Murphy sit down with Jason Keil of Polaris Payments for a timely conversation about where Bitcoin is headed, how new legislation could influence adoption, and what payment professionals should expect over the next 12 to 24 months. Then, Rich Norton shares some quick...