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Merchants that primarily use paper invoices and cash and check payments present the greatest opportunities for independent sales organizations to earn revenue by converting additional transactions to card payments, according to industry observers. For ISOs "the opportunity in America right now seems to be on the side of converting cash to credit," says Gino Kauzlarich, president and CEO of MerchantService.com, a Sarasota, Fla.-based ISO. Some card brands see opportunity for ISOs in this area as well. American Express Co. is "putting a lot of focus" on business-to-business transactions, says Christine Elliott, an AmEx spokesperson. "It's the next area of plasticization," she says. Another area of growth opportunity for ISOs are companies that accept bill payments, says Steve Carnevale, vice president of new markets, consumer bill pay and U.S. commerce development at MasterCard Worldwide. Entities such as utilities and property-management businesses "represent good opportunities for ISOs to expand their business, as consumers increasingly demonstrate a preference to pay these bills with cards," Carnevale says.
