By: Jim Roddy, President & CEO at the RSPA
A retail IT channel industry veteran recently shared with me his frustration that some ISVs don’t know how to “talk channel.” Their communication focuses on technology features, functions, and applications, and they don’t show resellers their importance in the ISV’s ecosystem.
My industry friend would have been delighted had he attended the 2025 NCC Reseller Conference with me March 20-22 at Graceland in Memphis, TN. NCC proved to be fluent in the language of the channel, fielding 100+ questions from their resellers and engaging in frank give-and-take discussions during multiple open-forum discussions.
If other ISVs wonder why NCC has been recognized by their partners in the RSPA Vendor of Excellence Awards 13 years running – the last five winning the top Gold award – the foundation of that is they “talk channel.”
Read on for the top VAR advice I gleaned from the NCC conference, and see for yourself how relevant it is for today’s retail IT reseller.
Payments Strategy: Surcharging, Cash Discounting, and Dual Pricing
Payments entrepreneur, investor, advisor, and attorney Jonathan Razi kicked off Day 1 with perhaps the most specific and definitive presentation I’ve seen on surcharging, cash discounting, and dual pricing. He provided these three actionable recommendations near the start of his talk:
- For merchants in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, or New York where surcharging is not permitted, use dual pricing.
- For merchants with a small average ticket or if the majority of cards used are debit (e.g. convenience stores), then use dual pricing.
- In all other cases, use surcharging for compliance certainty.
I think Razi surprised the nearly 100 NCC VARs and vendor partners in the audience because, as he noted, many merchants and solution providers complain about the plethora of rules and regulations surrounding surcharging. “Think about that list of surcharging rules as a safe harbor,” Razi said. “If you are meeting all those requirements, you’re not going to get fined.”
Razi also provided attendees with specific guidance for overcoming merchant objections related to surcharging, cash discounting, and dual pricing:
- Will my customers be OK? Emphasize transparency and choice (debit as a no-fee option), send case studies, and share example customer communications.
- Is surcharging allowed? Provide credible sources, discuss compliance functions performed by the product (e.g. BIN lookup)
- Is switching to this program worth the hassle? Calculate anticipated savings based on the merchant’s current processing costs
“Because these models are rapidly gaining popularity, if you’re not offering this functionality to your clients, someone else will,” Razi said. “With these programs, resellers typically achieve higher profitability than with traditional processing and can offer a differentiated solution.”
Razi shared data from two industry reports which gave him confidence to say he estimates 25% of merchants pass along credit card fees today. Based on adoption trends in the U.S. and other countries, Razi predicts in a few years 40% of U.S. merchants will pass along credit card fees.
“Merchants are motivated to pass on transaction fees due to rising processing costs, inflationary pressures, and economic concerns,” he said. “Demand is significant, and compliance risks are increasing.”
Razi was recommended to speak at the NCC Conference by RSPA General Counsel Atty. Jill Miller who is available to answer payments and legal questions from RSPA members at no charge.
Success Stories with Real Time Ordering and NCC’s Reflection POS
I’m not technically equipped to dive into the finer points of this product-focused Day 1 panel, but this session did provide some universal golden nuggets for non-NCC solution providers compliments of VAR panelists Jim Stewart of POS.com in Chicago and Ron Piwko of All American POS in Detroit as well as moderator Mary Harris of NCC:
- “When we did the install, the technology natives were very accepting of the new product and asked, ‘When can we get those?’ Older servers who have been in the restaurant business for years have a lower adoption rate, and the problem is they’re often times the gatekeepers. It helps to ask if the younger servers can be part of the process early on.” Stewart
- “The older they got, the more stubborn they got. Some didn’t move from the desktop to the handheld right away. But once you see it, they see it’s a difference of just five buttons and then it’s easy to train them.” Piwko
- Piwko on handheld technology directly benefiting servers: “The better they (the server) make the customer feel, the better tip they’re going to get. The more accurate the order is, the better the tip is going to be. The more time they spend face-to-face engaging with the customer, the better the tip is going to be.”
- Stewart on an effective sales tactic: “When you do a discovery call with a (restaurant) prospect, have a meal with them, bring your phone, and time how long it takes to close the bill. Show them how long that takes and how much faster your technology can increase their table turns which will increase their sales. That’s a very easy conversation – they’re smacked in the face with that data.”
- Piwko on recurring revenue: “Nobody who might buy your business will ask how much you sold last month. So what if you sold $20,000 last month? When it comes time for you to retire, your book of business, that recurring revenue, that’s what matters.”
RSPA Retail IT Channel Industry Insights
I was honored to take the stage on Day 2 to provide the RSPA’s latest insights into the retail IT channel based on our association’s unique position in the industry. Part of what I shared is a sneak preview of the theme of this summer’s RetailNOW 2025 in Las Vegas.
The #1 challenge facing VARs today is competing against margin-obliterating, VC-backed, 800-number one-size-fits-all POS providers who don’t have a channel. Before I could eat my first spoonful of yogurt at the conference’s breakfast on Day 1, an SMB RSPA VAR shared with me how these “800-number guys” had him on his heels for a few years but now he feels he’s fighting back.
His lead value proposition is countering the 800-number guys’ multimillion-dollar marketing efforts by speaking face-to-face with merchants and emphasizing his family-owned company’s personal touch and 50-year history across three generations. His story reflects the VAR differentiators I mentioned on the NCC stage:
- People and company culture
- Ability to provide fast, personal customer service
- Ability to tailor value
If you are strong in those three differentiators, your solution provider business has a solid foundation upon which you can build. If those three areas are weaknesses for you, you’re going to be fighting the 800-number guys based only on price and marketing which is a major home field advantage for them.
Among the other RSPA member insights I passed along to the NCC attendees were:
- You can only tailor value if you expand your linecard. Many VARs in our space use the RSPA’s Ultimate List of Recurring Revenue Products & Services (Version 4.0) as a guide.
- Partner collaboration is now a strategic imperative. Every successful solution provider I’ve talked with in 2025 is in partner recruitment mode, looking predominantly for new ISVs to expand their offering and seeking VARs to team up with to tackle complex implementations.
- Strive for a human to answer every phone call. When someone doesn’t pick up, utilize a service that converts voicemails to text messages sent to the appropriate staff members.
More Insights from NCC 2025
- Hardware/software provider CRS shared during their product presentation that their primary printer provider, based in China, recently established a production plant in Thailand to avoid U.S. tariffs on Chinese products. They said the quality and price have remained the same; the identical printer could have a 45% tariff if produced in China. I wonder if our channel will see more production shifts like this?
- Two presenters – Datacap and HANASIS – overtly mentioned on the main stage their focus to help VARs compete against the “800-number” POS providers. Great to see our community pulling together to fight this battle!
- NCC President Chuck Prince shared an NRA (National Restaurant Association) survey statistic that 67% of full-service restaurant customers and 71% of limited-service restaurant customers indicated they are likely to pay in cash rather than debit/credit to obtain a discount. Prince also shared from that survey that restaurant operators said their top three challenges for 2025 are labor costs, finding and retaining employees, and food costs.
- Conference sponsors and exhibitors featured several RSPA members. Platinum sponsors: CRS, Global Payments, HANASIS, and Platinum Relations. Gold sponsors: Datacap and RTO (Real Time Ordering). Exhibitors: CAS, HP, Deliverect, Logic Controls, Ordering 360, PamiTV, Worldpay, and RSPA.
