Partner view: Merchants can survive and thrive through inflation

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a record-setting 58% of U.S. small business owners cited inflation as a top concern in the first quarter of 2025 – reflecting the impact of rising costs on their operations. As a trusted adviser, you can help guide your small business clients through these challenges, showing them tools and strategies to mitigate inflation.

1. Provide education

One of the easiest and most effective ways to guide merchants during bouts of inflation is to provide education. Informative articles or videos on your website and social media channels can help small businesses and build loyalty to your business. Topics could include:

• Understanding inflation as a small business owner
• Inflation strategies for small businesses
• How to soften the impact of inflation on your business

2. Help merchants understand their real costs

With smaller operating margins, small businesses feel the impact of rising raw material, wage and energy costs more intensely than larger businesses. It’s important that they understand their real costs.

• Help your clients pull together their bank statements, balance sheets and profit-loss statements, and then walk them through their income and expenses
• Determine fixed versus variable costs
• Assess the profitability of each product or service offered to make smart decisions

3. Find ways to optimize cash flow

Many merchants may find themselves in a cash flow pinch as their customers feel the pain of inflation. They may cut back on spending. Now may be the time to look at opportunities to broaden your services to help merchants address cash flow, such as offering:

• Financial advisory services to provide cash flow guidance
• Advanced forecasting tools that use historical data to predict future trends
• Treasury management software to help manage liquidity and identify potential cash shortfalls

4. Offer merchant services

The latest merchant services solutions can help your small business clients combat inflation by giving them the ability to accept all the latest preferred payment types, whether in-store or online. They also can help merchants become more efficient, saving time and money with integrated payments, which can lead to fewer mistakes, faster transactions and increased customer satisfaction.

Worldpay’s Commerce360, an all-in-one business management and payment solution, does all this and more. Commerce360 includes:

• Employee management systems that streamline operations by simplifying shift management, running payroll and more.
• Inventory tracking to reduce the risk of stockouts, optimize inventory levels, save time on stock management and lead to better product availability.
• Customer loyalty programs to boost customer retention and encourage repeat purchases, like integrated systems for easily managing rewards and gift card transactions.
• Real-time analytics and insights so merchants can stay informed about sales, cash flow and the overall health of their businesses, and make informed decisions.
• Cloud-based back-office tools, accessible from anywhere on any device, to manage every aspect of the business in real-time.

For additional information about how your organization can offer Commerce360 to merchants, or for more ideas to help your small business clients survive and thrive during periods of economic inflation, contact your Worldpay representative today.

*U.S. Chamber of Commerce: Small Businesses Index Falters as Inflation Concerns Reach Record High, March 27, 2025