
Uncensored Direct Marketing
Hosted by Maria Sparagis, president of DirectPayNet, and payment solutions expert for entrepreneurs in the high risk industries of supplements, dating, business opportunities, gambling and more. On this podcast, Maria shares her knowledge on how to reduce decline ratios, add thousands of dollars to your bottom line with a few simple conversion hacks, and maximize revenue while keeping your high-risk merchant accounts happy and healthy. As a cryptocurrency advocate since 2012, Maria will also share her knowledge on the digital currency markets.
Maria has worked with several high level entrepreneurs in Direct Marketing including Christian Hudson, Julian Reyes, Jeremy Schoemaker “ShoeMoney”, Mike Chang and many more.
She has been featured in American Banker, Vice, Inside Bitcoins, Coindesk, and Yahoo.
Connect with Maria mariasparagis.com or directpaynet.com
Latest episodes

Mar 18, 2024 • 16min
Crushing Stripe Fees for 6- and 7-Figure Merchants
Are you a 6- or 7-figure merchant using Stripe? You might be spending way too much on Stripe fees per transaction and monthly. Here are some tips to lower Stripe fees with minimal effort that can save you TENS OF THOUSANDS per month (depending on your volume).This episode gives you some simple tips on how to crush Stripe fees in half—OR MORE!From 2.5% to just 0.5%, easy.✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet

Mar 11, 2024 • 1h 48min
Marketing Madman Jamie Lewis TELLS ALL
Jamie Lewis, the "grandpa of marketing" has had a wild ride on his path to marketing stardom. Today, he shares with me exactly how he got here, from exploring undefined territory in domain flipping and affiliate sales to how success can affect your personal life.Sit back and listen to this tell-all from a marketing madman.Get in on Jamie's BADASS CLASS while there's room:https://www.facebook.com/groups/badassclassgroup✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet

Mar 4, 2024 • 14min
Top Hidden Stripe Features Every Seller Needs to Use
Stripe is a powerful 3rd-party payments platform that many online business owners use (even if they don't know it). Stripe, Shopify, Woo—all if it is powered by Stripe. So if you're going to use it anyway, why not make the most of it?This episode, I'm giving you the top Stripe features every merchant needs to turn on (or off).Stripe SHOULD NOT be used as your primary payment processor for many reasons, but it's a great secondary solution or even to use when you're just getting started.Need a merchant account? Get in touch!maria@directpaynet.com

Feb 26, 2024 • 49min
Why Human-to-Human Sales Always Wins | Abandoned Cart Recovery with Jeannie Mai
Jeannie Mai from HelpGrid joins us for a deep dive into abandoned cart recovery, why businesses CONVERT MORE after human-to-human interaction, and just how much you should really be using AI.Get in touch with Jeannie Mai and HelpGrid here:🔗 linkedin.com/jeannie-h-mai-19998776🔗 instagram.com/jeanniethemagician🔗 www.helpgrid.com✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: Facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: Instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 X: twitter.com/directpaynet

Feb 20, 2024 • 14min
Is Shopify Right for Your Business? A Breakdown of the Platform
Shopify is a powerful ecommerce platform, but it isn't for everyone. In this episode, I'm going through Shopify Pros, Shopify Cons, and if Shopify is the right platform for your business.✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet

Feb 12, 2024 • 46min
You Don't Sell Products, You Sell EMOTIONS | with Jason Friedman
The customer journey is based on targeting an emotion. Every sale, every ad, every email, every click—there's a feeling behind it. A successful customer journey is one that connects with their emotions, making them feel that what you offer aligns with what they need, what they want, and the emotion that drives it.Take a list to our interview with Jason Friedman, CEO of CXFormula. He's an expert in the customer experience. From anecdotes to advice, there's something for every business owner to take away from this episode.Seriously, don't miss out.Speaking of missing out, Jason is providing a SPECIAL GIFT for you listeners! Follow the link below:https://gift.cxformula.com/directpaynet🙋♂️ Connect with Jason Friedman:🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasondfriedman/🔗 cxformula.com 🔗 https://www.facebook.com/cxformula✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mariasparagis🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet

Feb 5, 2024 • 13min
How to Get Your Money Back from Stripe in 2024
Stripe account suspended? Stripe holding funds? Stripe STOLE your money?Common issues with Stripe from merchants in many industries. So no matter what it is that you sell, if Stripe is holding your money and won't let go, then this video is for you.Stripe USA Address:354 Oyster Point BoulevardSouth San Francisco, CA 94080Stripe Email:notices@stripe.com✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet

Jan 16, 2024 • 35min
2024 Content Marketing Tips for Solopreneurs with Sarah Noel Block
Content marketing isn't going anywhere. From AI trends to content planning and repurposing, we get the low down on what 2024 holds in the content marketing world.Joining us and sharing her expert tips is Sarah Noel Block, founder and owner of Tiny Marketing, which focuses on getting marketing teams of 0-2 people to their full potential. She knows what's up, what's down, and how to juggle every marketing role under one hat.SPECIAL OFFER 50% OFFSarah is offering an incredible discount on a session that will skyrocket your marketing (even with a team of 0 people). Book that right here, right now: https://www.sarahnoelblock.com/directYou can follow Sarah Noel Block at:LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahnoelblock/Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sarahnoelblock/✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet

Jan 12, 2024 • 14min
Bitcoin ETFs Have Arrived, Should You Invest?
The SEC has finally officially announced bitcoin ETFs. There are pros and cons to having a bitcoin ETF, one of them being centralizing something that was created to be decentralized. But the positives might outweigh the cons here.Are you investing in a bitcoin ETF?Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet

Jan 3, 2024 • 11min
Preventing Post-Holiday Chargebacks BEFORE You Pay $1000s in Fees
Chargeback prevention is the best way to handle chargebacks. The more common solution is chargeback mitigation after they've gone through, but this method involves paying the fee (even when you avoid paying out the refund) AND those chargeback cases that you've won still count against your chargeback ratio.Prevent chargebacks with these 3 solutions you can easily set up today. Once you set them up, they're fairly hands-off, so you can sit back and watch your business grow safely.Interested in chargeback alerts? We can provide you with an alert service aligned with your budget and needs. Contact us about it today!directpaynet.com/contact-us✓ Need a merchant account? Get in touch!🔗 Maria Sparagis Website: http://mariasparagis.com🔗 DirectPayNet Website: https://directpaynet.com🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariasparagis🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mariasparagis.directpaynet🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/directpaynet_paymentsolutions🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/directpaynet
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