Innovation

4 strategies for Independent ATM Deployers

Read on to learn 4 strategies for IADs to succeed.

Photo: Adobe Stock

October 3, 2025 by Bradley Cooper — Editor, ATM Marketplace & Food Truck Operator

IADs(Independent ATM Deployers) are the lifeblood of the industry. These entrepreneurs take the machines out into the highways and byways to ensure cash access across every community. However, this mature business has several challenges ranging from high cash costs to difficulty finding the right banking partner and handling maintenance.

Last time, we looked at a few tips for IADs, now let's take a deep dive into that topic with some insights from experts.

Strategy no. 1: Get sticky with banks

First off, banking relationships can be a major challenge, as banks may view IADs to be a major risk due to the sheer amount of cash involved. However, there are ways that IADs can smooth over those relationships and build long lasting partnerships with banks.

Philip Webb at Merchant Enterprises Inc. said in an email interview that deployers should, " focus finding banking partners that are interested in your business then leverage other products that the bank is interested in expanding their book."

He gave the example of refinancing your office space with the bank, or to encourage employees to open up checking accounts or credit cards with the bank.

Webb said this helps you "get sticky with the bank."

Strategy no. 2: Understand hidden costs

The ATM business is also expensive to get into, as there are hidden costs that deployers may not realize upfront, especially if they want to deliver more advanced ATMs for customers.

Free-standing ATMs require a physically secure enclosure. Logical security is also vital and requires cost and effort on the part of the IAD and its ISOs and its processor. IADs may wish to spend more on a machine that has additional capabilities beyond cash-out, such as cash recycling (to mitigate the major cost of cash replenishment) and deposit capability. Depending on the location, the IAD may want to invest in highly reliable 24x7 connectivity and a power bank to keep the machine running in the event of system disruptions," Leland Englebardt, president of e-squared systems inc., said in an email interview.

As he mentioned, some of these costs can save you more over time, such as cash recycling, but it is a major upfront investment.

Webb identified fuel, insurance and labor costs as major concerns with working as an IAD.

Strategy no: 3: Reduce costs, find the right location

He recommended that in order to deal with these costs, IADs may consider hiring on retired employees to work part time, purchasing fuel-efficient vehicles and replacing, "20% of your fleet every year to cut down service and down time."

Englebardt pointed to another way to cut costs by simplifying, "your technical/operational structure so you're less vulnerable to unexpected major costs."

It's not enough to just manage costs, you also want to be profitable. So how do you do that?

Both Englebardt and Webb agree that it comes down to locations, particularly finding the right locations and adding new ones to gain more volume of transactions.

"The #1 profitability factor is picking the optimal machine locations. Without adequate volume and revenue, nothing else matters (you cannot cost-cut your way to success)." Englebardt said.

However, Englebardt also pointed to the importance of having the right functionality in place to meet customer demands. This could include features such as deposits, bill pay, balance checking and others.

Webb added the importance of maintaining your relationship with these locations, such as by "asking for referrals" and meeting "with locations once a year as a temperature check."

Englebardt agreed stating one should, "bombard your retailer partners with love (and a mutually beneficial commercial arrangement) so your locations are less vulnerable to competition."

One key factor to remember when crafting your ATM business is not to raise fees too high. As a blog from ATM Link points out, "Balancing customer satisfaction with profitability is key. Too high a fee can discourage use; too low and you miss out on income."

Strategy no: 4: Innovate

Both Englebardt and Webb stated that IADs need to constantly innovate to avoid going under, especially due to rising costs of cash, security risks and banking concerns.

Englebardt pointed to the importance of using, "multifunction machines with room to expand their offerings," and to "pay attention to physical and logical security and have good insurance against loss."

"They say adapt or die and that is the truth. I guess that is why I love it," Webb said.

About Bradley Cooper

---

Bradley Cooper is the editor of ATM Marketplace and Food Truck Operator. He was previously the editor of Digital Signage Today. His background is in information technology, advertising, and writing.

Connect with Bradley: