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

Stripe Settings That Sabotage Your Upsells

Why Stripe Declines Upsells & How to Fix It: Optimize Your Funnel for More Conversions

If your upsells are getting declined—especially after the front-end sale goes through—this episode is a must-watch. 💳 In this in-depth breakdown, Maria Sparagis explains exactly why Stripe and other payment processors may be flagging your upsell offers, and what you can do to increase approval rates in your checkout funnel.

🔍 Learn:

- Why upsells and order bumps get flagged—even after a front-end sale

- How Stripe Radar rules and default settings could be killing your conversions

- The importance of vaulting (tokenizing) customer card data

- Why low front-end price points might backfire on your funnel

- Pro techniques like "authorize and settle" for multi-step checkouts

- The risks of duplicate price points & how to avoid “do not honor” declines

Whether you're using Systeme.io, ClickFunnels, WooCommerce, or any other cart tool—if you rely on Stripe for payment processing, this episode will help you recover lost sales and maximize your AOV (average order value).

📈 For those running DTC funnels or subscription models, Maria shares specific Stripe Radar settings to audit, tweak, and monitor.

💬 Questions? Need help with Stripe or merchant accounts?

Contact Maria’s team at DirectPayNet to get expert guidance and hands-on support. ➡️ directpaynet.com/contact-us

0:00 Intro

1:02 Stripe Causing Declines

2:59 #1 Tokenize Data

5:14 #2 Price Test

7:05 Stripe Radar Tweaks

8:11 Velocity Checks

11:51 Gradual, not Rapid

12:59 Don’t Contact Stripe

14:11 Increase Conversions

18:33 Bonus Tip

22:14 Summary

👉 Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and drop a comment if this helped you!

Best Payment Processor for Your Business

Choosing the Best Payment Processor for Your Online Business in 2025

Wondering which payment processor is right for your online store? In this episode, Maria Sparagis (CEO of DirectPayNet) explains the crucial differences between popular PSPs like Stripe, PayPal, Braintree, and getting your own dedicated merchant account.

What you’ll learn:

- How Stripe and PayPal work for startups vs. scaling businesses

- Hidden fees you might be ignoring

- Why your business might outgrow Stripe sooner than you think

- How a merchant account can increase your approval rates and protect you from sudden shutdowns

- Easy integration tips that debunk the “merchant accounts are hard” myth

Whether you sell digital products, subscriptions, coaching, or physical goods, this guide will help you pick the best payment processor in 2025 to maximize your revenue and keep your business stable.

Many small businesses get lulled into Stripe’s convenience — until it bites them later with freezes, zero human support, or hidden fees. Graduating to a merchant account is not only about saving money but protecting your cash flow from algorithmic shutdowns

Subscribe for more payment processing secrets, fraud prevention tips, and e-commerce success strategies!

0:00 into

0:53 2 Types of Processors

2:00 Why Not Choose a PSP

5:42 Scaling Your Business

10:45 Plug-and-Play

12:48 Application Process

14:07 PSP vs Merchant Account

21:31 Outro

Need a merchant account? Get in touch! ➡️ directpaynet.com/contact-us