There are many ways in which equipment suppliers or vendors can offer finance to their clients, from simply mentioning that finance is an option, all the way through to providing a bespoke illustration. The level of involvement from the vendor isn’t the most important factor however, as it is the broker that you choose to work with that can have the biggest impact on your sales.
Some vendors opt to provide their clients with a list of names, often with the thought process that it’s best to give clients choice, but this is generally the most ineffective way to provide a finance option. Clients are generally looking to you as their chosen vendor, to provide them with the complete solution, saving them their most valuable asset – time!
By utilising a vendor’s finance option, a client is looking for several things:
Ease
Their time is valuable, so they don’t want to have to contact several finance brokers to even establish if the purchase is financially viable.
Reputation
By working with the vendor’s choice of broker, the customer hopes to benefit from a tried and tested experience that is simple and hassle free.
Knowledge
Your client will be looking for a knowledgeable partner who gives them the confidence to commit to your purchase – rather than a one size fits all solution.
Providing a list of names dilutes the finance offering, as your client can’t rely on the above points, instead they need to do their own research which takes valuable time before they can consider committing your order.
It is worth noting, that as most asset finance brokers have access to a similar panel of funders, it is not this that differentiates between the good and the bad! Instead, it is the expertise of the individual broker to ask the right questions and present the information in the correct way to really maximise the deals available to your client. In some cases, prior poor presentation of an otherwise good client can result in a lower rate finance option being precluded, or worst case being outright declined, meaning a sale can’t be secured!
As far as asset finance brokers are concerned, less is definitely more, so find out more about the things to consider when choosing a finance partner:
By working with a sole broker that you can build relationships with, you will benefit from a partner who really understands your process and a dedicated contact working on your behalf and updating you at every turn to help secure those sales. A one-on-one relationship can also have additional benefits such as help with marketing and special pricing schemes helping you to stand out from the competition at no cost.
At Focus we value relationships hugely and have worked with many of our vendor partners as their sole broker for decades! We know how our vendor partners work and they retain 100% control of the sale from start to finish due to our regular updates. Their clients often benefit from rates that otherwise wouldn’t have been accessible, due to our accounting background and funder relationships, making it much easier for them to secure the sale and protect profit margins!
If you’re currently providing your clients with a list of names, then as this article covers, this may not be the best way to utilise finance to boost sales! Of course we can’t tell you who or what works best for your business, but finding a finance partner that fits with your ethos will make a huge difference to your customer’s experience and your sales.