However, when you introduce customizable fi nancing — and the additional buying power it brings — into the conversation early on, customers are more likely to give themselves permission to think bigger.
sale, particularly when deployed at the beginning of the sales conversation. Here are three ways proactive use of equipment fi nancing can keep high-end sales conversations moving.
Financing Can Take the Focus off Price and Put It on Value
In an ideal world, customers would consider the total value — tangible and intangible — they’ll get from equipment before considering the cost. In the real world, though, it’s almost always the other way around. With those cost concerns foremost in their minds, many customers can’t justify the short-term cash and budget impact of a solution that would deliver much greater value over the long term. But fi nancing — particularly with terms that help spread out costs in a way that better paces revenue generated by the equipment — allows customers to give long-term considerations, well, more consideration. By starting the sales conversation with fi nancing that addresses cash and budget concerns upfront, the benefi ts of high-end equipment go from an abstract, wouldn’t-it-be-nice concept to a concrete, this-could-really-make- a-difference-for-us reality in the customer’s mind.
Financing Can Help
Customers T ink Bigger Many customers probably come to you with a pretty good idea of what’s reasonable to pay for a given piece of equipment. The problem is that they may have an outdated idea of what the equipment should be capable of, especially if they haven’t added or
36 FEDA News & Views
replaced their kitchen gear in a while. Of course, you’re happy to show them how today’s machines, particularly on the high end, give them more than they might have expected, at a cost that’s very reasonable when you consider it in context.
But what about that fi gure the customer had in mind when they came to you? Because that’s all they gave themselves permission to spend, it can be hard to budge them, no matter how much more the customer could get by spending a little bit more. However, when you introduce customizable fi nancing — and the additional buying power it brings — into the conversation early on, customers are more likely to give themselves permission to think bigger.
Financing Can Change the Customer’s Perception of
What Aff ordability Means For many customers, the primary question on their minds when they start the sales process is, “What can I afford to buy?” But with the added fl exibility and buying power fi nancing offers them, the question often becomes, “Can I really afford to skimp on my investment and save in the short term when the high-end model gives me so much more in the long run?” In other words, the focus shifts from what the customer stands to lose (the cost of the equipment) to what they stand to gain (the added capability, effi ciency, productivity, etc. of a high-end solution). That change in mindset can make all the difference when it comes to smoothly guiding the customer along the path to a successful high-end equipment sale.
Get Bigger Sales (and Deeper Relationships) With Equipment
Financing Shepherding customers over the affordability gap is key for capturing any sales opportunity, but it’s especially important for sales of high-end foodservice equipment, where even the most compelling long-term value can quickly take a backseat to short-term cash and budget considerations. That’s a trade-off your customers
shouldn’t have to make. By offering customized equipment fi nancing that aligns with their needs and goals, you’re going beyond winning the sale. You’re also proving that you’re more than just another transactional, interchangeable equipment vendor. Rather, you’re a trusted resource they can come to anytime they need help getting equipped to go after new opportunities and position their businesses for greater competitive strength.
With the right equipment fi nance
program and a creative, resourceful fi nance team that knows your industry, markets, opportunities, and challenges, fi nancing isn’t just a way to pay. It’s a strategic tool for solving problems, building deeper relationships and accelerating growth — for your customers and for your own business.
About the Author Matt Diehl is the vice president of business development and program management for LEAF Commercial Capital. Since 2002, more than 312,000 businesses have worked with LEAF to provide creative and affordable equipment fi nancing and capital solutions that solve problems and power growth.
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