How to close faster with integrated financing

So you got setup with Fortify and you’re ready to start sending customer quotes with flexible payment options.

But what about your pitch? What do you say? How do you navigate this to a close? 

That takes a bit more strategy.

But here’s the good news… our team has helped close nearly one billion dollars in capital equipment transactions in the last decade, and we've learned a lot along the way.

That’s what led us to build Fortify and to help streamline the capital equipment quote-to-cash process. Once you're setup on Fortify, it’s important to understand what it enables you to do:

• Maintain control of the sale
• Protect your margins and market value
• Close deals 200% faster (seriously we have the data to prove it)

Let’s talk briefly about how.

Using integrated financing to maintain control of the sale

Before we introduce the new way of selling capital equipment, let's review the old way. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t work as well. 

The old way

You've just finished a demo and a great call with a prospect. They ask for a quote. You send it over. Maybe you do it quickly.

And now you sit on your hands, and wait. 

You have no idea what is happening. They could have missed your email. They could have sent it to the actual decision maker. They could have sent it to your competition. No clue.

No matter how you spin it, you lost control of the sale. 

Enough of that. Let’s talk about the new way.

The new way

You've just finished a demo or a great call with a customer. They ask for a quote. You send it over with Fortify, incorporating a net terms option and 3 different monthly payment scenarios. You do it quickly, in only a few minutes.

Now you can accommodate any buying scenario they can dream up, and all options are sitting right in front of them.

Now you can have a productive conversation about budget, cashflow, return on investment, and who needs to be involved to close.

Maybe they want to think about it, or get more people involved. No problem! Each time they share the quote and purchase options within their company, you are notified and are able to map out the account strategically.

Not only do you maintain control, you’re in a position to maintain the market value of your asset. Your margins. Your commission.

Protect the market value of your asset

Previous to this customer conversation, your team worked diligently to set a respectable market price. Your managers expect contracts to end up in a certain price range. You almost certainly have a floor price. And you almost certainly don’t want to hit it.

So, you don't start the negotiation with your customer by dropping the price! After all, what you have quoted is a fair price and provides a data-supported ROI. There is real value to what you’re selling, and you can prove it.

But everyone wants a deal, so let’s offer an alternative scenario that creates a true win-win scenario for you and the customer.

Consider the price you’d like to end up with, then offer a ‘below market’ finance option to help drive the conversation and flush out the true decision making criteria.

Consider this…

The customer asks, “This is more expensive that I had anticipated, what can we do on price?”

Before you had flexible financing options, you might respond, “We can come down 5% to $115k.”

But now you can say, “If budget is an issue let’s look at spreading the cost out monthly. The 2.99% finance option puts your monthly payment at $2,239.95,”

Not only does this give your customer an alternative… it gives them a win! 2.99%? That’s a better rate than you can find anywhere. Side note: Setup a 0% financing vendor program with Fortify to see the magic really unfold.

Offering this option with your quote protects the market value of your asset AND it helps determine your customer’s true buying criteria.

Now you can have a conversation about budget, timing, approvals needed, or objections to your technology that would have otherwise been disguised by a price negotiation.

You have control, you have intel, and now you can move to close.

Close faster

Reflect on your last deal. Especially one where the customer financed the purchase. How long did it take to close, from quote to cash?

In this article we’ve outlined one, single, conversation, where you presented a customer with fair pricing, multiple ways to purchase, and uncovered any and all details needed to finalize. In one conversation.

Previously this could take weeks, if not months, depending on your relationship with the customer.

And that’s why we do it! If you’re not yet on Fortify, you can sign up here. We’d love to get you setup. Totally free.