What can you expect in the application and funding process?
You’ve done all the hard work. You’ve educated your customers on the benefits of new technology, provided them with examples of your service levels, and flawlessly explained how equipment financing helps them protect their cash flow. You offer financing to your customers, and they like the idea of an easy-to-manage monthly payment. They are excited and ready to move forward with the next steps of the credit approval process.
At this point, you are so close to closing the deal. It’s crucial your financing provider can move quickly through the credit application and funding process, so your customer receives their equipment or technology without delay, ensuring your relationship with them starts out on a positive note.
Once you offer financing to your customers, you’ll probably want to know what you can expect from our credit review process and how soon will you get funding. We break it down in this blog!
WATCH: Getting Paid at GreatAmerica
Submit credit applications for customers digitally
The first thing we’ll need is for you to gather and submit a credit application for your customer. We can start the credit process with the following information:
- Company Name
- Address
- Phone number
- Equipment value
- Finance terms they are looking to finance
The credit application will provide us with the information we need to develop an understanding about a borrower's credit history and their ability to consistently make their payments should we move forward with the equipment lease agreement. We have invested heavily in digital capabilities that allow you to submit an electronic credit application quickly and seamlessly, offering a few convenient ways to provide all the right information.
RELATED: Learn About Digital App Entry through GreatAmerica
1. Our Snappshot® mobile app
One of the easiest ways to submit a credit application for customers interested in a monthly payment option is through the GreatAmerica SnappShot® app. This app is especially useful for those who are constantly in the field or away from their computer. The SnappShot® app can be downloaded to your phone or tablet, making it simple to submit credit applications from anywhere. Using your camera, the app allows you to take a quick photo of your customer's business card. The information listed there is then used to complete and submit a credit app directly to GreatAmerica.
RELATED: 2 Must-Have Tools for Streamlining Your Sales Process
2. Our online portal, info-zone™
You may also choose to submit the application electronically using our online credit application found within our online portal. Simply log on to info-zone™ from your computer or mobile device, navigate to the credit application, enter your customer’s information, and hit ‘submit.’
3. Integrations with your CRM
Through heavy investments in integrations with industry recognized CRMs, GreatAmerica can embed the financing process, including digital credit application entry, into the systems you already use.
RELATED: What are the Benefits of Digital Credit Application Entry?
We’ll contact you within one hour
Once you’ve submitted the credit application, simply sit back and wait. Not for long though – ensuring a quick turnaround time is important to us because it’s important to you. In fact, most of our credit decisions come back in an hour or less.
That being said, not all credit is straight forward. At times credit reports do not tell the full story and there are times when we need more information from the customer or from you to make a credit decision. In these cases, we will contact you directly to collect that information or to provide us with a contact to reach out to. Though this may take additional time, we will not leave you in the dark and will keep you in the loop as we navigate the credit review process.
RELATED: The Finance Process in Seven Steps
Confirm the terms and collect your customer’s signature
Once we’ve provided a credit approval, and we’ve notified you of the good news, you’ll next want to notify your customer and obtain confirmation they wish to move forward with the finance agreement.
When the customer has confirmed they will proceed, you are ready to create the agreement for signature. The approval letter is a helpful tool to make sure we have the correct legal name, desired signer, and any other supporting documents.
We can also provide support to you throughout the creation of the agreement. Through our portal, Info-Zone, you can create professional agreements that can be printed for signature. Also, depending on your document and process, we may be able to offer the ability to create these documents and send them to your customer for electronic signature using our Doc-ease process. If you’re using an integration with your CRM, much of the document creation process can even be automated! Lastly, if you provide us with the details, we can even help to create the agreement and send it to you via email.
RELATED: Learn about Doc-ease Digital Signatures
Send us the signed agreement & the equipment invoice
With the paperwork completed and equipment installed, you are ready to submit the agreement to the GreatAmerica team!
Your funding packet should include:
- Agreement signed by the customer – legible, including footers of the document
- Invoice – make sure the ‘bill to’ is GreatAmerica and ‘ship to’ is your customer
- Bundling worksheet
- Any other supporting documents (delivery and acceptance, etc.)
Once compiled, please scan these documents and send them to your GreatAmerica team for review and processing.
Receive funding
With your invoice in hand, next we may reach out to your customer directly to confirm the terms of the agreement and to verify that the equipment was successfully delivered and installed. Once confirmed, we will be all set to issue funding to you. ACH is the fastest way we can provide funding and it is our preferred method of payment to you.
Our entire credit process, from submitting the application, to sending funding your way, is quick, thorough, and hassle-free. In fact, it’s not uncommon to get through this entire process in a single day. We understand when financing is involved, our ability to do our job well will make it easier for you to do yours well.
What do you think? Are you ready to finance with GreatAmerica? Fill out the form here to get started!