Business growth is the goal, and it lies heavily on the shoulders of the CEO. But unpredictable revenue cycles create tensions between growth ambitions and realistic numbers. Today’s economic uncertainty contributes to customer hesitation in spending, especially for big-ticket items and services, ultimately creating a ceiling on growth. CEOs must implement tools that overcome roadblocks to sales and fundamentally change the revenue trajectory and income predictability of their business.
Partnering with United Consumer Financial Services, a consumer financing firm trusted by CEOs across the U.S., helps drive measurable revenue growth and create the cash flow patterns needed for confident business planning. Read on to learn more.
Why Consumers Hesitate and What That Costs You
Sticker shock can end a sale and suppress demand even from willing consumers. High lump-sum prices immediately shift the customer perspective, creating a gap in what they want or need and what they perceive they can afford. Even the slightest friction in a big-ticket sale can derail the entire purchase, causing businesses to lose time, money, and other resources invested in securing and nurturing the lead.
This is the true hidden cost of lost sales. CEOs aren’t simply losing a single transaction but the customer’s lifetime value: the first sale, follow-up sales and upgrades, word-of-mouth referrals (and the new customer relationships they create), and the list could go on.
CEOs can’t afford to let customers walk out the door. And can’t afford for their salespeople when in home to provide quotes – be shown the door! By making consumer financing central to their business model, they can overcome pricing hesitations from the very first touchpoint to the critical point of sale.
The Growth Engine: How Financing Helps CEOs Unlock Revenue
Business leaders must provide affordable, accessible payment options to eager customers, especially in industries where large upfront costs routinely stall purchases (think home improvement businesses, water filtration system sales, HVAC, electrical, and plumbing contractors, and pet board-and-train businesses, to name a few). Financing is the solution.
Affordable payment plans are growth engines that unlock revenue and help establish your business as a market leader. Here are just a few ways consumer financing from a trusted firm like United Consumer Financial Services supports long-term, compounding revenue growth:
- Increased Average Order Values: Customers can spend more when the burden of payment is spread over time. Affordable monthly installment payments are a much easier “yes” than a huge, up-front, lump-sum expense.
- Streamlined Purchase Decisions: Financing eliminates the need to save up for a big-ticket purchase. With low monthly payments, consumers can streamline purchase decisions, and the sale happens now.
- Broader Market Reach: Financing makes your product or service available to customers who couldn’t or wouldn’t otherwise buy, expanding your market reach. When businesses offer cash or credit only, they limit their customer base. Installment payment plans broaden your reach and help increase revenue both in your current territory and as you expand your business.
- Upsell and Upgrade Opportunities: The monthly payment model makes premium tiers, add-ons, and upgrades feel accessible, empowering reps with the tools to increase the total revenue without putting financial strain on the customer.
Reframing big-ticket purchases into monthly payments can significantly lift AOVs, boost conversion rates, and position your business for growth.
What CEOs Should Know When Choosing a Consumer Financing Provider
Offering consumer financing is a straightforward pathway to see greater sales, revenue, and profits –– but only when you’ve got the right partner working with and for your business. Choosing a seasoned, specialized consumer financing provider is the smart choice for CEOs tasked with implementing a revenue-driving financing program.
How CEOs structure their financing programs matters more than it might initially appear. An in-house financing program drains your company of time, energy, talent, and cash – not to mention the regulatory complexity and financial risk that it entails. On the other hand, a partnership model lets you deliver an excellent customer experience and reap the revenue benefits of financing while transferring the operational burden to a provider whose entire business is built around doing this well. United Consumer Financial Services is proud to be the consumer financing partner of choice for successful, revenue-focused CEOs across the U.S.
Here’s what sets UCFS apart as a financing partner:
- Fast Application, Credit Decisions and Funding: Our mobile-first approach to consumer financing means customers can apply from any mobile device, with a credit decision notice returned in just moments. Your customers get a quick decision, your business gets paid in just 1 to 2 days, and your customer begins repayment to UCFS for the life of their loan.
- Flexible Loan Terms: UCFS offers payment options designed to fit a range of consumer budgets, making financing accessible to more of your customers.
- Dedicated Training and Support: UCFS is built to make the process easy for CEOs and their sales or estimating teams, with a straightforward portal, one-on-one or one-to many remote training, dedicated support, videos, and resources that help your reps present financing with confidence.
- Proven Experience: With a long track record in consumer financing –– nearly 50 years in the industry –– UCFS brings credibility and expertise that other lenders simply can’t match.
Getting started with UCFS is simple. Once you become a merchant, your business gains an immediate competitive advantage: a financing solution you can present on every qualifying sale, backed by a trusted partner who understands your business. Plus, the UCFS same-as-cash promotion helps customers make an even faster purchase decision knowing they can avoid paying interest if paid in full within the promotion period!
With decades of experience in consumer lending, a credit approval process designed to maximize approval rates across credit tiers, and seamless integration that keeps the focus on your customer and your sale, UCFS removes the complexity and hassle of financing so you can capture more revenue growth.
Consumer Financing as the Strategic CEO’s Investment in Growth
CEOs have the authority to shape so much of how their business runs, including how to engage with, serve, and sell to consumers. Flexible payment options significantly impact sales, and when leadership centers consumer financing within the company’s growth strategy, the numbers show it. Consumer financing not only increases revenue for businesses but also cultivates predictable future revenue. Businesses that grow confidently in uncertain markets (like the one we operate in today) are the ones proactively addressing barriers to purchase. Consumer financing from UCFS does exactly that.
United Consumer Financial Services, a Marmon company and a division of Berkshire Hathaway, has been providing our merchants with reliable, revenue-driving financing programs for nearly 50 years. It’s time to evaluate whether your current revenue model is leaving profits on the table. Contact UCFS today to learn more about how consumer financing can transform your revenue growth starting now.
