If customers keep telling you “I need to think about it” after they see the price, offering financing is one of the fastest ways to close that gap. You don’t need to become a lender or tie up your own cash to do it. This guide covers the three ways small businesses offer client financing, what each one costs you, and the steps to get set up.
What client financing actually means
Client financing lets a customer pay for your product or service in monthly installments instead of all at once. The customer gets a manageable payment. You get the sale, usually paid in full upfront by a lender, or paid over time if you run the plan yourself.
For most businesses selling something over $1,000, price isn’t the real objection. Timing is. A customer who can comfortably pay $290 a month may not have $6,000 sitting in checking today. Financing turns the second situation into the first.
The three ways to offer financing to your customers
1. Partner with a single lender. Many businesses start by signing up with one financing company. It’s simple, but it has a ceiling: every lender approves a certain slice of credit profiles and declines the rest. When a customer is declined, the sale usually stalls.
2. Run your own in-house payment plan. You can let customers pay you directly over time. You keep the interest and the relationship. You also take on the risk, the paperwork, the billing and the collections calls, and you wait months to be paid in full.
3. Use a financing platform with multiple lenders. A platform like Client Financing puts one application in front of many lenders at once. Our application moves your customer through 10+ BNPL and consumer lenders, from prime down to sub-prime, then to Everyone Is Approved programs. If you want, it can also include your own payment plans through our Lender Managed Payment Plan (LMPP). One application, and far more customers leave with an option.
| Option | Who carries the risk | When you’re paid | Who gets approved |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single lender | The lender | Upfront, minus the lender’s fee | Only that lender’s credit range |
| In-house plan | You | Monthly, as the customer pays | Whoever you choose |
| Multi-lender platform | The lender or program | Upfront from a lender, or weekly on LMPP | Every credit tier in the waterfall |
How to offer client financing in 5 steps
- Decide what you’ll finance. Most businesses offer financing on anything over about $1,000: programs, projects, treatments, tuition or packages.
- Choose your setup. Pick between a single lender, an in-house plan or a multi-lender platform, using the table above. If many of your customers have thin or challenged credit, a single lender will leave money on the table.
- Get your application link. With Client Financing, our team sets up your waterfall and gives you an application link and embed code for each program. There’s no long-term contract and no minimum volume.
- Put it where the buying decision happens. Add the link to your checkout page and proposals, text it after a sales call, and train your team to bring up monthly payments before the customer raises price. Our onboarding team trains your staff on how to present financing.
- Track approvals and follow up. Applications, approvals and contracts from every lender show up in one merchant portal, so you can see who’s approved and hasn’t signed yet, and follow up the same day.
An example
Illustration only. Real offers depend on the lender or program and the application.
A home services company quotes a $6,000 job. The customer likes the quote but hesitates. The salesperson shares the financing link, and the customer applies on their phone in a few minutes.
The first prime lender declines because of a recent late payment. The application moves down the waterfall automatically, and a near-prime lender approves 24 months at 14.99%, about $291 a month. The customer signs, and the business is paid upfront by the lender, minus that lender’s merchant fee. Without the waterfall, that first decline would have ended the conversation.
What it costs
When a lender funds the sale, it pays you upfront minus its merchant fee, which varies by lender and program. On LMPP plans there is no merchant fee. You keep 90% of what’s collected, paid weekly as your customer pays, and Client Financing keeps 10% for handling agreements, billing and collections. Interest rates to your customer range from 0% to 29.99% depending on the lender, program and credit profile.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Mentioning financing only after the price objection. Lead with the monthly payment, not the total.
- Relying on one lender. Every decline is a lost sale unless something catches it.
- Hiding the link. If customers have to ask, most won’t. Put it on the page where they decide.
Which option is right for your business?
The right setup depends on who your customers are and how you sell:
- Mostly strong-credit customers and simple pricing: a single lender may cover most of them, but you’ll still lose the customers it declines.
- A mix of credit profiles, or a large share of first-time borrowers and career-changers: a multi-lender waterfall approves far more of your customers with one application.
- You want to keep the interest income and own the customer relationship: add your own plans through LMPP. You set the terms and rates and choose which credit tiers to approve, and our team runs the servicing.
Many businesses combine all three: lenders for customers who qualify upfront, Everyone Is Approved programs for those who don’t, and LMPP plans where the business wants to keep more of each sale.
Ready to offer financing? Client Financing provides customer financing solutions through one application that reaches 10+ lenders. See how it works for your business: customer financing by industry.
FAQ
How do I offer financing to my customers without lending my own money?
Partner with a financing provider. The lender funds the purchase and pays you upfront; the customer repays the lender. You never extend credit yourself.
Can I offer financing to customers with bad credit?
Yes, with a multi-lender waterfall. Applications move from prime to near-prime and sub-prime lenders, then to Everyone Is Approved programs, so customers with challenged credit can still get an offer.
Does offering financing cost my business money?
Lender-funded sales carry a merchant fee that varies by lender. LMPP plans have no merchant fee; you keep 90% of what’s collected.
How long does it take to start?
A real person on our team calls within one business day to set up your waterfall. Get started or see how it works.