How to find suitable business finance solutions for your clients

In order for your clients’ business to succeed, they need to ensure a reliable rate of growth and a steady foundation with which to build on. However, to achieve their goals, they’ll also require access to sufficient amounts of capital and support, which is where you come in. As an accountant, you’re in a position of trust helping business owners manage their finances. But are you also guiding them on matters of finance? Although it’s tempting for your clients to look internally and fund key projects by themselves, this could deplete essential cash reserves, which they may depend on later in their development. Fortunately, you’re in the perfect position to show them another way. By exploring what the Alternative Finance industry has to offer, your clients could gain access to the funds they require to target and enhance any aspect of their business. All you need to do is source a suitable finance solution for their business.

What does your client need funding for and how soon do they need it?

Before you can source an appropriate agreement for your clients, you need to take the time to fully appreciate their goals. Are they looking to obtain vital equipment? Support cashflow shortfalls? Purchase property? Replenish their inventory? Or do they seek to revitalise and expand their services? From here, you can then ascertain a timeframe for when they need the funds by and what they value most in any potential agreement. Do they require access to quick capital? Are they looking for a flexible repayment scheme? How willing are they to provide collateral? Considering each of these factors will help you to begin narrowing down the list of finance solutions. But in order to source a specific product, you now need to delve deeper and assess how your client’s business is structured.

Are your clients in need of business finance? Need help sourcing an appropriate agreement? Apply for Business Finance or learn more about how your clients could benefit.

How does your client’s business operate?

In order to gain a tighter grasp of what type of finance is suitable for achieving their objectives, you now need to carefully review how their business operates. In particular, you need to ascertain their primary source of revenue and how it’s generated. Do they conduct most of their trade with other businesses using B2B (business-to-business) invoices? Are they able to accept card payments, whether online or in store? Does their revenue fluctuate throughout the course of the year? Or, do they provide goods and services overseas?

What you need to appreciate is that every business finance solution functions differently, making each product applicable under specific circumstances. So by identifying your client’s key objectives and gather an in-depth insight into their mode of operating, you can now round the list down even further. The next step is considering what paperwork is required.

What documents will your client need to provide with their application?

When reviewing your client’s application lenders will want to gain a deeper understanding of how they operate and where they stand financially. So, although the documents that are required with each individual product varies, the most common documents your clients will be asked for may include proof of identity, cashflow forecasts, profit and loss statements, recent and past bank statements, company balance sheet and collateral documentation. This should all be outlined by the documents your clients will receive, and should also stipulate the most appropriate format for providing key information. As such, you should carefully review what exactly the lender requires from your client and how it needs to be provided. Doing this well beforehand, if possible, will help make the application much smoother and reduce the need for the lender to chase your client for any missing documents.

Need help sourcing business finance for your clients?

With so many business finance solutions available, pinning down an exact product for your client’s needs isn’t going to be easy. As such, carefully reviewing what their goals are, how their business operates and when they need the funding by can steer you in the right direction. Yet once you identify a specific product, the next challenge is finding a trustworthy lender who’s willing to accommodate your client’s request, which is where we can help.

At Rangewell, we’re an Access to Finance specialist working with over 300 lenders to offer you an overview of more than 23,000 business finance products. We love working with accountants and IFAs - we work with you, in the way you want, to support your clients or customers. Our services are free to use and we’ll also guide you or your clients through the application process. So if you’re looking to source an appropriate finance agreement for your clients, apply for Business Finance today or find out more about partnering with Rangewell.