That is why IBM’s Global Financing unit has launched a new worldwide program called Financing Advantage. The company may not want to take unwarranted risks in lending to SMBs, which do not always have steady sales or squeaky-clean credit, but this is the fastest growing sector of the IT market, and everyone selling IT product is figuring out how to go after it.
One of the things that IBM has learned is that SMB companies that may want to come to IBM for financing often want to finance non-IBM gear, so the Financing Advantage program, which went live last week in the US, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Australia, and Japan, allows for this.
IBM says that the Financing Advantage program offers competitive rates and a credit approval process that can within one hour give the thumbs up or thumbs down to SMBs that try to finance as much as $300,000 in gear.
IBM is providing the financing through a rapid online financing tool, and some 1,200 of its resellers have been certified to use it. Both IBM and its resellers want to not only do more business in the SMB space but also do it more quickly, which helps drive up customer satisfaction and retention.
Financing Advantage is available immediately in France, Germany, and the UK, and will be rolled out in other geographies throughout the year.
