Digital Signage Need to Know: Financing & Leasing Options for DS

-Deacon Wardlow

While we can debate ROI (Return On Investment), ROO (Return On Objective) and other alphabet soup terms on why DS (Digital Signage) is awesome for both profit and non-profit organizations, the big ticket cost is hard to avoid. People still get sticker shock even when they understand the value and see the importance of having a DS solution for their organization. Showcasing the value, ease-of-use, and overall quality of a system proposed is important, but a lot of people overlook a simple means to drop the initial investment cost - Financing and Leasing.

As a dealer (and the client) - it's good to have a deck stacked in your favor. The best way to do this (aside from having the best source for your DS system) is to have financing and leasing as an option. about 1 in 3 companies given the opportunity to finance or lease a Sign System with LED signage (and even interior LCD/DS systems) will take the option, not offering this means there are a lot of opportunities lost for both dealers and clients.

I spoke with a couple of financing/leasing agents and here are a few key points of interest from our chat:

Jay Driscoll (Geneva Capital):
Within the last year the lending environment has opened up and there are many banks and other lenders who have been sitting on capital for a few years and are now looking for places to invest. LED Displays are good collateral and more lenders are willing to finance them. Financing makes digital signage much more affordable for a business. Instead of having to pay for it in one lump sum they can spread it out over a period of time, up to five years. This is a huge benefit because they can use the income the sign will generate to pay for it instead of using money they have already earned. 

Leslie Durocher (Advantage Leasing):
In the digital signage marketplace, I feel a major hurdle to overcome is competitive pressures. With many more shoppers and easy access to information it is important to be in the relationship building business. Small business owners are looking for their competitive edge however do not always have access to affordable capital for their purchases. Equipment leasing can help mitigate the risk of having minimal outlay of cash until the business achieves its desired ROI whether that be increasing efficiency (sales), saving costs (energy/other) or another objective the company would like to meet with DS.

There are a lot of leasing companies out there (these two are people I've met with directly and have had a good rapport (and heard good things about) in the industry. When looking at the bottom line final cost to invest with DS, it's definitely worth adding another line at the bottom showing financing/leasing options. The more options available for a client, the better the chance their organization can benefit from a DS system (and avoid sticker shock syndrome). Stack the deck in everyone's favor and look at leasing as an option for your business and clients.

Please comment here or send questions or requests for information to deacon@vantageled.com. Vantage LED has white paper resources and more educational material on the website (http://www.vantageled.com), please check it out when you have a moment. Note all posts/thoughts/writings are strictly the viewpoint of me and me alone and do not reflect nor speak for Vantage LED’s beliefs, attitudes, thoughts, etc. unless specifically noted.attitudes, thoughts, etc. unless specifically noted.