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Equipment Financing: Best Referral Sources

Who should be sending you clients, and the rooms they are already sitting in.

Get the networking events worth showing up to

Tell us where you are. We will send you the best rooms for equipment finance companies and the next meeting dates. Add a ZIP and this page will also show your local chapters and which seats are open.

Most business owners network where their competitors are, not where their referral partners are.

Your own trade group is for learning. Your partners' groups are where the work comes from. Everything below starts with one question. When something happens that makes people need equipment finance companies, who else gets a call that same week?

Equipment finance companies sell to other businesses, and most of the work starts when somebody needs a loan closed. It moves fast, so being the name already in hand matters more than being the cheapest. Clients return now and then, so the introduction has to keep paying off.

What starts the work
  • Financing or refinancewhen somebody needs a loan closed
  • New lease or locationwhen a business signs a lease or opens a location
  • Business formationwhen somebody starts a company
  • Building system failurewhen the AC dies, a pipe fails, or something in the building stops working
  • First hire / payrollwhen a business puts its first employee on payroll
Block one

Who should be sending you clients

Ranked by what starts the job, not by who sounds close to your trade.

  1. 01

    Business Banker

    They send you work
    82

    Trigger: somebody needs a loan closed

    Business bankers hear about it when somebody needs a loan closed, before you do. This one sends you work rather than trading it.

  2. 02

    Insurance Property & Casualty

    They send you work
    71

    Trigger: a business signs a lease or opens a location

    P&C insurance agents hear about it when a business signs a lease or opens a location, before you do. This one sends you work rather than trading it.

  3. 03

    CPA / Accountant

    They send you work
    71

    Trigger: somebody needs a loan closed

    CPAs hear about it when somebody needs a loan closed, before you do. This one sends you work rather than trading it.

  4. 04

    Commercial Lender

    Two-way
    70

    Trigger: somebody needs a loan closed

    You and commercial lenders both get the call when somebody needs a loan closed, usually the same week. This one goes both ways.

  5. 05

    Commercial Property Manager

    They send you work
    70

    Trigger: a business signs a lease or opens a location

    Commercial property managers hear about it when a business signs a lease or opens a location, before you do. This one sends you work rather than trading it.

  6. 06

    Mortgage Broker / Loan Officer

    They send you work
    69

    Trigger: somebody needs a loan closed

    Mortgage brokers hear about it when somebody needs a loan closed, before you do. This one sends you work rather than trading it.

  7. 07

    Attorney Business & Corporate

    They send you work
    68

    Trigger: a business signs a lease or opens a location

    Business attorneys hear about it when a business signs a lease or opens a location, before you do. This one sends you work rather than trading it.

  8. 08

    IT Services / Managed IT

    Two-way
    67

    Trigger: a business signs a lease or opens a location

    You and IT and managed service providers both get the call when a business signs a lease or opens a location, usually the same week. This one goes both ways.

  9. 09

    Attorney Real Estate

    They send you work
    67

    Trigger: a business signs a lease or opens a location

    Real estate attorneys hear about it when a business signs a lease or opens a location, before you do. This one sends you work rather than trading it.

  10. 10

    Bookkeeper

    Two-way
    65

    Trigger: somebody needs a loan closed

    You and bookkeepers both get the call when somebody needs a loan closed, usually the same week. This one goes both ways.

Block two

Where those people actually are

Ranked by how many of your best partners are in the room, and how much work each one can send you.

Start here

Your city or county chamber of commerce

Your partners are in this room: business bankers, P&C insurance agents, and CPAs.

Too big and too broad on its own. The value is in one committee. Pick one and go every time. The same fifteen people show up, and they get to know you.

Chamber of commerce Monthly Under $500/yr ~4 hrs/month
Find your local chapter →

Give someone nine choices and they pick none. If you do one thing from this page, do this.

  1. 01

    Your city or county chamber of commerce

    Chamber of commerce

    Your partners are in this room: business bankers, P&C insurance agents, and CPAs.

    Too big and too broad on its own. The value is in one committee. Pick one and go every time. The same fifteen people show up, and they get to know you.

    Monthly Under $500/yr ~4 hrs/month
    Chapter finder →
  2. 02

    LinkedIn groups & local B2B communities

    Online community

    Your partners are in this room: business bankers, P&C insurance agents, and CPAs.

    Works when your buyer has a job title. Useful comments on your partners' posts beat posting your own.

    Always on Free ~3 hrs/month
    Chapter finder →
  3. 03

    Vistage

    Paid peer group

    Your partners are in this room: business bankers, CPAs, and business attorneys.

    Run CEO peer groups. You are buying advice, not leads, but the group turns into a warm list over time.

    Monthly $2,000+/yr ~8 hrs/month
    Chapter finder →
  4. 04

    State CPA society

    Your partners' association

    Your partners are in this room: CPAs and bookkeepers.

    A CPA is the person most business owners trust most. Sponsors can go to chapter meetings and classes.

    Monthly Under $500/yr ~3 hrs/month
    Chapter finder →
  5. 05

    Your local Realtor board or association

    Your partners' association

    Your partners are in this room: mortgage brokers and real estate attorneys.

    Join as a vendor and you are in front of hundreds of agents. They need people they trust at every closing. Ask about the vendor committee and the classes for new agents, not just the parties.

    Monthly Under $500/yr ~4 hrs/month
    Chapter finder →
  6. 06

    Local mortgage bankers or brokers association

    Your partners' association

    Your partners are in this room: commercial lenders and mortgage brokers.

    Loan officers know a house is selling 30 to 60 days before anyone else does.

    Monthly Under $500/yr ~3 hrs/month
    Chapter finder →
  7. 07

    BNI

    Structured referral group

    One seat per category, so your competitors are excluded by rule and the seats around you are the partners above.

    The biggest referral group in the world. You meet every week. Only one person per job. They expect you to show up.

    Weekly $500–$2,000/yr ~8 hrs/month One seat per category
    Chapter finder →
  8. 08

    LeTip International

    Structured referral group

    One seat per category, so your competitors are excluded by rule and the seats around you are the partners above.

    Weekly referral chapters. One person per job. Strong with trades and home services.

    Weekly $500–$2,000/yr ~7 hrs/month One seat per category
    Chapter finder →

Let us be straight with you. For equipment finance companies, a weekly referral group is not the best pick. Your partners gather in professional groups instead, so spend your time there. We would rather say that than sell you a seat you do not need.

Block three

Is your seat open?

Prime Time takes one equipment financing per chapter. Put in a South Florida ZIP above and we will show you which seats are open.

Add a ZIP code at the top of the page to see which seats are open.

Get the dates

Have the next meetings sent to you

The rooms above are the answer. This is when they meet. Tell us where to send it and we will email you the next dates for equipment finance companies, with the one page plan.

We already know your trade and your area from this page, so there is nothing else to fill in. We do not ask for a phone number. Every email we send has an unsubscribe link.

Take this with you

Your one-page action plan

Five partners, five things to say, three rooms. Print it and keep it in the car.

Networking plan: Equipment Financing

The five people who should be sending you clients

  1. Business Banker (They send you work)
    Shared trigger: somebody needs a loan closed
  2. Insurance Property & Casualty (They send you work)
    Shared trigger: a business signs a lease or opens a location
  3. CPA / Accountant (They send you work)
    Shared trigger: somebody needs a loan closed
  4. Commercial Lender (Two-way)
    Shared trigger: somebody needs a loan closed
  5. Commercial Property Manager (They send you work)
    Shared trigger: a business signs a lease or opens a location

The three rooms to be in

  1. Your city or county chamber of commerce: Your partners are in this room: business bankers, P&C insurance agents, and CPAs.
  2. LinkedIn groups & local B2B communities: Your partners are in this room: business bankers, P&C insurance agents, and CPAs.
  3. Vistage: Your partners are in this room: business bankers, CPAs, and business attorneys.