Before applying, a client looks on a leasing company's website for answers to four questions: whether there's a leasing product for their equipment, whether you can be trusted, what the payment will be and when someone will call them back. If the website answers all four, the application comes from someone who has almost made up their mind. If even one goes unanswered, the client often goes to look for the answer at another company.
Below is the lessee's journey step by step: finding, checking, calculating, applying. And what on the website supports each step.
Step 1. Finding: machinery, equipment and suppliers
Clients rarely search for a leasing company in general. They search for "heavy machinery leasing", "lease a truck", "equipment leasing". So each category needs its own page: cars and trucks, heavy machinery, agricultural machinery, equipment — whatever you actually finance. Write the heading and the first paragraph in the client's words, and the page will be easier to find in search.
On a category page, the client looks for answers to their questions:
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Who's eligible. Companies, sole traders, individuals, if you work with them.
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Key terms. Down payment, term, currency, as stated in your product terms, with the word "from" where the terms depend on the client.
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Requirements for the client. How long the business must have been operating and which documents will be needed. This saves time for both the client and the manager.
Show your partner suppliers separately: dealers, car showrooms, equipment manufacturers. Clients often choose the machinery first and only then look for a way to pay for it. If their supplier is on your list, it's easier for them to choose you.
Step 2. Checking: what builds trust on a leasing company's website
A lease is a long-term contract, and the client wants to be sure the company is reliable. On the website, they look at:
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Company information. History, management, registration details, the office on a map.
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Financial reports. A section with the documents the company publishes, holding current files rather than a single report uploaded years ago. We covered how to run a section like this without a developer in our article on reports on a financial company's website.
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Client stories. Which companies already work with you and what machinery they've leased, with their consent.
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News. New products, partners, events. An active news section shows that the company is operating and the website hasn't been abandoned.
Decide with your lawyer which documents to publish and in what form. The website's job is to let clients find them in a couple of taps, including on a phone.
And don't hide the awkward parts. If the client will have to pay anything besides the lease payments, say so on the product page. A surprise at the meeting does more damage to trust than an honest line on the website.
Step 3. Calculating: a calculator on every page
Once satisfied that the product fits and the company can be trusted, the client wants to know the main thing: how much they'll pay each month. A calculator answers that without a phone call. It's best if it sits on every category page and is already set to that category's product: the client opens the heavy machinery page, and the calculator immediately works with the terms for heavy machinery.
As well as the payment, show the total mark-up and the payment schedule, with a note under the result saying the calculation is preliminary. If there are several products for one type of machinery, let the client choose the product right in the calculator. The figures should match what the manager will quote later, and the rates should be updated without a programmer.
For the details of what a leasing calculator should calculate, see our article on loan and leasing calculators for websites. The calculator also gives you a view of demand: its statistics show which amounts and terms clients calculate most often.
Step 4. Applying: a short form and a quick response
The application form is where it's easy to lose a client who has almost decided: every unnecessary field is a reason to put the application off "until later". It's enough to ask for:
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Name and phone number. So the manager can call back.
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What they need. The type of machinery or the product. If the client came from the calculator, the amount, down payment and term are filled in automatically.
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Company or individual. If the terms depend on it.
The rest, such as financial documents and supplier details, the manager will clarify in conversation. Put the list of documents needed for the lease on a separate page so the client can prepare them in advance. And keep a Telegram button next to the form: some people find it easier to send a message than to fill in fields.
After that, speed matters. While the client is waiting for a call, they may send the same application to a competitor. So the application should go straight into the CRM and reach the manager as a notification, and the client should get a confirmation and know when they'll be contacted.
In the CRM, every application shows its source, the calculation from the calculator and the person responsible. Management can see how many applications are waiting for a first call and learns about a problem immediately, not after the client has already gone.
How it's done for Eskhata Leasing
Some of these solutions are part of our projects for Eskhata Leasing. The website in Uzbekistan has contact forms, integration with Bitrix24 and additional modules for managers. The website in Tajikistan has an interactive calculator that works out leasing terms in real time, a section for publishing and updating financial reports, and a single client database that combines data from different channels.
The calculator covers the "calculating" step, the reports section covers "checking", and the forms and the single client database cover the application and what happens to it next.
Checklist
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Each category has its own page. Vehicles, heavy machinery and equipment, each on its own.
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The page shows who's eligible. And what the key terms are.
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Partner suppliers are listed. A client who has already chosen the machinery can see straight away that you work with their dealer.
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The reports section is up to date. Documents open on a phone.
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The calculator gives the same result as the manager. Check it on one example.
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The application form has only the fields you really need. Everything else is clarified in conversation.
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The application reaches the CRM, and the client gets a confirmation. Send a test application and see what happens.
If you want your website to answer clients' questions before they call a manager, take a look at what we do for leasing and financial companies and get in touch. We'll go through your website step by step and show you where clients might leave.