1. Selling the Value of Financing Cisco Services
Financing Solutions Through Cisco Capital

2. Cisco Services Accelerate Program
Welcome to the Selling the Value of Financing Cisco Services learning module.
This learning module is part of the Cisco® Services Accelerate Program, an on-going Cisco effort designed to help partners1 accelerate their service practice profitability.
The Cisco Services Accelerate Program includes:
Training resources
Sales tools
Incentives*
* Incentives not available in all regions.

3. Topic Overview
This topic is designed to help all Cisco partners, particularly owners and managers and service specialist teams, learn how to accelerate success by selling the value of Cisco Capital® financing solutions.
This guide provides:
Guidance in promoting the value of financing
Information on the available resources for growing a financing business
Strategies to expand sales opportunities
Information for overcoming objections
It should take you about 20 minutes to complete this learning module.
At the conclusion, test your knowledge with the online quiz and earn points to increase your eligibility to win prizes.*
* Prizes not available in all regions.

4. Navigating the Learning Module
You can navigate this learning module in two ways:
Use the blue navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen to move through slide-by-slide.
Click the color-coded buttons at the top of the screen to explore a specific section.

5. What You Need to Know
The global economic situation has led business towards a greater focus on cash flow management, forecasting and performance, as well as an increased attention to capital structure management and debt financing cost and availability.
With banks less willing to lend, combined with the introduction of tougher credit criteria and higher interest rates, there is a rising importance of locating alternative financing sources and credit availability.
Investing in the latest Cisco technology and services can bring important benefits to a business.
Funding that investment, however, can be difficult with pressure on cash flow and competing demands for budgets.
In today’s business environment, your customers need to decide not only what to buy, but how to buy.

6. What You Need to Know
Financing is not merely an alternative to a cash purchase; it has become a standard business policy that is being widely adopted across organizations of all sizes.
Financing frees your customers from their budget barriers enabling them to accelerate the implementation of IT projects - getting what they need sooner - to run their business most effectively.
With this freedom they can often accelerate IT projects that may have been planned to occur over several quarters, into the current quarter, and realize the complete technology solution they require now.
Nearly four out of five companies use financing for IT acquisitions.

7. What You Need to Know Cisco Capital
Cisco Capital is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cisco Systems, specializing in providing innovative financing for Cisco solutions worldwide.
More than just a finance company, Cisco Capital is uniquely positioned to provide the most flexible and competitive financing for your customers' acquisition of Cisco technologies.
Cisco Capital can help to grow your business and unlock the opportunity within your existing customer base by combining expertise in flexible, competitive financing with a comprehensive knowledge of Cisco technology.
Cisco Capital delivers financing solutions designed to support your business goals, and your customers' technology needs, both today and in the future.
The ability to offer financing on Cisco equipment, software and services directly from Cisco is a benefit to your customers seeking alternative sources of capital, as well as a strategic advantage for you that many of your competitors do not enjoy.

8. What You Need to Know Customer Business Benefits
Financing from Cisco Capital provides both budget and technology management benefits to companies of all sizes, including:
Conserve cash. Cash is not tied up in equipment costs. Financing frees up cash for more strategic investments, or for the innovation required to grow their business.
Preserve credit. Capital is freed up for other business priorities and keeps other lines of credit, such as bank loans, open, leaving more capital available.
Total solution financing. Finance up to 100% of equipment costs in addition to maintenance, software, and services. Subject to some limitations, Cisco Capital can also finance complementary non-Cisco equipment.
Fixed payments. A fixed monthly or quarterly payment helps your customers to predict and manage their budget over the long term.
Cash flow management. Pay for the equipment as the revenue or productivity benefits derived from the equipment are realized, not before. Match in-flows to out-flows.
Flexibility. Structure payments to fit your customers’ budget.
Avoid technology obsolescence. Offers the flexibility to upgrade to new technology to match their current and future business needs.
Off-balance sheet financing. May allow your customer to maintain compliance with their bank and loan covenants; stay within their capital budget constraints; and, improve certain financial ratios.
Purchase and renewal options. Provides end of lease options and the ongoing flexibility to return, purchase, or upgrade equipment as their business requires.
Deferred payments and other benefits. To ensure that acquiring the technology your customer needs is as straightforward as possible. X
More Info

9. What You Need to Know Your Business Benefits
Financing from Cisco Capital provides you with many business advantages, including:
Close a more profitable deal for your business
Offering a solution that provides for manageable payments over time, rather than a large upfront cash outlay, increases the likelihood that you will close the sale and may help you avoid discounting discussions.
Improve company cash flow
When your customer finances with Cisco Capital, you get paid shortly after customer delivery acceptance. This may shorten your collection cycle, reduce your outstanding receivables, and have a positive impact on your overall cash flows.
Improve your personal sales performance
Stand out from your peers, offer a complete solution, close more deals and achieve greater success!
According to an analyst survey, over 77 percent of IT customers said that the availability of leasing or financing affects their choice of an equipment, software, or service supplier.*
*IDC, Telebriefing Presentation, The Future of IT Leasing and Financing: How Capital Markets Will Continue to Shape IT Strategies, September 2009 X
Overcome objections
Financing helps your customers overcome budgetary constraints, allowing you to focus on the solution sale, not on continuous cost/discounting discussions.
Increase deal size
Research shows that when financing is included, deals can be up to 34 percent larger.*
Close more deals, faster
Makes the decision to buy easier, helping you shorten the sales cycle.
Outperform the competition
Offering a total business solution and engaging more strategically helps you become more of a trusted advisor and differentiates you from your competitors.
Increase customer loyalty
Helping your customer see how they can afford their technology strategy utilizing financing, can strengthen your customer relationship and create future sales opportunities.
Position yourself for future upgrades
With a built-in customer decision point at the end of the financing term, you are better positioned for future upgrade and replacement options.
Your customers expect it!
In a recent survey, more than 50 percent of customers stated that they expect financing options to be provided as part of a proposal.
More Info
*Yankee Group 2008

10. What You Can Sell
Cisco Capital financing core offerings are always available and can be combined to create flexible and custom financial solutions. Among the more popular structures are:
Note that Cisco Capital offers, programs and resources vary by region.
To obtain a comprehensive listing of the financing structures available, and to check on the current Cisco Capital financing offers, programs, promotions and resources available for both you and your customer, visit the Cisco Capital portal  and select your geographical region. X
Operating, or Fair Market Value Lease (FMV)
Designed for customers that seek access to the latest technology without the burden and risks of ownership. An aggressive projected residual value is deducted upfront from the solution cost, thereby lowering monthly repayments and total deployment cost. At the end of the initial term, customers have the option to return the equipment or upgrade in whole, or in part, to newer technology. They may also extend the lease or buy the equipment at Fair Market Value. Operating leases shift the risk of technology obsolescence and the burden of end-of-life equipment disposals away from the customer.
Finance Lease
Allows customers to combine some of the benefits of leasing with those of ownership. At the end of the lease term customers have the right to purchase the
lease term customers have the right to purchase the equipment, usually for a fixed nominal sum. For tax and accounting purposes, customers own the equipment from day one of the lease term. Although such leases do not address the risk of technology obsolescence, they do provide customers with an easy tool for cash flow and budget management .
Sale and Leaseback (SLB)
Can help businesses seeking to migrate to Cisco technology while avoiding the write off of legacy solutions. With an SLB, Cisco Capital may be able to purchase a customer’s equipment and then lease that equipment back to them. Businesses may also choose this option for balance sheet management, cash flow considerations, or when outsourcing to a service provider.
More Info

11. How To Get Started
There are a number of important opportunities for you to build your business and expand your sales opportunities by promoting the value of financing with your customers:
At the point of first sale
Always introduce the benefits of financing early. A financing solution that spreads the cost over a number of years can enable your customers to acquire a larger or more robust solution than they think they can afford—helping you to increase the size of your deals. Financing creates immediate purchasing power allowing you to upsell the solution and bring future deals forward.
When selling Cisco Services on uncovered equipment
Maintenance and services-only financing programs provide a way for you to help your customers incorporate uncovered equipment or renewals into a multiyear Cisco Services contract. Services can be financed on a standalone agreement, exclusive of equipment, for a term matching the term of the service contract.
When renewing Cisco Services agreements
Renewal time is a critical contact point because selling service contract renewals creates opportunities for you to upgrade or extend service coverage or expand your overall solution by selling new hardware or software, combined with financing.
When selling multiyear Cisco Services agreements
Attractive Cisco Capital financing rates allow you to position multiyear Cisco Services contracts with your customers. Selling financing on multiyear service agreements presents an opportunity for you to generate greater revenue and can have a significant effect on your cash flow.

12. How To Get Started Opportunity Spotting Checklist
Use the following pointers to help identify sales opportunities and create a point of entry:
Engage early with a Cisco Capital Financial Solutions Manager (FSM), through your local Cisco representative or distributor, to make sure that you have a complete “landscape”’ on your customer’s credit history with Cisco Capital and begin to identify future strategic opportunities.
Find out if your customer’s technology roadmap is on hold due to budgetary constraints, or if there is a need to reduce total cost of ownership or capital expenditure.
Establish which equipment can stay in the network and which needs replacing. This can be a good time to introduce a network assessment to audit the customer’s network.
Find out if an end-of-life technology disposal policy exists and if the company understands the tangible business benefits that financing with Cisco Capital offers.
Identify whether your customer’s organization recognizes the value of supported equipment deployment (to extend the Cisco Capital solution to spread the costs of managed services).
To compensate for the effect of shrinking capital budgets, look at ways to tap into non-IT budgets within customer organizations.

13. How To Get Started Learn How Cisco Capital Supports Your Business
An important part of the unique Cisco Capital value proposition is how Cisco supports your business, not just your customers’.
Before engaging with your customer, make sure you learn about, and understand, the Cisco Capital programs and resources developed specifically to support your business growth, such as flexible partner payment programs, channel financing that provides incremental credit to partners, special offers and promotions, and programs to help you build your demo capabilities.
Note that Cisco Capital offers, programs and resources vary by region. For information on current Cisco Capital financing programs, visit the Cisco Capital portal  and select your geographical region.

14. Strategies For Successful Selling
A successful sales approach for selling financing on services requires that you be prepared to:
Proactively include financing as part of your sales strategy
Help your customers understand that financing offers a strategic approach to managing their business
Explain the various Cisco Capital financing options available to your customers
Adapt your approach to the needs of the financially minded decision maker
Sell the benefits of financing multiyear service agreements

15. Strategies For Successful Selling
Quote Financing With Every Opportunity
Introduce the value of financing at the beginning of every sales conversation and quote financing on every opportunity as part of your complete solution.
Subject to certain restrictions, Cisco Capital will generally finance the entire technology solution—including third-party equipment and Cisco Services—to meet most customers’ needs.
By offering a one-stop financing solution, you establish yourself and your company as a full- service partner making it more difficult for your competitors to penetrate that base.
Remember that selling Cisco Capital financing provides value not only to your customers, but also to you and your business.
By incorporating financing at every opportunity, you can improve your company’s sales revenue, plus you can enjoy a longer term relationship when your customers’ finance leads to repeat sales opportunities.
By emphasizing the benefit of financing early in your sales conversations, you can help your customers see how they can work with the funding they currently have available and better plan for the future.
Flexible and efficient financing structures provide your customers with acquisition alternatives that can overcome budget and investment hurdles.
When positioned properly, flexible financing from Cisco Capital can also help you to preserve discount. Remember that establishing the value of services and financing initially will make it easier for you to counter objections X
More Info

16. Strategies For Successful Selling
Focus on Your Customers’ Business Needs
The sale is not just about the technology, it’s about what the technology can do for the business.
When selling financing on Cisco solutions be prepared to help your customer understand that financing offers a strategic approach to managing their business.
Explain the various Cisco Capital financing options available to your customer. Show your customers how financing can break down the total cost of a Cisco solution into easily manageable monthly payments.
Remind your customer that financing is not just an alternative method of funding the acquisition of technology, it is an approach to business that offers important financial, technical and operational benefits for their organization
By focusing on your customers’ business needs and demonstrating the benefits of financing through Cisco Capital and how simple it can be, your customer’s technology investment decisions will no longer be based on whether they have the budget; but on their business needs.

17. Strategies For Successful Selling
Customize Your Approach to the Needs of the Financial Decision Maker
If you have been actively selling services, then it is likely that most of your discussions have been with technical decision makers.
However, you should expect that a discussion about financing will bring a finance decision maker into the sales process. As such, you should be prepared to customize your approach to the needs of the financially minded decision maker.
Cisco Capital Financial Solutions Manager (FSM) can be a great resource and can help you to improve the probability of closing the sale. Speak to your local Cisco representative or distributor to find out more about engaging a Cisco Capital Financial Solutions Manager.
To help you understand financing terms and concepts, and create proposals that will be meaningful to financial decision makers, visit the Cisco Capital portal and select your geographical region.
Financial decision makers evaluate decisions by addressing major changes in the business climate, how those changes can influence the business, and delivering measurable results.
Earning the trust of the CFO organization requires the ability to provide acquisition options that alleviate risk, improve earnings or financial ratios, avoid book losses, and increase flexibility.
Being knowledgeable about financing is essential to your credibility when selling to a finance professional. X
More IT organizations (42%) report to the CFO than the CEO or any other executive. Gartner.
More Info

18. Strategies For Successful Selling
Offer Financing on Multiyear Service Agreements
Multiyear service contracts provide your customers with important financial benefits, more efficient use of their time, and an easy route to helping to provide continuous coverage of their networking investment.
Some of your customers, however, might find it difficult to fund a multiyear services contract, or even to make significant investments in Cisco technology, out of their yearly budget.
Use Cisco Capital to help counter cost and budget concerns—many customers are willing to cover all products and services for multiyear terms because of the competitive rates offered by Cisco Capital.

19. Strategies For Successful Selling
Be Prepared To Overcome Objections In Advance
Customers may have many departments that influence a large IT investment, all with different concerns and objections to financing.
Establishing the value of financing at the beginning of your sales discussion, and promoting the affordability that financing can provide, can help to overcome potential budget and economic concerns and address many misconceptions early in your sales engagement.
Always be prepared in advance to counter any objections.
Following are some examples of the types of objections you may encounter, and suggested responses to help you overcome these concerns.
After addressing your customers’ concerns, reinforce the value Cisco Capital can provide.
For further strategies to address customer concerns related to financing and other sales objections, see Accelerate Program topic: Objection Handling.

20. Strategies For Successful Selling
Objection: Our cost of funds is lower than Cisco Capital’s
Response: Perhaps, but financing and taking risk in IT equipment and services is not your core competency. Cisco Capital is an industry leader, and as a wholly- owned subsidiary of Cisco, they provide aggressive residuals, allowing them to drive down the cost of Cisco equipment and services to benefit customers beyond a cost of funds comparison.
Objection: We really can’t manage our assets. -or- We need, or may need, to keep our assets for a longer period of time
Response: If you finance your Cisco solution you receive detailed records to help you manage and track assets. Cisco Capital may be able to offer lease terms of up to 60 months and can provide flexible terms that allow for partial returns and upgrades, which can help avoid interruptions at the end of the financing term.
Objection: We own our assets, we don’t finance or lease
Response: In most organizations a financial analysis is being made at some level, request to bring in your Cisco Capital representative for a meeting with your customer’s financial decision maker to explain the effectiveness of financing, the broader business benefits they could realize, and the overall savings financing can provide.
Objection: We are cash rich and have no need to lease
Response: Many cash rich customers finance their technology assets because they can generate higher returns on that cash by investing it in other areas, either inside or outside of their businesses, than they can by buying their technology equipment outright.

21. Strategies For Successful Selling
Objection: Leasing is too expensive
Response: Some customers have the perception that leasing is expensive. What are you comparing leasing to? Cisco Capital customers, including multinational banking organizations, choose to lease IT equipment. They’ve done the analysis and have found that leasing can be the lowest cost acquisition option - particularly if they don’t need to own their technology assets and if they follow a lifecycle approach to technology management.
Objection: Only a small % of the project is Cisco so I don’t think you can help
Response: Cisco Capital can finance the entire solution including hardware, software, services, and maintenance. As they also finance non-Cisco equipment up to certain limits, it is best to speak with a Cisco Capital Financial Solutions Manager to see if they can accommodate your particular requirements.
Objection: We don’t have the budget for the project. -or- I am waiting to receive the budget
Response: Have you thought about leveraging financing as a means of overcoming budget restrictions? Financing is a flexible alternative to waiting for approval or additional budget. A tailored financing solution can be provided to meet your business and budget needs. One way this can be achieved is by deferring the first payment until such time as you have the budget released.
Objection: I don’t want to be tied into a leasing facility for too long
Response: We help to make sure that the financing structure and terms meet, and possibly exceed, your business needs and goals. Cisco Capital offers terms from 12 to 60 months. What strategic upgrades do you have planned for the next 12–36 months?

22. Strategies For Successful Selling
Objection: I am considering using my own financier
Response: Does your financier have the technology expertise to maximize your network investment? Do they employ Cisco networking equipment financing experts, or are they generalists? Typically independent leasing companies make money on the financing only. Cisco Capital’s sole purpose is to support Cisco Systems by driving forward with product sales, assisting the reseller channel and providing you, the customer, with the very best expert advice via a flexible and highly competitive financing solution.
Objection: Leasing is too complicated
Response: Many people have the misconception that financing IT investments complicates the sale and deployment. Let’s talk to Cisco Capital, I’m sure they can address your concerns and show you the process and the benefits that you can obtain from financing your equipment and service.
Objection: Used leasing before, never again. I had a bad experience
Response: Some customers have had a poor experience with financing in the past. However, Cisco Capital is different. Cisco Capital is not in business to make money on the financing transaction, but to enable the sale of Cisco product and services; our contracts and processes are designed for this objective. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cisco, they are aligned to the technology development and urgency. The success of our customers is Cisco Capital’s primary goal; achieved by helping customers get the technology they need, when they need it, in a manner that drives the most business benefits.

23. Action Plan Step 1: Introduce financing early
It is critical to introduce financing to your customer early in the sales cycle; this gives you the opportunity to learn about your customer’s acquisition process and identify goals and obstacles. This early approach allows you to tailor a custom financing solution to meet your customer’s specific financial metrics and shows that you are taking a strategic approach to their IT acquisition strategy. Leverage financing offers from Cisco Capital to create customer interest. Check the current Cisco Capital financing offers. Visit the Cisco Capital portal  and select your geographical region.
Step 2: Qualify: Identify your customer’s care-abouts
There are two main care-abouts customers have when evaluating a major technology investment: budget (they either have none, need to stay within current budget, or have profitability goals, etc); and equipment lifecycle management (frequent upgrades, avoiding obsolescence, etc).
Determine early in the sales conversation what your customer is trying to achieve with the desired Cisco equipment or service, or both:
What are their desired outcomes for the acquisition?
Do they hope to drive savings, create revenue opportunities or improve their competitive position?
What is the budget for technology in the current year and outlying years?
By qualifying your customer, you have the opportunity to structure a solution that solves more than just their technical issues.
Step 3: Position the benefits
Now that you understand whether your customer is concerned about budget, equipment lifecycle management, or both, introduce financing with Cisco Capital as the solution to their concerns and goals around budget, business objectives and proactively managing equipment lifecycle.

24. Action Plan Step 4: If you haven’t already, bring in Cisco Capital
Request to bring in Cisco Capital, arrange a joint meeting between yourself, a Cisco Capital financial solutions manager and the customer’s financial decision maker to dive deeper into how financing can meet their budget and/or technology requirements.
Step 5: Handle objections
Leverage the responses provided within this document to counter any objections. Once you’ve addressed these concerns, reiterate the value financing can provide to your customer.
Step 6: Close the sale

25. Further Resources
The following Accelerate Program topics help you expand on the knowledge you have gained during this learning module:
Selling Cisco Services Early in the Sales Process
Selling Multiyear Cisco Service Agreements
Objection Handling
See the Accelerate Program website to access additional training material to enhance your knowledge related to this topic.
Or take advantage of the Important Links on the following slides to obtain further information. 

26. Important Links Cisco Services Accelerate Program
Cisco Capital Partner Portal
Cisco Partner Central
Cisco Partner Marketing Central
Cisco Services for Partners
Cisco Technical Services
Cisco Advanced Services
E-Consulting for Partners
Steps to Success
Partner Practice Builder
Services Programs and Promotions
Cisco Services Promotions  
Legal Contract Service Description
Important Links
Cisco Services Accelerate Program
Cisco Partner Central
Cisco Services for Partners
Cisco Lifecycle Services
Cisco Services
Cisco Technical Services
Service Finder
Cisco Service Availability Matrix tool
Cisco SMARTnet Service
Cisco Smart Call Home
Cisco Application Software Support
Cisco Routing and Switching Services
Cisco Data Center Services
Cisco Unified Communications Services
Cisco Unified Communications Software Subscription
Cisco Unified Communications Remote Management Service
Cisco Unified Workplace Licensing

27. Congratulations.
You have completed the Selling the Value of Financing Cisco Services learning module.
At this point you have the choice of reviewing this module again, or challenging your knowledge by taking the online quiz.
You also have the option of taking the quiz at another time.
Congratulations, you have completed the learning module.
At this point you have the option of reviewing this module again, or challenging your knowledge by taking the online quiz. You also have the option of taking the quiz at another time.
Cisco Services Accelerate Program
For more information about the Cisco Services Accelerate Program, and to gain access to comprehensive training resources on this, and other Cisco Services topics, visit:
Or, return to the Accelerate Program website to select further topics to expand your knowledge.