Resellers promised 'online trade revolution'

'Cradle-to-grave' extranet service will change resellers lives, claims finance company.

Resellers finding it difficult to close deals because of financial constraints, such as end user capital expenditure cuts, low credit limits or high risk, will today be offered the chance to set up end-to-end finance and leasing deals online thanks to a new reseller trading tool from Syscap.

The reseller extranet has been in the pipeline for over a year and goes live today at www.syscap-direct.com. It offers resellers a secure toolkit to access not only Syscap's finance and leasing package but also sales and marketing material, according to Liz Barber, ebusiness development manager at the finance, leasing and asset management company.

An online reseller loyalty programme, called Redline, is also available at the website, where resellers can redeem points against a range of items in an online catalogue.

But perhaps the most significant feature of the scheme is that at all times the reseller retains ownership of the deal. This is a significant value-add, according to Sean Williams, managing director of Syscap. "No one else has the same cradle-to-grave service," he said. "It will change resellers' lives."

The system allows registered users, who must meet the company's underwriting criteria, to log on and submit proposals using an online template. Because the system is web-based this can be done from anywhere.

Once submitted, the proposal can be tracked by resellers in real time, from credit decisions (underwriting) to automated contract printing. All live proposals are displayed in real time, and the site's sales forecasting functionality can offer the ability to plan future system changes and upgrade opportunities.

A Short Message Service function is also available to alert resellers to the decision about their proposal on a mobile phone when they are out and about.

Pilot user of the scheme Colin Seaton, national sales manager at PlanIT Software, said: "With my entire team on the road, the ability to propose deals and obtain credit decisions over the web, wherever you are, is what we've needed for ages."

David Roberts, sales and marketing director at Dan Technology, said: "I've used leasing to secure deals for years, but a down side has always been the time it takes to gain approval and send documents to customers.

"This system has revolutionised turnaround. Now we can close deals in front of the customer. They just sign the paperwork that is automatically generated. It's fantastic."