London remains a major global financial centre, maintaining a leading position even after the UK’s exit from the European Union. In the second half of 2022, London stood out as the foremost UK mainland region for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), securing an impressive total of £22.8 billion in loans.
More recent statistics that claim almost £5 billion in lending to UK SMEs in the second quarter of 2023 confirm that British companies are still willing to take risks and grow despite economic and political crises.
However, the global economic climate is constantly changing, with signs of a potential recession emerging in 2025. Thus, lenders must take extra steps to ensure that borrowers understand that taking a business loan is a worthwhile investment during uncertain times. Implement the following five communication strategies to get business loan leads.
A Few Facts About Business Loans
The most recent statistics on UK business lending project that gross lending to UK businesses will total £488.1 billion in 2024 – a slight 2% decline from 2023 (£496 billion). Considering the recent economic situation, where some businesses have decided to take a break from loans, decision-makers at many companies are still willing to take risks and try to expand during difficult times.
According to a Forbes Advisor survey, the majority of business owners spent their recent loan funds within six months. It reveals a recurring need for financing, and the fact that loans are actively used indicates that firms are committed to their goals, making them attractive prospects for lenders.
Recognising that firm owners tend to use funds quickly enables lenders to tailor their marketing strategies to appeal to borrowers at the right time, potentially increasing the likelihood of generating commercial business loan leads.
Source: Forbes
Therefore, companies are actively exploring the lending market to obtain loans on favourable terms. You can benefit from their desire to get a reputable lender by generating business finance leads using tips from this article.
First, let’s explore the common types of business loans. Each type suits different markets, requiring distinct loan lead generation strategies.
| Lines of credit | Access to funds up to a defined limit, similar to credit card lines for individuals. |
| Term loans | Loans for a certain amount and term are repaid in regular payments. |
| Start up loans | Government-backed loans offering £500 to £25,000 to grow businesses. |
| Invoice financing | Advances on unpaid invoices to improve cash flow. |
| Equipment financing | Loans for purchasing equipment or machinery. |
SMEs often look for additional financing to expand their operations, invest in advanced technology, hire additional staff, or manage cash flow fluctuations.
In some cases, they even communicate this desire online through social media or professional platforms. If you spot these opportunities early, you have a high chance of getting business loan leads for free. During crises, businesses often take out small loans to safely navigate unexpected expenses.
Use these pain points in your campaigns to generate loan leads with ease. Your marketing strategy should be precisely targeted to the leads’ needs and preferences. Ensure your campaign complies with the latest UK regulations, such as the Financial Conduct Authority’s oversight, the Consumer Credit Act reforms, or the Consumer Duty rules.
At the same time, you should have a strong, concise marketing plan. It will help you not only get free leads online but also build trusting relationships with potential clients.
Tip 1. Maximise Digital Marketing Efforts
A solid online presence is crucial for those who want to generate business leads for free. You still need to invest in online brand visibility. It includes but is not limited to high-quality photo and video content, potentially viral yet comprehensive posts, curated collaborations with influencers, and more.
Research by Harvard Business School suggests that small or medium businesses seeking loans explore online resources first. SME founders often explore social media, local, and professional communities to get direct advice from people in the community.
Another research approach of SME founders is to investigate finance marketplaces to get access to hand-selected lenders. The most well-known examples of these marketplaces in the UK are UK Finance and Funding Options by Tide. Some founders prefer to research local and nationwide lenders on their own.
Phonexa’s HitMetrix, a user behaviour analytics and conversion rate optimisation software, visualises, tracks, and documents user behaviour to produce data that shows how visitors convert after browsing through your website.
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Harnessing the Power of SEO and Content Marketing
SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) and content marketing provide you with consistent, long-term results. While it may take 2–3 months to see the first effects of a successful SEO strategy, maintaining and improving your SERP (Search Engine Results Page) rankings becomes easier over time.
To get the most out of this practice, develop a user-friendly website that shows you as a trustworthy lender. Detail your services using relevant keywords to connect with your audience effectively. Include clear calls-to-action (CTAs) in your content to encourage visitors to take the next step in the sales funnel.
A strong backlink strategy can help you strengthen your SERP rankings. To achieve this, regularly update your website with blog posts containing links to reputable external sites and internal pages. While posting on social or collaborating with other businesses, ensure that you add links to your website.
All these steps will improve your SEO performance, enhancing your business loan lead generation, as potential clients will feel more confident communicating with you. Include clear calls-to-action (CTAs) in your content to encourage visitors to take the next step, such as filling out a contact form or scheduling a consultation.
Using Facebook Ads for Targeted Lead Generation
Facebook Ads offer a powerful platform to reach your target audience (TA). To ensure that you’ll get the most business funding leads, you need to build the campaign precisely:
- Define your target audience: Use not only demographics but also interests and behaviours.
- Create compelling ads: Ensure they feature engaging visuals, persuasive yet not pushy copy, and a strong call-to-action (CTA).
- Optimise the landing page: Keep your CTAs clear and concise.
Use Facebook Pixel to track user behaviour on your website to improve ad targeting. The Facebook Pixel is a piece of tracking code installed on your website. It tracks user behaviour and collects data that helps optimise your Facebook ad campaigns.
Leverage the Lookalike Audiences feature to expand your reach by targeting users similar to your existing audience. If your source audience consists only of London-based users who filled out a loan inquiry form, the Lookalike Audience can target people with similar profiles, potentially increasing lead quality.
By combining the targeting power of Lookalike Audiences with the data insights of the Facebook Pixel, you can create highly optimised lead generation campaigns with potentially increased reach. This strategy works well with personal loan leads, and it will also be suitable for business borrowers.
Tip 2: Leveraging Social Media and Online Platforms
According to the latest Statista research, 67% of Generation Z, 71% of Millennials (Gen Y), and 71% of Generation X in the UK use social media daily. Thus, leveraging the power of social media is a great way to get free business leads.
Source: Statista
With more than 4.9 billion global users, it’s crucial to engage with potential customers on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok to solidify your company’s brand and influence. To get more leads, focus on consistent blogging and participation in professional communities.
@businesscreditdevyn Cats out the bag. Those Business loans and business funding (if you’re smart) should go towards investments…..start using your business for more than sales #businessfundingtips #businessfunding #businesscredit101 #businessowners #businesscredittips #smallbusinesstips #fundingyourbusiness #businesstok #entrepreneurtok ♬ original sound – Devyn
Strategies for Engaging Potential Clients on Social Media
A well-executed social media strategy can create a strong bond between you and leads for business loans. To get the most from your efforts, develop a comprehensive content plan that spans several months. During content plan development, ensure that you have a consistent brand voice throughout all channels.
Film seasonal content ahead and post it among the first to encourage user interest and collect free business leads online. It’s fine to start posting Christmas-themed videos in late November.
Don’t be afraid of influencer and affiliate collaborations. These are fantastic, budget-friendly ways to reach a new audience. Another effective marketing practice is hosting webinars and live Q&A sessions with industry experts. With it, you not only educate your current clients but also have the opportunity to generate small business leads for free by acquiring hosts’ follower base for your company.
Tip 3: Building a Strong Online Network for Referrals By Using Professional Platforms
A strong online network can be a goldmine for referrals and commercial loan leads. Leverage professional platforms like LinkedIn, where you can join relevant groups, answer questions, and send tailored connection requests. We also recommend creating an account on industry-specific platforms, such as UK Business Forums, MoneySavingExpert Forum, and Reddit.
Engage in discussions, share valuable content, and use personalised outreach to get free business leads. When happy clients or partners spread the word on social media or one of those professional platforms, it’s gold for gathering finance leads for free.
Building a solid referral programme encourages current clients and industry connections to recommend potential leads, boosting your pool of prospects.
Tip 4: Effective Use of Email Marketing
Email marketing is a time-proven approach to getting commercial loan leads. The email click-through rate (CTR) in the UK finance niche is 2.1%, which is notably higher than the national average of 1.84%. To ensure that you get the most out of your email strategy, identify your target audience and don’t be afraid to classify them into the maximum possible number of target groups.
Craft tailored content for each target audience group. The finance niche is highly competitive, and you need to keep in mind that a hyper-tailored approach is one of the keys to success.
When developing emails, ensure that your messages are mobile-friendly and visually appealing across various devices. Include a strong Call to Action (CTA) that clearly outlines the desired action.
Constantly track key metrics and use the data to make informed decisions. To determine which content resonates best with your audience, run A/B testing, where you experiment with subject lines, content formats, CTAs, and send times.
Phonexa’s E-Delivery is one of the essential solutions for performance marketers. It will help you improve deliverability and leverage the functionality of major email service providers with your email campaigns, giving you unrivalled email control.
Build your plan now, or book a demo to see how it could be easy to reach leads’ inboxes.
Tip 5: Innovative Lead Generation Techniques
In 2025, many traditional digital promotional approaches, such as giveaways or mass following, had outlived their usefulness. To stay relevant today, you need to combine fundamental lead generation techniques, such as email marketing and content marketing, with modern social media platforms (like Reels or TikTok), webinars, influencer marketing, and affiliate marketing.
To further increase engagement, consider launching interactive content, such as quizzes, calculators, and interactive infographics. People tend to prefer interactive content, especially when it offers valuable information. It sparks user interest, so they are highly likely to provide their contact data to get the results. Interactive content can help you get small business loan leads, as often, the person who is searching for a loan is the company’s founder.
Meanwhile, it’s hard to keep track of all lead generation channels if you try to do it manually. That’s why it’s crucial to have an automated lead management system that will save you time and provide you with data-driven insights.
Take Phonexa’s LMS Sync, for instance. It’s a versatile lead management software designed to track potential clients, re-engage with inactive users, and refine your acquisition strategies. The best part about this tool is that it automates various processes, allowing you to get only the best business loan leads.
Build your plan now, or book a demo to see how Phonexa tools transform fragmented processes into streamlined workflows.
Here are some ways you can improve business loan leads generation with proper software:
| Customer relationship management (CRM) software | CRM platforms for loan officers go the extra mile by simplifying communication channels, monitoring loan applications, and even automating follow-ups. |
| Marketing automation tools | Personalise communications based on a customer’s interest with software that organises emails, social media posts, and targeted advertising. |
| Loan origination software (LOS) | LOS streamlines the loan application process from initial application to approval. It partially automates paperwork, inspects applicant details, and speeds up the decision process. |
| Chatbots and AI assistants | Lenders may implement AI-powered chatbots on their websites to engage with pre-qualified business loan leads and answer queries in real-time, 24/7. |
| Compliance and security software | Ensure compliance with the latest regulations since they safeguard you against fraud. |
It’s Always Worthy To Experiment
When hunting for free business loan leads, it’s vital to try different approaches. While target audiences prefer open communication on social media, others would like a traditional email marketing approach. However, in any case, you need to establish a strong online presence, share valuable content, use referrals, and cultivate lasting partnerships.
Take your business to the next level using five top tips for getting real-time business loan leads and boost your marketing with Phonexa’s outstanding products.
Book a demo to supercharge your marketing with Phonexa’s advanced software suite.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a proven lead generating software for business loan leads?
Phonexa’s suite can help you manage every aspect of lead generation, from traditional email and call management to advanced user behaviour recording and analytics.
Where can I find commercial loan leads?
Leverage social media and professional platforms to contact decision-makers directly. Your promotion should look professional yet catchy to generate leads for small business loans. There are dozens of lenders reaching out to them, so you should stand out from the crowd.
How to generate your own business loan leads
If you need a lead for a loan, combine a precise content strategy with paid ads and affiliate marketing. You can find free leads on professional platforms and social media. Prove yourself as the niche expert to get business loan leads.
Where to get exclusive business loan leads?
Exclusive leads are sent to just one business, so the best way to get those free business loan leads is to promote your lending company to potential customers directly. Try to implement social media marketing, including professional communities.
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