Which CTA converts for equipment financing? Learn when “Get a Quote” wins, when “Apply Now” wins, and the 2-step funnel that drives funded deals.
If you mean “which button gets more people to take the next step,” Get a Quote almost always converts higher—because it feels lower-commitment and lower-risk. If you mean “which button produces more funded deals per visitor,” Apply Now can win on high-intent traffic—because it removes steps and accelerates underwriting.
The real answer (and what converts best in practice): use both, but place them differently, connect them with a two-step funnel, and measure conversion as lead → approved → funded, not just “form fills.”
This guide shows you how to choose (and how to implement) the CTA strategy that converts for Canadian equipment financing and leasing—using an underwriter lens (5Cs), plus UX and compliance basics.
Key point: equipment financing is a high-trust, high-friction purchase, so your CTA wording changes the perceived risk of clicking.
Unlike a typical “contact us” form, a financing CTA can imply:
That’s why CTA language is disproportionately powerful here—especially on mobile, or when the customer is comparing vendors.
HubSpot has published research suggesting personalized CTAs perform significantly better than basic CTAs (they cite “202% better” in their CTA examples article). (HubSpot Blog)
Translation for your world: “Apply Now” vs “Get a Quote” isn’t a minor wording preference—it’s a conversion lever.
Key point: people click when the promise matches their intent—and financing shoppers have multiple intents depending on where they are in the buying cycle.
When your traffic is mixed-intent (SEO, social, referrals), Get a Quote usually gets more clicks and more form starts. When your traffic is high-intent (retargeting, returning visitors, “need it this week”), Apply Now can reduce drop-off by removing steps.
Key point: the “best CTA” changes depending on the conversion you care about.
Use this simple ladder:
If you only optimize #1–#3, you can “win” with a quote CTA that floods you with tire-kickers. If you only optimize #5–#6, you may underfill the pipeline.
Canadian context: many SMEs use external financing (including lease financing) as a normal tool—StatsCan reported 49.3% of SMEs requested external financing in 2023, and their definition explicitly includes lease financing. (Statistics Canada)
So the objective isn’t “convince people financing exists.” It’s reduce friction at the right moment.
Key point: Get a Quote usually converts better for top-of-funnel traffic; Apply Now often converts better for bottom-of-funnel traffic.
If you’re a vendor building financing into your sales process, this companion piece is the “how-to” playbook: How to Offer Financing to Your Equipment Customers in Canada.
Key point: perceived effort is the silent killer of financing conversions, and CTA wording sets the effort expectation before the form even loads.
Nielsen Norman Group’s form guidance is blunt: users complete forms more when they feel quick and efficient, and the fewer fields users see upfront, the lower the perceived effort. (nngroup.com)
They also state that “every time you cut a field or question from a form, you increase its conversion rate.” (nngroup.com)
This is why “Apply Now” often underperforms on cold traffic: it implies a long form (even if yours isn’t). “Get a Quote” implies a short form and a quick answer.
If you insist on “Apply Now” as your primary CTA, your form experience must earn it:
Key point: equipment finance is won or lost on structure and fit, so “quote” is often the right first step—because it gathers the minimum needed to structure a fundable deal.
Underwriters don’t approve “buttons.” They approve risk using frameworks like the 5Cs (character, capacity, capital, collateral, conditions). Your early funnel should collect just enough to score those without over-asking.
Then you present:
For customers, you can explain the process simply using Equipment Financing Process: Step-by-Step (Application to Funding) (and you’ll reduce “where am I in this?” drop-off).
Key point: the highest-converting path is usually a two-step micro-commitment: quote first, apply second—because it aligns with buyer intent and reduces perceived risk.
Here’s the funnel that tends to perform best for mixed-intent traffic:
To support this funnel, point applicants to a clean checklist like Equipment Financing in Canada: Approval Docs Checklist and Equipment Financing Application Checklist (Canada).
Key point: use “Apply Now” when the visitor is already in “decision mode,” not “research mode.”
“Apply Now” tends to win when:
Add one line under the button that answers the real risk questions:
And if you’re worried about price shopping, use structure clarity as your differentiation (term, buyout, fees). This comparison guide helps: Equipment Financing Fees in Canada: How to Compare Offers.
Key point: use “Get a Quote” when you need volume and when intent is unknown.
“Get a Quote” tends to win when:
You can still protect quality by putting one strong qualifier inside the quote step:
If your audience often asks about pricing, anchor the conversation with education—especially on what “good” looks like in Canadian leasing: Good Interest Rate for an Equipment Lease.
Key point: financing forms collect sensitive information, so your CTA and your form copy should support meaningful consent.
Canada’s privacy regulators emphasize that organizations must obtain meaningful consent and that key elements should be clear “right up front,” especially when information may be shared with third parties. (Office of the Privacy Commissioner)
Practical application for your CTA and form:
A simple, conversion-friendly consent line under your form can be:
“We’ll use your info to provide a financing quote and may share it with financing partners to obtain offers. View privacy details.”
Key point: specific beats generic, and your best CTA often includes the outcome the user wants.
Instead of debating two generic labels, test “outcome CTAs,” because “quote” and “apply” aren’t the real desire—approval clarity is.
Examples to test:
Remember the HubSpot CTA point: customized CTAs can outperform generic ones. (HubSpot Blog)
If you’re a broker or vendor, you can also support this with human-language process transparency: What a Broker Does Behind the Scenes (And Why It Helps You Close).
Key point: optimize for funded deals, not form fills, by tracking the full funnel.
Track these metrics by CTA variant:
Bonus macro context: the Bank of Canada held the policy rate at 2.25% on December 10, 2025—rate environment impacts offer sensitivity, making clear comparisons and fast responses even more important. (Bank of Canada)
Key point: quote CTAs raise volume—then you need structure and follow-up to convert volume into approvals.
Business: Canadian equipment vendor selling $35K–$180K units
Problem: “Apply Now” produced low form-start rates on product pages. They switched to “Get a Quote” and lead volume jumped—but approvals didn’t.
What changed:
Result: Lead volume increased and funded deals rose because the process filtered better and accelerated underwriting readiness.
If you’re building this funnel, a helpful “buyer education” link to include on the confirmation screen is What Credit Score Do You Need for Equipment Financing in Canada?—it reduces anxiety without derailing the conversion.
Key point: small changes beat giant rebuilds—start with CTA placement, form length, and step-two clarity.
For purchase-decision education (and to reduce drop-offs when people ask “should I finance at all?”), link Lease vs Buy Equipment in Canada.
If you want, Mehmi Financial Group can review your current “Apply Now / Get a Quote” flow (buttons, form fields, and follow-up steps) and recommend a two-step equipment leasing funnel that improves both conversion rate and funded-deal rate—without adding friction or compliance risk.
Not usually. Keep it for high-intent visitors (returning, retargeted, urgent). The best-performing setup is often quote-first with apply-second.
It can—unless you add light qualifiers (timeline, budget band, time in business) and a clear step-two path to apply.
As short as possible while still enabling routing and a realistic payment range. NN/g notes fewer fields reduce perceived effort and increase completion. (nngroup.com)
Don’t hide. Present offers as structure choices (term, buyout, fees). Share a comparison guide like How to Compare Equipment Financing Offers Without Overpaying.
Collecting more data than necessary without clear consent and disclosure—especially if sharing information with financing partners. Canadian privacy regulators stress clear, upfront meaningful consent. (Office of the Privacy Commissioner)
Yes—when rates are a bigger concern, shoppers want clarity and comparison. As of Dec 10, 2025, the BoC policy rate target was 2.25%. (Bank of Canada)
That makes quote clarity and fast response time more important to conversion.
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