I spend a lot of time talking with brokers, funders, marketers, and shop owners in the Merchant Cash Advance business. Some are large operations. Some are smaller shops grinding every day. Some are one-man bands building real books of business.
And one thing keeps standing out to me: a lot of people in MCA are still relying on cold calling—but they’re doing it with the wrong tools.
Let me be clear—this is not me saying cold calling doesn’t work.
Cold calling built this industry. Relationships built this industry. A strong closer on the phone can still make a fortune in Merchant Cash Advance. That’s never going away.
But what I’m seeing is too many brokers trying to win by calling merchants from burned-out cell phone numbers, recycled numbers, or systems that simply aren’t built for modern outbound sales.
And the numbers are working against them.
Roughly 85% of outbound cold calls go straight to voicemail.
Think about that.
A rep can spend hours dialing—good data, solid script, real effort—and most of those calls never even become conversations. Not because the rep is bad. Not because the offer is weak. But because the channel itself has become harder to break through.
Now compare that to texting.
Most people see or open a text message within about three minutes.
That’s a staggering difference in attention.
A merchant may not answer an unknown call. But they’ll often read: “Hi John—quick question. Are you looking at funding options for your business right now?”
That message gets seen. That message creates curiosity. That message starts a conversation.
And that conversation can lead to a phone call—which is where great salespeople shine.
That’s why I believe MCA texting is becoming one of the biggest advantages in Merchant Cash Advance lead generation.
Not because texting replaces selling. Because texting helps create more opportunities to sell.
The smartest MCA shops are starting to understand this. They’re building real multi-channel MCA marketing systems: cold calling, SMS outreach, email follow-up, CRM automation, voicemail drops, number rotation, and fast lead response.
That’s where the market is heading.
The winners in Merchant Cash Advance lead generation over the next five years won’t just have the best closers. They’ll have the best systems.
And increasingly, that system will include texting—not as a replacement for the phone, but as a way to make the phone work better.
From where I sit, we’re still early in that shift. But it’s happening. And the shops that adapt first will have a real edge.