One can feel defeated when tasked with keeping up with the latest telecommunication technology that can help collection efforts. The following is a quick recap covering recent developments in the space.
What is a new feature offered to help collections?
Chris DeLess Chief Technologist at KG Hawes
Thanks to technologies like speech analytics, agencies now have the ability to apply techniques of behavioral science to their call data. This information can be used to segment consumers into behavior types for tailored recovery approaches and provide intimate details into the experiences of consumers facilitating improved processes and agent training so that interactions are as effective as possible. McKinsey and Company recently published an article on this very topic with regard to lending institutions (“Behavioral Insights and Innovative Treatments in Collections,” March 2018). Applications of behavioral segmentation in the article boast impressive results, citing a “twofold” benefit for one organization and a 20% reduction is losses for others.
Danny Cantrell CEO/Founder of Solutions by Text
Deactivation Logic. Identifying overnight if a cell phone of a customer that a collector has compliantly opted in for text messages has been Deactivated / Discarded / Done with that number.
First Benefit: To hopefully treat that Deactivated Cell Phone as a Stop Texting/Opt Out. Treat it like an Opt Out and prevent the collector from texting that number as the number has been repurposed to someone else. Second Benefit: An Overnight Report to pull a number out of the collectors’ auto-dialer queue as it is very likely the number is no longer the customer that owes the debt (TCPA Violation). Third Benefit: To begin to hand dial, email and mail a customer to get updated numbers to call and text. The last thing someone is going to turnoff is their cell phone number so very likely they are not planning on paying off the debt.
Jeff Dantzler of President of Comtronic Systems
Text messaging that replaces paper collection and reminder letters. Having integrated SMS texting available from within your collection software is an absolute must-have today. With appropriate polices and strict compliance tracking of opt-in consent from debtors, this is very effective and cost saving.
Lex Patterson President of DAKCS Software Systems
The integrated ability to send documentation and/or payment consent via SMS text or email in real-time. Once that document is signed and returned, attach it to the account for easy reference. Saving administrator’s time by adding additional automation to their workflow. The following tasks are a few examples: • Sorting accounts by cell phones for further segmentation • Identifying low balance or scored cell phones that may not be worth calling in manual process • Flagging accounts with missing or bad data that couldn’t be credit reported to reduce errors and manual detective work • Building focused batches