The importance of using multiple channels to engage your debtors.
Like any other marketing campaign, you are trying to sell your debtor on contacting you to handle their business. To be successful at that, repetition is key. But what kind of repetition? If you were trying to sell cars, would you only use television commercials to reach your prospects? If you’re building a bookshelf, would you use the same tool over and over again to assemble it correctly? Most likely not (unless it’s an IKEA shelf that only requires a hex key). Similarly, it’s important to use multiple channels to reach your debtors, urging them to respond and take action on their own time.
“The reality of today is that consumers who have an account in collections want two things: to communicate with debt collectors through the method of their choosing, and to communicate with debt collectors at a time that is convenient for them.” according to Nick Jarman of RightAway, LLC.
Sending letters, texts, emails and voicemails will all have a different influence on your contacts. If you are planning daily repetition, consider varying the style of communication to make the largest impact. If on day one you call and send a letter, reach them with a voicemail on day two, a text day three and an email on day four. Once you develop a regular cadence, repeat the process and adjust the day of week and/or time of day previously used for a specific contact channel in the following week to see if you have better success at a different time.
For example, if you started week one with a voicemail on Monday morning to a set group of accounts, try sending a voicemail again in week 2, but this time choose to send it on Friday afternoon to the same book of business. Make the same adjustments with your other contact channels. The calendar below is an example we share with our clients to schedule a regular cadence of voicemails while varying the type of message, day of week and time of day.
Eventually, you’ll find your team reaching contacts when it’s actually convenient for them to respond. And, not only will they respond, they’ll be prepared to handle the matter at hand through their preferred method of communication.
For weekly communications, consider using a contact cycle of every 8 days instead of every 7 days. This will ensure that each week you are reaching your contacts on a different day of the week, appearing less automated and more concerned with figuring out the best time for them to connect. While the sample below illustrates varying the Message used, the same could be applied to the contact channel used.
If you’re interested learning more about adding VoApps DirectDrop Voicemail as another tool in your contact toolbelt, please don’t be shy and click below to contact us.
More detail regarding our sample contact schedules can also be found here.
