Broadcasting Messages In Commercial Collections

Many years ago, I was a collector on a commercial credit card portfolio assigned to me … and every single file was listed with a fax number.  So what I would do is print two collection notices the day the files came into our agency.  The first copy I would mail, the second copy I would put in a stack on my desk … and if I didn’t get a call back by the seventh day, I would sit by the fax machine for a couple hours, and fax the remaining copies of those letters, without a cover sheet over to that company.

My phone would ring off the hook … mostly from the debtor company owners.  By broadcasting loudly to the company they were in collections, whomever managed the fax tray would run the notice up to someone in charge, who would in turn call me to resolve the matter.

In commercial collections, it’s often about sending the right message to the right person.  Affecting a company’s Dun & Bradstreet rating or Equifax commercial bureau score might not matter to an accounting clerk who just started 6-12 months ago, but a CFO or principal of the corporation will understand that’s a big deal.

Because the commercial debt is owed by the corporation, sharing details of the debt with individuals inside the company isn’t a privacy concern.  And creating a sense of urgency is often needed to start the conversation.  Once they reach out, and are willing to work with you, you can tackle issues like cash flow problems, disputed invoices or interest charges, or get authorization for a cheque to be cut.

So if you have a hostile gatekeeper, and apathetic accounts payable contact, or the company is avoiding contact with your agency, here are a couple tips for broadcasting at a company to get their attention:

q  Look at the Legal/Contact sections of the debtor company’s website for a direct contact, compliance telephone number, or email address.

q  Look up the principal of the company on Manta or Zoominfo and send them a direct email.

q  Send a courier or registered letter to the principal, signature required with a collection notice.

q  Find the CFO or principal on Linkedin and send a InMail requesting a call.

q  Look up their website on WhoIs and send the collection notice to their webmin or admin email account that is advertised in the registry.

If all else fails, find their fax number, if they have one, print a collection notice, and send it over like it’s still 1990.

Remember that collections is about communication, and commercial collections is about diplomatic communication, and things have changed in collections tactics over the years – only use these broadcast methods if you hit a brick wall and you’ve tried polite contact attempts first without a response.

Want to chat about commercial collections?  Drop me a line.  I promise I will respond and a fax won’t be necessary.

Regards,

Blair DeMarco-Wettlaufer
KINGSTON Data & Credit
Brantford, Ontario
226-946-1730
blair@receivableaccounts.com