Nice People Collect More

I am so excited about the transformation our company is undertaking. We are creating a whole new website and educational presence on the web to educate people (debtors) on the importance of paying bills and improving credit. I have always believed that a helpful and knowledgeable approach to collections is far more successful and will assist both debtors and clients to get through difficult times and come out stronger on the other side. Our theme is "Nice People Collect More". It's more than just a slogan however, it's a whole new way of collecting. Actually, in some respects, it's getting back to the basics of collecting.

Over the years, i have seen many changes in the collection industry but this new transformation is one i really believe in. We are going to start an education program for our debtors in tandem with our responsibility to collect for our clients. The point is that many people today are simply not well informed about the importance of their credit and many have given up. From 1990-2008, it was pretty easy for everyone to get credit regardless of their past payment habits. In turn, collection agencies did not have to work very hard to get customers to consolidate their bills and PIF the account. In fact, terms like "account treatment" and "dunning" went hand in hand with going through the motions. Enter 2009 and the recession. Going forward, it appears that banks are going to be far less aggressive in lending. That means fewer credit cards, lower limits, fewer auto loans, mortgages and home equity loans. The people who are affected the most are the ones who will also need the most credit in the next 5-10 years. Life happens. Babies are born, cars need replacing, washing machines break down and so on. The only way to improve your credit, is to pay your bills. Over the last few years, people have been conned that not paying their bills or even getting out of paying their bills is a better option. I hear things like, "well I don't care about my credit" or "The government doesn't pay their bills, why should I".

A positive win-win approach is always better than an adversarial one. There are scores of default judgments out there collecting dust. As with all collections, nothing is a total answer. Many people will continue to ignore their responsibilities hope that the problem just goes away. There will be some that embrace "the facts" and make a sincere effort to resolve their account who may have simply ignored it in the past.

Our collectors are being trained every day how to be counselors. We are training them to assist the debtor in resolving an unpleasant situation. The debtor is not our enemy, they are our ultimate customer.