Modern online payment solutions can help collection agencies collect in new ways that may not have been previously considered. Being open to such methods can not only make running a collection agency easier, but also result in an increase in successful payments. This leads to a better business with happier clients. Taking advantage of an online payment provider is also relatively quick and easy to do. Here are several ways in which accepting payments online can help a collection agency be more successful.
Multiple Forms of Payments
Providing customers with the ability to choose between multiple forms of payment – credit card, debit card, or electronic check – often leads to more payments. Some individuals choose to pay a bill using multiple payment methods with different amounts, so it’s important to provide customers with the flexibility of allowing them to pay how they’d like.
Accept Payments Anytime, Anywhere
If you’re currently accepting payments over the phone or in person, consider accepting payments over the Internet. This allows customers to pay at their own convenience. Since online payment systems are cloud-based, payments can also be submitted from nearly any location on nearly any Internet-enabled mobile device, including smartphones and tablets. Submitting payments online is also faster than having to speak to someone over the phone, or drive to a physical location to provide a payment. They are often submitted in under two minutes.
Another great benefit is that collection agencies can now receive payments outside of normal business hours. In addition, the size of the collection staff is no longer a bottleneck, meaning you can accept as many payments as the payment provider can handle. This also frees up your staff to focus on other tasks. And because payments are automated, there are generally fewer mistakes compared to taking payments over the phone or within a physical location.
Provide Easy Payment Instructions
It’s common for consumers to avoid curing their debt by talking to a collector over the phone. During calls, provide users with information on how to access the easy-to-use online payment system. This can greatly increase the chance of someone going through with submitting a payment, rather than not at all. It’s important to promote not only the convenience of submitting a payment online, but also the security advantages.
Let Debtors Take Control of Their Debt
Even with the above, collection agencies can continue providing debtors with options and features. Online payment tools have the ability to allow debtors to create a series of pre-scheduled payments. This form of automation is useful, as they only need to create a payment plan once, and their payments are automatically taken care of over a predetermined length of time. Of course, systems also allow for quick one-time payments.
To help debtors with their payment choices, they can also be presented with their payment history. They can view relevant information, such as the status of past payments, when payments were made, their amount, what method they used, what they used to pay with, and so on. This data can then be used, for example, to determine what payment method should be used next and which account funds should be pulled from.
