Collecting money is all about being persistent and incredibly determined. It is contacting the customer twice a week, at least, whether it be by email, call, sms, reminders, etc. But did you also know that doing nothing can also be just as effective. Hear me out- let’s put our debtor hats on for a moment (in my training I also talk about debtor hats- putting yourselves in the debtor’s shoes and trying to think like them)- the person you owe money to has been trying to contact you, over and over, to get you to pay. You know you owe the money but for whatever reason you can’t pay. The reminders and the emails each start getting more and more urgent until one day……nothing. Silence. All contact from them has suddenly stopped. For the first week you think it is great and it is a relief to not have to dodge them. But after the second week reality sinks in- maybe they really have taken action and any day now the sheriff or bailiff is going to knock on your door and hand you a summons. “Oh crap” you think, they were serious. I better do something about this. So you call them and pay.
Guys we see this scenario play out nearly every day. Debtors will always think the worst, by virtue of the fact they owe money. 2 to 3 weeks of silence is so powerful, but it will only work if it is the complete opposite to what you have been doing. Everything and then nothing. If after the 3 weeks they still aren’t responding, then it hasn’t worked and you just go back to your regular reminders, etc. But it works in a lot more cases then it doesn’t. Try it next time you think your debtor is just dodging you and remember- you have 6 years to pursue the debt. Plenty of time to be creative.
Cheers