In Focus Collections
The liquidity challenge
How automating customer conversations is becoming the new norm
Mark Oppermann EVP sales and marketing, Webio mark.oppermann @
webio.com
The collections industry is going to be at the forefront of managing the consumer debt tsunami in the coming months and radical changes will be needed to make the industry itself capable of meeting this challenge in a sustainable way. As we come to grips with the new reality
of the world we now live in, the economic impact and devastation has taken a back seat to public health and safety up to this point. But as we carefully manoeuvre our way
out of lockdown the conversation has moved to how do we regain our footing and see viable businesses reopening and for some reinventing themselves to ensure that they can return to some level of sustainable trading. As we all know, this is not going to be an
easy task, as sustainability will be for many businesses out of their control due to the government personal health guidelines. I cannot think of one business that is not going to be affected from offices,
department stores, small cafes, even local taxi services. The world as we know it is forever changed. The figures vary depending on where
you look but all observers agree the unemployment rate is going to be significant come the latter part of the year when all government wage supports are most likely tapered out. The reality of the true economic landscape
facing us will be only fully apparent then, do not be surprised if the unemployment rate goes above 12% and to give this perspective the rate for the three months up to March 2020 was
3.9%.There will also be millions of workers who will be the ‘lucky ones’ who are working but many at reduced earnings so there is no real upside visible at this time.
The liquidity challenge There is no doubt that the word ‘liquidity’ will be on everyone’s lips in coming months, both from a business and personal sense. The concept is simple with one question being asked: “Do I have enough money to do the things I need to do?” Shopping, petrol, or trade creditors it
The liquidity challenge is one that the collections industry will need to understand and embrace fully if they want to continue to trade successfully. And those companies best equipped to deal with all the liquidity issues of their customers will undoubtedly be the winners
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does not really change the calculation needed: income against expenditure. In all too many cases, the gap between
these two figures will be a significant, with expenditure far exceeding income. That is a problem! The liquidity challenge is one that the
collections industry will need to understand and embrace fully if they want to continue to trade successfully. And those companies best equipped to deal with all the liquidity issues of their customers will undoubtedly be the winners.
www.CCRMagazine.com The importance of good communication
has been always been a basic tenant of any successful relationship as applicable in business or our personal lives. The ability to manage such good
communications can be explained in one word ‘conversations’. The dictionary definition of conversation
states: “Talk between two or more people in which thoughts, feelings, and ideas are expressed, questions are asked and answered, or news and information is exchanged.” Companies that embrace the art of
conversation and nurture their customer relationships will, undoubtedly, have more and better conversations with their customers. Ultimately these companies will be the ones that succeed. The art of marrying these two elements – liquidity and customer conversations – is key to navigating these unchartered waters. So, what are ‘liquidity conversations’?
They are the conversations that you will be having more and more in terms of getting to understand the economic situation for each customer and advising, helping, and guiding them with good advice, mapping out their options to help move them into a better place from a financial perspective. No matter what way you look at it these
are difficult conversations. How fit is your business to do these
properly today? I would suggest many people would not be able to answer that with a resounding yes and if it is not a resounding yes, what happens when the volume of activity increases, as it will undoubtedly. Many businesses have seen their
infrastructures creak, crack, and fall over June 2020
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