The Analysis News & Opinions
‘Resist temptation to talk down to your customers’
Collections professionals must be wary of talking down to their customers and failing to have proper conversations, in a trend of returning to scripting to remain compliant, according to a senior industry professional. Speaking at a round-table debate organised
by CCRMagazine, Bristow and Sutor and Credit Style, Simon Bayley, sales and marketing director at Moneybarn, said: “The type of conversations that we are having have changed over the years. Particularly in collections, you have people who are not necessarily vulnerable in the regulatory meaning of that word, but they are certainly in a vulnerable situation themselves because of their financial situation. “It is very easy to look down on people
and to talk down to them. A lot of the time, when you are scripting you end of pushing yourself through that, so it is the ability to converse on their level, to a certain extent, to show empathy, that brings results. “We started to get into this understanding
about 10 years ago, but we are beginning to lose it again now because we are so worried, from a regulatory point of view, on scripting things effectively and saying the right thing, then you go back to not talking the language of our customers, not talking on their level. “The telephone will always be the most
useful tool and web-chat is big growth area now, it is a question of trying to speak on the customer’s level. “The problem with web-chat can be that
the customer will talk to you in an SMS-type style, and then if you go back in a formal way then they will stop communicating with you. So it is all about learning how to do that, but in a compliant way.” Phil Rice, head of credit at Aggregate
Industries UK, added: “The most important stakeholder in the relationship is your customer, so there is always an imperative for your business to be analysing everything that affects them. “The most efficient and professional
way to communicate with an individual is ‘their preferred method’, meaning the way that they want to be communicated
March 2020
with, not what you want, or what is easiest for you. “The challenge is having various different
avenues through which you can communicate, from which you can then select. I was in sales for many years and I soon grew to realise that some people, when I sent out an e-mail quote, would reply within two minutes, whereas others I was chasing for a week.
“Conversely, when I sent them a text, they
relied instantly. The light-bulb then went off! When I met clients for the first time, I would ask ‘when I get back to you, how would you like me to do that’. The challenge is in terms of whether your operation is flexible enough to be able to enable the many different methods of communication and route those communications through your staff seamlessly.”
The new way to learn
Equiniti and CCRMagazine are set to collaborate on a new project to bring a new learning opportunity to in the industry, in the form of a webinar that will allow readers to gain the insight and information that they need, even if they are not currently able to travel for business. As a business, Equiniti’s people and
platforms aim to connect businesses with markets, engage customers with their investments, and allow organisations to grow and transform. Its vision is to help businesses and individuals succeed, creating positive experiences for the millions of people who rely on us for a sustainable future. Stephen Kiely, editor of CCRMagazine, said: “The credit, collections, and enforcement
www.CCRMagazine.com
industry plays a hugely important role in society, never more so than in difficult times when so many consumers are struggling with their lives. “So we feel that we have a responsibility
to inform and inspire the industry to be the best that it can be, and we are delighted to be working with Equiniti in order to fulfill this ambition.” l To register your interest, please e-mail
stephen@ccrmagazine.co.uk.
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