Debt collectors face a multitude of challenges when it comes to contacting the right people at the right time and optimizing their operational processes. We interviewed Matt Baltzer, Senior Product Management Director at Experian, to learn more about how his team is helping debt collectors effectively engage their customers and obtain the most accurate contact data.
What is your role at Experian, and how long have you been with the company?
I am a product leader in our business that focuses on financial services and consumer data. I’ve been with Experian for 12 years, and the majority of that time has been focused on products that help assess portfolios, improve collections performance, and organize disparate identity information.
What are some of the biggest challenges that financial institutions face regarding collection strategies?
One top challenge is being able to effectively leverage the latest technology available – which is ever-changing and staying on top of compliance matters. We see press about buzzy tools, such as artificial intelligence and alternative data, but sometimes these are more style than substance. Without a solid analytics foundation and data strategy, it is easy to get out in front of what can be deployed effectively.
Another challenge is compliance – which takes many forms depending on the situation. Adoption of new tools and managing an operation at scale require constant attention to regulatory affairs and laws that are increasingly nuanced.
What are some key strategies that organizations can implement to better engage their customers and achieve more success regarding collections?
It is cliche, but meeting consumers where they are is fundamental to success. This means using an omni-channel strategy, as some consumers simply do not answer the phone anymore. Email, text, and other digital channels are now the norm. But phone calls and mail cannot be completely discarded, as they are still effective for some consumers and as part of a muti-touch strategy.
It’s also important to gain an understanding of each consumer’s current financial situation. For some consumers facing difficult circumstances, you may need to monitor for several months to see when they start to improve. Others may be able to begin making small payments now, so it’s important to use tools that help determine the correctly sized payment plan based on their ability to pay.
How is Experian helping organizations optimize their collection strategies?
Experian offers a full range of solutions that can help improve collections performance. Given the diversity of organizations and needs, it is important to spend time together gaining a better understanding of each operation, including the type of accounts worked, duration accounts are held, any IT constraints, and areas of focus for performance gains. Our team is adept at having these conversations and recommending solutions that fit – sometimes with a phased approach to gradually make gains.
Experian is, of course, a credit bureau, but it is also an analytics powerhouse. We can deliver actionable data but also offer both standard and custom solutions to turn that data into meaningful strategies that can be profitably deployed in a debt collection operation. Examples of Experian capabilities include prioritization scores, contact data, account monitoring, custom decisioning, and workflow software.
What is Experian Best Contact, and how does it work?
Experian Best Contact is a solution that leverages a variety of data sources to provide the best available contact information for a consumer at any point in time. We offer processing in batches and real-time, with flexible options for phone, email, and physical address. The product is in use by hundreds of organizations in a variety of industries.
What makes Best Contact unique from other solutions?
Best Contact leverages a wide array of data sources to gain a holistic view of the consumer over time. It references the traditional credit file, alternative credit from Clarity, rental payments, data used in target marketing, select high-quality third-party data, and the postal database. We prioritize high quality results and use proprietary logic to rank or score the contact elements. Clients are very happy with the quality of results, and the quantity is on par with other vendors.
We have launched an updated version of Best Contact that takes advantage of the latest data science and identity graph technology. Using mostly the same data sources, we have substantially improved both hit rate and the quality of results. The foundation built will also enable us to more effectively add new data sources in coming years. I’m always excited to meet with clients and hear about their experience with the product, so it’s an exciting time.
Why is improved matching accuracy and higher quality data so important when it comes to collections?
Like most things, it comes down to money. When a skip trace vendor provides “new” contact data for a consumer, that will typically be used to attempt to engage the consumer in short order. That could mean a mailing, a phone call, or an email. While those all carry different costs and options underneath, there is both direct cost and time entailed. If you are attempting outreach with a channel and contact data that may not be accurate, it is wasting valuable time and incurring costs – such as postage and agent time. Beyond that, you face compliance and reputational risk if you are engaging the wrong person on a debt.
Finally, most solutions bill on a “per hit” basis – meaning our clients pay only when we do return new information. This all adds up to quality, accuracy, and configurability being essential for a return on investment. In redeveloping Best Contact, we set out to balance an increase in coverage without sacrificing the quality that we have been known for, and I think we nailed it.
What would you recommend to financial institutions looking to improve their collection process?
We published a white paper on a quantitative study done on our Collection Triggers product that showed how some events correlate with a 250% lift in payment performance on a charged off account. I would also encourage anyone interested in learning more to contact using the links below.
Visit our website to learn more about Best Contact and how it can help your organization improve right-party contact rates with quality contact data.
