Debt Collection Techniques:
An A/R Report To Be Proud Of...

by Meni
(Texas)

I work for a staffing service that has offices all over the globe, so naturally we'll come up with delinquent customers from time to time. There are a couple of things we find that works more often than not.

The first strategy we employ is offering a percent-off discount for all payments from select customers that are received before the negotiated terms; terms vary depending on the size of the account and their history with us, and a lot of companies have looked very favorably on being extended this option.

Secondly, when a customer begins to fall behind on payments we call to get a credit card number we can charge automatically. Sometimes we follow that up with a quick credit report to gauge their current level of debt.

We have found that by being understanding and proactive, we have been able to maintain an overall healthy A/R report. We have also built customer loyalty by skirting around harsh or aggressive collections methods.