Here Is How to Choose a Trustworthy Commercial Collection Agency

Here Is How to Choose a Trustworthy Commercial Collection Agency

Whether you’re a small or large business, it’s frustrating for you and your team if your customers aren’t paying. Missing revenue can hurt your ability to pay your rent, salaries, bills, suppliers and more. It can slow down your ability to function as an organization that you’ve built with sweat, tears, and love.

Chasing down delinquent payments takes money and resources. But most of all, it takes patience. You need to send invoices, letters, emails, and make phone calls. When speaking to your customer, you need to remain diplomatic, because you don’t want to lose their business or damage other relationships in the business community. 

Yet, sometimes it takes a friendly but firm tone to recover revenue on time. Finding this tone can be difficult when you’re personally involved. So, you decide to partner with a commercial collection agency. A type of debt collection agency that specializes in recovering revenue that’s owed by one business to another. For example, it could be a debt owed to you as a supplier by another company.

Of course, you’ve heard stories of collection agencies that use shady tactics like threats, harassment, robocalls, misrepresentation and more to get the job done. Although such agencies are in the minority, you certainly want to avoid them. After all, partnering with them could damage your company’s reputation, especially because they break the rules outlined by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Yet, you also want to act fast. If your debtor is in financial strife, then you want to get paid before their other creditors reach them. It’s a proven fact that debt grows harder to recover with time. Here is how to choose a commercial collection agency that you can trust with your reputation and your revenue:

#1 They Have a Proven Track Record

It’s important to choose the right agency the first time. A debt collector that doesn’t have a strong success rate may ultimately fail and return the account to you. By this time the debt may have turned into bad debt. Writing it off could now be your only option.

Instead, trust the commercial collection experts that have been in the industry for a long time and know how to get the job done. For example, at Summit A*R, we’ve been in the debt collection business for over 28 years and boasts a recovery rate that’s twice the national average. What’s more, we’re proud to have recovered some particularly difficult debts over the years.

We also have a robust platform that offers a wealth of information. If you want to know how to improve your revenue collection process or if you’re curious about what is a good receivables turnover ratio – then explore our website to learn more.

#2 They’re a Recognizable Name in the Industry 

While your debtor may not take your invoices seriously, their reaction could be different when a reputable collection company is involved. Sometimes, we recover revenue within the first few days just through a campaign of phone calls and letters.

This is because we can report a debtor to the three major credit bureaus. Remember, businesses have credit scores too and the involvement of a collection agency can hurt their financial capabilities in the future. To avoid this, many will clear their debts.

#3 They Are Ethical

An ethical commercial collection agency will pledge to treat customers with respect. Behind every business, there are people. And if these people are mistreated, it could damage the relationships your enterprise has worked so hard to cultivate.

At Summit A*R we have a “P.H.D. Philosophy” (Preserve Human Dignity). This means that we try to bring humanity back to commercial debt collection. We take a friendly and diplomatic attitude. And as our success rate shows, it works.

#4 They Are Affiliated with Reputable Organizations

A trustworthy debt collection agency will be affiliated with some reputable organizations. At Summit A*R, we’re proud of our A+ ranking from the Better Business Bureau (BBB). This is only awarded to businesses that take their reputation seriously. A company that’s given this ranking must carry at least 97 out of 100 points, must remain compliant, and keep their volume of complaints low by addressing them and working with the BBB to resolve any problems. Here are some examples of other organizations we’re proud to be affiliated with:

• ACA International: Originally called the American Collection Association, this trade group has over 230,000 members, including professionals from the debt collection industry. They promote values like leadership, integrity, respect, responsibility, and education. They encourage members to treat people with dignity and respect. A member of ACA International that believes in its principles is likely to be a trustworthy enterprise.
• International Association of Commercial Collectors: One of the goals of this membership group is to promote professionalism, ethical behavior, mutual support, education, and leadership among commercial collectors. Certified members of the IACC believe in these values.

#5 Their Testimonials Are Encouraging

An organization can speak at length about its ethics, philosophies, affiliations, rankings and more, but nothing speaks louder than real testimonials from actual clients. For example, Micah. B, Director at National Franchiser was pleased with the 75% recovery rate his company received from us. He was also happy that his relationship with his client was preserved: “Summit AR handled the accounts extremely professionally and kept that quality working relationship with our client intact.”

You can also read some personal testimonials on our website. Many of these letters are handwritten by customers who liked recovering revenue ethically. Other testimonials are from debtors who were happy to have been treated like human beings by our collectors.

#6 Their Rates Are Reasonable

Be wary of companies that demand fees upfront or ask to be guaranteed a certain number of accounts. Once paid, they may not have the incentive to recover your revenue. They may also prioritize your easier-to-recover accounts, letting the more challenging ones grow harder to recover.

At Summit A*R we work on a contingency basis. We only collect our fees after we’ve successfully recovered your revenue. What’s more, we have no mandatory minimums and work with businesses of all sizes.

These are some of the ways you can identify a trustworthy collection agency. Partner with a company that’s ethical, experienced, professional, reputable, and is affiliated with recognizable organizations to recover your revenue without compromising your ethics or your valuable business relationships. Call us for more information today to learn how Summit A*R can help you recover your payments.