Why the collections industry is better off without sludge practices

Sludge practices are an outdated collections tactic that can end up damaging your customer relationships and brand loyalty. But filtering out these tactics can be a challenge, especially if you’re using legacy systems. 

Configurable platforms are a cloud-native solution that integrates with AI tools to seamlessly introduce customer centricity and eliminate sludge practices for good. Read on to find out why you need to rid your customer journey of sludge practices to foster customer loyalty and enhance customer loyalty.  

​​What are sludge practices in the collections industry?

Sludge practices in the collections industry are tactics that introduce unnecessary friction for customers trying to navigate their collections journey. This can include convoluted dispute processes or complicated steps for setting up payment plans. These practices were used to deter customers from making claims or complaints, making it easier for them to simply make a payment. But as we move into a customer-centric industry, sludge practices only hinder performance and the overall customer experience. 

Why customer-centricity has eliminated the need for sludge practices 

The transition towards customer-centricity and digitization of collections has resulted in sludge practices having the opposite effect than they were initially intended. Now, they get in the way of building reliable engagement with your customers as they can become frustrated and unresponsive. This engagement is essential to building effective collections strategies that enhance collections performance, putting you and your team in a difficult position. 

Replacing sludge practices with a configurable collections platform 

A configurable platform is the foundation of a transparent and seamless customer experience that drives positive outcomes. They integrate with a range of systems and tools to create a collections experience that accommodates the customer at every step of their journey. This effectively filters out sludge practices and helps you build positive relationships to enhance collections performance.

• Cloud-native and centralized: Configurable platforms operate on cloud-native infrastructure, providing the ability to make real-time changes at a scalable level. All data is stored in a centralized way, making it simple for your team to support each of your customers, create strategies, and adjust treatment paths without major disruptions to your services. 
• Operationalized analytics: Configurable platforms can integrate algorithms and make decisions based on historical data. This gives you the context to integrate treatment paths that result in resolutions for each of your customers, rather than having to rely on sludge practices. 
• Configurable workflows and portals: You can completely personalize your customer experience through user-friendly workflows and portals that can be configured for each customer. And with the help of AI, this can be automated between each account to save valuable time for your team while enhancing collection performance. 

Provide positive customer experiences with C&R Software 

Sludge practices are outdated in modern collections. Customer centricity and personalization are the keys to boosting your collections performance and bolstering loyalty with your brand. 

Debt Manager makes sludge practices irrelevant by integrating systems that bolster customer loyalty at each step of the collections journey. Its cloud-native architecture, configurability and analytical integrations make it simple for your team to guide customers to financial stability. 

To find out more about Debt Manager and how it can bolster customer loyalty and enhance collections performance, contact a member of our team today.