Using a Score to Work Accounts: Two Key Insights Often Overlooked

Although it is great to know if an account is likely to pay something, your account scores should and can go far beyond understanding the likelihood of payment.

Scoring accounts with a propensity score that helps businesses to know if an account is probably going to pay something, has been going on in the collection industry for over 20 years. And although some believe scores are more of a commodity at this point, scores have evolved over the years as well. The right scores can assist your business in not only understanding the likelihood of payment but also the better handling of today’s technology and strategy.

2 key things your score should provide:

1. An understanding of your inventory - Too often we see collection strategies that consist of shots in the dark with no consideration of the make-up of their accounts.  Your score should provide you with an understanding of your accounts that will enable quality strategies in your account flow. A score can sift through your accounts and understand the strengths and weaknesses much like a coach can in sports. A coach isn’t going to create plays without assessing the team and thinking through what strengths the team possesses. The team’s framework matters when it comes to the plays that are drawn up and the success of those plays. A score provides insight on your inventory allowing you to create a workflow that works the right account at the right time with the right method.
   

2. The value of your accounts – once you understand your inventory holistically, you can drill down deeper to take advantage of knowing an account’s value to you. A more advanced score than just propensity allows for an understanding of an accounts yield to your organization. The ability to both identify and predict an account’s yield will enable you to create profitable strategies with the various communication technologies now at our industry’s disposal. Each of these technologies has different costs associated to it and knowing what technologies would be most profitable on what accounts is paramount for business success.

The right scores bring clarity by providing an understanding of your inventory and illuminating the value your accounts offer. This knowledge assists in avoiding the uncertainty or madness we all face when trying to take advantage of new tools or strategies in our changing industry.