Course Overview
If you want to improve your collection rate, this programme is for you. Using practical examples and case studies it will show how to develop a credit and collection strategy. It will review the collection ‘weapons’ and sanctions at your disposal. It will take you from call planning and negotiation, through the building of successful client relationships, to the implementation of a successful collection programme.
Audience
Anyone involved in getting money that is owed, repaid to your organisation. Previous delegates have included:
- Credit managers and controllers
- Customer services and sales staff
- Sales ledger staff
- Office managers and administrators
- Finance managers and assistants
- Accounts supervisors and administrators
- Recovery and income assistants
- Cashiers
Skills Gained
This programme will help you to:
- Identify debtors by 'type' to deal with them accurately
- Structure effective telephone calls
- Send Dunning letters that get noticed instead of ending up in the bin
- Learn how to explain and apply the Late Payment Legislation
- Escalate contact to chief officials at an early stage
- Issue your own in-house county court claims and statutory demands
- Be seen as someone who is easier to pay than to 'fob off'
Course Outline
1. Introduction
- The important role of the Credit Controller
- The prerequisites and characteristics of a good credit controller
2. Getting it right at the front end
- How do you avoid difficult debts?
- Comprehensive Customer Application for Credit Account Form
- Good credit assessment – credit reference agencies, trade references, Directors Personal Guarantee’s, Retention of Title, Free Bank references and the importance of a comprehensive Company Credit Policy.
3. 12- Point debtor day reduction plan
Covering twelve small inputs, adjustments and procedures that can be applied to the credit management programme that can result in a dramatic reduction in your companies days sales outstanding and subsequent increase in profits covering: -
- Essential credit control training
- Prompt and effective telephone chasing by the pareto method
- Applying credit limits
- Invoice content, detail and late payment surcharges
- Effective dunning letters
- Good query control, analysis and reporting
- Analyse your credit notes to stop common input errors
- Improving credit control and sales dept. communications
Real life DSO graphs are used at the end of this presentation to illustrate the dramatic reduction implementing the above procedures can have on company days sales outstanding reports.
4. Identifying non-paying customer types
Identifying and effectively dealing with specific non-paying customer types:
- The ‘can pays, but won’t’ and ‘the would pays, but can’t’
- The ‘who will finance my operation interest free?’
- The ‘I’m slow paying you because they’re slow paying me’
- The angry and insulting difficult debtor
- The vague and ambiguous debtor
- The ‘we are too big to be chased’
- The ‘our account is too small for you worry about’
Workshop
5. Making successful debt collection calls
This is a workshop activity in a team role-play situation chasing payment of a debt with a brand new customer who intends to become a difficult, slow payer, from the very start of business. How to be probing and inquisitive during telephone calls, not taking at face value what has been promised. How to successfully question and keep someone on the telephone that is being evasive, vague, and endeavouring to terminate the call, and obtain all the answers and the commitment that you require.
6. Negotiation and Escalation
In the case of cash flow situations working out the best deal for your company. Prompt escalation of telephone calls to the decision makers.
7. Reaching the decision maker
- Dealing effectively with the Managing Director and Finance Director
- How do you make contact with the evasive Director?
- Reminding Directors of their obligations under the Companies Act 1985 and the Insolvency Act 1986.
8. Understanding and applying the Late Payment Legislation
This is one of the best things that has happened to credit control and kills slow payment dead! 99% of the time just the threat alone works! If you advise delinquent payers of the application of LPL then you must be prepared to explain it to other financial staff that may have no idea of what you are talking about.
9. Overcoming all non-payment excuses
Group workshop activity showing how to effectively overcome 16 different non-payment excuses.
To sue or not to sue?
- In the case of non-payment do you instruct collecting agents, Solicitors or issue your own county court claim – which method is best for you?
- How to issue your own county court claim
10. Issuing a Statutory Demand
For debts value £750 or more and a precursor to winding-up a limited company or making an individual bankrupt. It costs nothing to produce but it can be costly if you get it wrong.
