Build trust: Your online presence matters

When you're trying to communicate about debt, trust is everything. In today's digital world, it's vital that your company has a strong and reliable online presence. This isn't just about showing up high in Google searches; it includes everything a customer sees about you online, even your social media pages.

Why is this so important? Because when customers get a debt notice, the first thing many of them do is go online to check if it's real. If your online information isn't consistent or looks shaky, they won't trust you.

By making sure your online presence is clear, consistent, and uses things like double-checking processes, you can reassure customers and build much more trust. This gets you off on the right footing.

Use psychology to connect better with customers

It's really important to understand how people think and act to get them to engage. This Ofgem report shares insights from behavioural science about how our biases and decision-making habits affect how we interact. For example, if information is presented as a lot of dense text, industry jargon, or just too complex, customers will often just switch off.

You can get customers to engage more by making your messages simpler. Break information down into smaller, easier-to-understand pieces and tell people clearly what you want them to do. This stops them from feeling overwhelmed and encourages them to take action.

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Empathy: Connect on a human level

It's a powerful strategy in debt collection to tailor your messages to show you care and understand. Your collections team can use words that really connect with what the customer is going through.

Also, using up-to-the-minute information, you can offer personalised experiences. Today's technology even allows you to adjust how you interact with customers – for example, changing the content based on how they like to type or providing information through their favourite way to communicate. This personal touch builds trust and helps resolve debt issues more smoothly.

Design for positive responses

How you design your communications affects how people see your message and what they do next.

We can use ideas from behavioural design, like carefully choosing colours and shapes, to influence customer actions. For instance, sharp, pointed designs can make something feel serious and urgent. But softer, rounder designs might encourage people to engage and interact.

Making these design choices can make your communications feel less scary and more inviting, which means customers are more likely to respond positively.

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‍Find out more by watching our webinar with engagement expert, Lexi Mills and Behavioural Architect, Charlie Dixon.