What is the Right Call Audit Process for Debt Collections?

One of the biggest challenges for lenders is managing debt collections. As consumer and business loans increase, ensuring that these loans are serviced in time is an ongoing issue within the financial services space. 

Usually, debt collections are outsourced by financial service companies to call centers or specialized debt collection services. The biggest tool that such agencies have in their arsenal is the phone call. Reaching out to defaulting borrowers by phone call can serve many purposes. 

It can help remind borrowers that payments are overdue, it can help ensure that borrowers understand the terms of their loan and its repayment, and it can help lenders gain a better understanding of the likelihood of repayment and whether an escalation is required.  

However, debt collection phone calls to borrowers need to be properly managed and audited. Let’s understand the best practices for call audit processes within the context of debt collections.  

Why Call Audits are Essential?

Debt collection calls need to be audited to ensure that they’re effective while maintaining the required customer service standards. 

Call Moderation  

Without a call audit process, agents would be free to speak to customers of the lender as they choose. This can easily lead to agents resorting to approaches that any reputed financial services company will want to avoid. The call audit process ensures that agents stick to the right tone and the right messaging by adhering to the scripts and brand guidelines. 

Measuring Performance 

Further, the call audit process will also help track how well agents are doing their job. This can be measured through key performance indicators. Such an audit process serves to provide the right incentives to call agents. 

Improving Internal Processes and Systems 

Lastly, the call audit process can be used to create a positive feedback loop. Executives can learn from their previous mistakes and improve the call quality through changes in the call scripts and brand guidelines so that the efficacy of such calls is consistently improved.  

Call Audit Process Challenges 

While having a call audit process is essential, it can throw up challenges of its own. The measure of an effective call audit process lies in how well it can address these roadblocks. 

Misleading Samples 

Audit executives may rely on a random selection of an agent’s calls to determine whether the agent is adhering to the required scripts and guidelines. However, such random sampling may not provide an accurate reflection of the agent’s overall performance. Since phone calls are not an exact science, the likelihood that some calls are worse than others can be high. 

Large Volume of Recordings 

If random sampling is not used because of the issues discussed above, then the alternative is to monitor all the calls that an agent makes. However, since an agent will be making several hours’ worth of calls in a single day, the sheer volume of recordings will be so high that audit executives cannot have the time to properly audit them all. 

Defective Transcripts  

Machine-written call transcripts are relied on by many call centers to evaluate call quality and agent performance. However, the technology has not advanced to a level that ensures even close to 100% accuracy. Call transcripts can be riddled with errors and may not present an accurate picture of the actual call. 

How to Conduct Call Audit Process?

There can be various ways to monitor and evaluate call quality. The best call audit process can be broken down into three distinct steps. 

Call Recording Monitoring and Analysis

Call recordings can be an effective way to ensure that all agents perform according to expectations. This can be a time-consuming process but is an essential part of any call audit process. Manual analysis helps executives gauge whether call agents are adhering to the guidelines and scripts that have been laid out. 

There are certain things to keep in mind when monitoring and analyzing call recordings. As mentioned earlier, it may not be possible to listen to all the calls made by an agent. Another challenge is that simply listening to one or two calls may not provide an accurate picture of an agent’s performance. That’s why it’s recommended that executives analyze a large enough volume of recordings to gain a better understanding of the calls. 

Also, while analyzing calls, it’s important to keep in mind that phone calls cannot be an exact science. If an agent perfectly sticks to the script at all times, then it may lead to a confusing and frustrating experience for the customer. 

Customer Satisfaction Surveys

A lender’s reputation is their biggest asset. This reputation is built over decades. That’s why it’s important for lenders to ensure that their brand is maintained during the debt collection process as well. 

The best to gauge well debt collection calls are being perceived is by directly reaching out to customers and asking them for their feedback. This process can be largely automated nowadays. After the debt collection call, a recording can be placed that asks the customer to provide feedback or a rating based on how helpful they thought the call was. 

Tracking Key Performance Indicators 

Several indicators can be included as part of a call audit process. A few important indicators can be called abandonment rates, average call handling time, customer satisfaction, first call resolutions, and average wait time. 

None of these indicators can provide a clear picture by themselves. However, when taken together with call recording analysis and customer satisfaction surveys, call audit process executives can gain a better understanding of how well their scripts, guidelines, and other systems are working.  

Why Choose Legodesk for Debt Collection Calls? 

Understanding the challenges of the debt industry, Legodesk provides telemarketing services as an addendum to our core technical offering. 

Additionally, Legodesk also offers automated AI-powered calling services for debt collection. This calling service comes with live monitoring, activity tracking, analytics, and performance indicators specially designed for debt collection calls at scale. Our automated calling service helps save call agents’ time and reduce the costs associated with debt collection.

We offer customized pricing which means that you only pay for what you use. Our tool has been designed specifically for banks, NBFCs, and corporations. In addition to debt calling streamlining, be sure to check out our other automation services for debt collections including legal case management, document management, and online dispute resolution. 

Wrapping Up 

Call audit processes are an important part of debt collection. 

Calls to borrowers need to always be made with the right approach and mindset keeping the lender’s brand guidelines in mind. Call audit processes help to ensure that calls are made systematically and consistently while improving the effectiveness of these calls. 

Audit executives should keep in mind that debt collection phone calls can be highly strenuous both for the call agent and the customer and processes and systems should be created with that in mind.