In the debt collection industry, efficiency over the phone has traditionally been driven by employee headcount and dialer volume. As the industry continues to embrace AI technology, more collection strategies are pivoting to new tools that help businesses meet consumer preferences towards digital interactions and help improve recovery rates.
Enter voice AI. While it can be an extremely effective tool, successfully using it is more than just plugging it into your phone lines. Join us as we breakdown how debt collection strategies can use voice AI.
Voice AI: Inbound vs Outbound Calling
Voice AI technology can enhance debt collection strategies through two main applications:
- Inbound Calling: When a consumer is reaching out to a collector it’s essential to make the experience as smooth as possible. Traditionally, human agents field the calls and help answer questions, which oftentimes are simply confirming account details or redirecting to a payment experience. But this use of human agents leaves fewer resources to handle complex cases and process over-the-phone payments. Inbound voice AI acts as an “always on” digital front desk that can greet callers, authenticate their information, direct them where they need to go, or transfer them to human agents with a seamless handoff.
- Outbound Calling: Outbound calling typically relies on human agents to make calls. This process is challenged by low answer rates, making it an expensive use of human agent time with little to show for results.. Voice AI technology is capable of executing compliant phone calls. At successful contact, voice AI can provide disclosures, authenticate the consumer being called and pass along an engaged consumer to human agents for resolution.
Important Compliance Considerations for Voice AI Technologies
When a business is considering voice AI technology, their debt collection strategy should prioritize compliance as much as efficiency. It’s important to have industry-specific guardrails around voice AI platforms because a mistake by an AI agent can carry the same legal risk as a mistake made by a human agent. Voice AI systems need to be connected to the entire collection strategy to ensure compliance with industry regulations across the system.
Voice AI platforms also need to be integrated with collector consent databases. If a consumer revokes consent by stating something like “stop calling me”, the AI agent has to capture that statement and inform the system to honor the request. Voice AI technology also needs to be able to provide appropriate mandatory disclosures over the phone to consumers when discussing a debt. This includes having the capability to verify a consumer’s identity before disclosing details about their account.
Voice AI Technology Needs Context for Effective Handoffs
AI technology isn’t meant to replace human collectors entirely. At this point, it excels at handling repetitive tasks like authentication and providing disclosures before handing the consumer off to a human agent. The AI agent needs to be effective at gathering this information quickly (to reduce possible frustration with consumers), and accurately (so the human agent is working with the right information).
When a call presents a complex case like a dispute or a consumer with multiple accounts, voice AI agents need to trigger warm hand-offs to human agents. One key strategy to help with this process is having the AI agent provide detailed notes on the consumer interaction so far. By providing key contextual information, the process is less likely to cause friction with consumers since they won’t have to repeat themselves. The human agent is able to pick up right where the AI agent left off, offering a seamless experience.
Want to Learn More About Voice AI? Retain Can Help
Voice AI technology is shifting debt collection to a more streamlined process that helps minimize consumer frustration. However, success is often dependent on how well voice AI agents are integrated with other parts of your debt collection strategy. If you’re interested in learning more about how voice AI could be used for your business, connect with the experts at Retain.
