Debtor Engagement
Contact Efficiency: Spending More to Reach Debtors Without Collecting More
More messages is not more contact. Here is how to work out which channels and times actually reach the right person — and stop paying for the ones that do not.
Communication is one of the few collections costs that can rise indefinitely without improving recovery. Dialling more, messaging more and emailing more all register as activity. None of it matters unless the right person is reached at a moment when payment is possible.
Measure contact, not attempts
- Attempts per account — effort spent
- Contact rate — any connection made
- Right party contact rate — the person who can pay was reached
- Contact-to-arrangement rate — the conversation produced a commitment
Only the last two justify spend. A high attempt rate with a low right party contact rate is a data problem wearing an effort costume.
Fix the data before the channel
Numbers go stale, employers change and books arrive with partial detail. Verification and enrichment at intake lift contact rates more reliably than any change of channel, because they change who you are able to reach at all.
Then match channel to segment
Different segments respond to different channels at different times of the month. Salary cycles matter. So does the difference between a first-time arrear and a long-dated account. Recording outcomes by channel, day and time makes those patterns visible — see SMS, email, WhatsApp or calls for how the channels compare.
The commercial result
Improving right party contact rate raises recovery from the same book while reducing wasted communication spend. It is one of the few changes in collections that lifts revenue and lowers cost at the same time.
About the Author: Jolene Coertse
For more than 30 years, I have worked alongside law firms, debt collection agencies and commercial collections teams to improve collection performance, streamline operations and increase revenue recovery. For the past 29 years, I have been privileged to grow with Legal Interact, helping shape and evolve solutions that support legal collections, distressed debt recovery, accounts receivable management and legal practice operations across South Africa.
Throughout my career, I have gained a deep understanding of the operational, compliance and technology challenges faced by collection businesses and legal practitioners. Today, as Product Owner for Debtcol Pro, Practice Manager and Collect with Ease, I serve as the bridge between industry requirements and technology innovation. My role encompasses product strategy, business process analysis, client consulting, software development planning, implementation guidance, training, support leadership and market engagement.
I am passionate about helping organisations:
- Improve liquidation and recovery performance
- Reduce revenue leakage
- Optimise collection workflows
- Improve collector productivity
- Enhance compliance and governance
- Streamline legal and commercial collection processes
- Leverage technology to support sustainable growth
Put the strategy into practice
See How Debtcol Pro Supports the Full Recovery Lifecycle
Bring debtor management, workflows, communication, payment arrangements, settlements, legal recovery and operational reporting into one structured recovery operation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Key takeaways
- Right party contact rate, not attempt volume, is the number that predicts recovery.
- Outdated contact data is usually a larger drag than channel choice.
- Channel and timing analytics turn communication spend into a targeted cost.
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Engagement improves when you meet debtors on the channel they actually answer — and keep one conversation history behind it.
Unrecovered Fees and Disbursements: The Quiet Loss in Legal Collections
Fees and disbursements are earned throughout a matter but recorded inconsistently. That gap is one of the largest, quietest losses in legal collections.
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