© Copyright Acquisition International 2024 - All Rights Reserved.

Article Image - Why Your Chatbots Are Making Debtors More Angry
Posted 27th April 2023

Why Your Chatbots Are Making Debtors More Angry

The use of automated communication tools, such as chatbots, to speak to customers has grown since the pandemic. One in four customer service companies are using AI, with 31% planning to introduce these tools in the next 18 months. The global chatbot market is estimated to grow by 23.9% each year until 2030, reaching a value of $3.6bn.

Mouse Scroll AnimationScroll to keep reading

Let us help promote your business to a wider following.

Why Your Chatbots Are Making Debtors More Angry
Loan

Ian Haddon, COO at ContactEngine

The use of automated communication tools, such as chatbots, to speak to customers has grown since the pandemic. One in four customer service companies are using AI, with 31% planning to introduce these tools in the next 18 months. The global chatbot market is estimated to grow by 23.9% each year until 2030, reaching a value of $3.6bn.

It’s easy to see why these tools have been adopted. Simple programs that can respond to frequently asked questions can reduce pressure on contact centers and give customers general answers. Indeed, the top three benefits consumers expect to get from chatbots are a 24-hour service (64%), the ability to get an instant response (55%) and answers to simple questions (55%). However, only a third expect chatbots to be able to answer complex questions or offer ‘friendliness and approachability’. This creates a big problem – especially when it comes to debt collection.

While some debtors will want to rectify a case where they owe money as soon as possible, many will avoid communicating for as long as they can. If you are insisting that they use your chatbots to get in touch, you are relying on them to make the first move and you are adding reasons for them to avoid you. You also run the risk of making them angry. A study from the American Marketing Association revealed that while ‘non-angry customers’ show a slight preference for anthropomorphized chatbots – popping up with an on-brand greeting – angry customers are much less satisfied with that approach. The damage can be done instantly.

According to chatbot firm EBM, one of the biggest contributors to a negative net promote score can be “the very first moment the customer interacts with the chatbot”.

This is where chatbots cause a negative perception of AI automation for business stakeholders too. Firms invest in a chatbot and at first it performs reasonably well and reduces call center pressure. But then there’s a drop off in engagement from customers that are already starting off from a negative mindset. Ultimately, firms blame AI for unsatisfactory outcomes when in fact it’s the application that’s at fault, not the technology.

There are few places in your customer contact function where engagement is more important than in debt recovery. If you’re relying on reactive communications from debtors phoning in or coming through your chatbot, then you are likely only adding friction to the process. This causes more stress and reduces your chances of recovering money owed. Instead, proactive AI, deployed on a users’ channel of choice, can increase response rates.

 

Using proactive communication

Rather than thinking about how to improve your AI tools to deal with angry customers, a better solution is to speak to them before they become angry. Currently, the debt collection conversation usually begins with a letter – striking letterhead, serious typeface, firm language. That letter prompts the debtor to get in touch – usually by phone or through your website. The conversation is already starting negatively. Unless they are a lawyer, member of parliament, or a love interest in an 18th century novel, it is unlikely that a formal letter is their preferred method of communication. 37% of people haven’t sent a letter in more than five years. They will likely feel threatened and cornered and forced to do something. By the time they are speaking to one of your workers, they’re understandably already angry. What if they can’t call during your contact center hours? They will now be greeted by an overly cheery chatbot, ill-equipped to resolve their specific case.

Businesses must implement AI more cleverly than in this reactive fashion. By using proactive automated communication, you can speak to customers at the first missed payment and explain options. You likely know the methods that your customers like to use to hear from you, so you can communicate to them in a more seamless way. The day after a missed payment, you can send a message inviting them to fix a mistake. If the case goes on longer, you can provide them with different options to pay it back. Even if later down the line they need a phone call, AI can do most of the legwork and give your contact center all the relevant background information they need. When the call takes place, you can save your users time and avoid them having to repeat themselves.

 

AI is the solution not the problem

If your users are dissatisfied by the AI tools you have implemented, it’s a fault of the application, not the technology. Chatbots are great for making happy customers happier but drastically fall down at dealing with more complex problems. Debt collection requires a better, more sophisticated solution, one that is proactive and seamless to help the user navigate their own individual challenges.

Categories: Finance, News


You Might Also Like
Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Wealth Planning Solutions That Matter
Finance
04/03/2024Wealth Planning Solutions That Matter

Firmly established within the heart of the financial services industry, Lombard International Group (Lombard International) sits at the intersection of wealth management, private banking, and insurance. With more than 30 years’ experience, Lombard Internatio

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
M&A Appetite on the up, but Completed Deals Slide, says KPMG
Finance
08/09/2015M&A Appetite on the up, but Completed Deals Slide, says KPMG

Despite the recent turbulence in the markets, analysts expect the world’s largest businesses to show an increasing appetite for M&A transactions.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Allen & Overy Advises on Exim India’s Inaugural U.S. Dollar Green Bond
Finance
06/05/2015Allen & Overy Advises on Exim India’s Inaugural U.S. Dollar Green Bond

Allen & Overy has advised Bank of America Merrill Lynch and J.P. Morgan as joint bookrunners on Export-Import Bank of India’s inaugural USD500 million Regulation S green bond issue.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Cyber Crime Targeting Law & Education
Innovation
02/10/2019Cyber Crime Targeting Law & Education

Cyber crime is proving to be the biggest threat for the majority of businesses in the modern era, with legal firms proving to be the most at-risk, according to CySure CEO Joe Collinwood. So, how can businesses, legal or not, help ensure their cyber security is

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Terms & Conditions
Strategy
17/10/2016Terms & Conditions

NULL

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Need to Address Multiple Professionals in an Email? Here’s How You Do It
News
20/11/2023Need to Address Multiple Professionals in an Email? Here’s How You Do It

If you ever find yourself in the position of needing to email multiple business associates, it’s essential to know how to address them professionally and respectfully. After all, these are busy professionals. The way you address them in your email can ma

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
What is Phishing and How to Guard Against it
News
12/01/2023What is Phishing and How to Guard Against it

Maybe you've heard or read the term "phishing" before and have wondered what, exactly, it was referring to. In the below article, we are going to discuss phishing, some of the most common ways cybercriminals attempt to use phishing tactics and how to guard aga

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Marriott International to Double in Size in Europe
Finance
08/03/2016Marriott International to Double in Size in Europe

Marriott International in Europe, a division of Marriott International Inc announced today that it will double in size once its acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc is complete.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
4 Tech Pitfalls to Avoid When Launching a Startup
News
31/01/20224 Tech Pitfalls to Avoid When Launching a Startup

Starting a business can be an effective way to boost your finances. It allows you to be innovative by thinking of marketing strategies to promote your business and succeed financially. That’s why you see most young professionals turn to entrepreneurship inst



Our Trusted Brands

Acquisition International is a flagship brand of AI Global Media. AI Global Media is a B2B enterprise and are committed to creating engaging content allowing businesses to market their services to a larger global audience. We have 14 unique brands, each of which serves a specific industry or region. Each brand covers the latest news in its sector and publishes a digital magazine and newsletter which is read by a global audience.

Arrow