Let’s Start A Movement! #2KCCM

Debt Collectors and all the individuals who work in the industry are constantly the target of abuse and criticism from; media, government, consumers, and even at times their own clients. You won’t hear about the debt collector who received flowers from a consumer who was grateful for the service they received, or hear about the collection company who works with local charities to help support a good cause. These are stories that the media doesn’t want to talk about, that the government ignores, and that consumers don’t believe exist. But the truth of the matter is, all the professionals in the debt collection industry deserve the respect they can never seem to get. Now, of course, there are always going to be bad apples or people who think they can get into the industry to make some money, but only make big mistakes that cost the industry as a whole.

Connection2Collections.com wants to tell those positive stories; your stories. We want to hear about the debt collectors who receive thank you letters and flowers from consumers who are grateful for the work they’ve done, we want to talk about the debt collection agency that has employee outings to help their community, we even want to hear about the professionals who have made careers in the industry who know that what you see in the news is not what the industry is, far from it actually.

It’s easy to point a finger and demean and belittle the profession, we do a job that a lot of people don’t want to do. Quite frankly, it’s one that a lot of people COULDN’T do! The industry isn’t what it used to be. As recently as 20 years ago, you could put a couple desks in a garage with a few people and a few phone lines and start collecting. Today, the industry is a very different place. To start an agency/law firm that provides debt collection services to the biggest banks in the country, you would probably have to spend close to $300,000 just in the overall infrastructure to meet their compliance standards. That doesn’t even include; insurance, software, utilities, and administrative support staff costs. Being a professional in the debt collection industry today requires a significant investment and the ability to adapt to daily change. And that goes for everyone.

No one gives credit to the guys and gals on the phones. At the end of the day, they are the most important people in the industry. That’s not to say that the file clerks, client relations people, accounting departments, and even IT staff don’t matter. However, without quality and efficacy on the collection floor, that company won’t exist. Debt collectors have to be ready to adapt to the changes. These changes happen daily. Everything from the regulations, the laws, the disclosures, and even their boss’s own perspective are in constant flux. With consumers becoming more and more educated and informed via the internet, and a “Sue Your Debt Collector” advertisement on just about every web-page/TV channel/radio show, it’s no surprise that collectors are put under a microscope.

But hey! We know how important you are, and we want to show you our appreciation. Our site is for the hard working debt collection professional who doesn’t always get the respect and admiration they deserve. You always hear people talking about how they had a “rough day” at work. Maybe a customer was upset with their toaster, or maybe a young executive received a nasty email from an unhappy client, or a new manager had a rough day with their staff. A debt collector’s average day includes about 100 people telling them to “shove it”, their boss telling them that they need to make more calls and collect more money all while adhering to unreasonable guidelines and reading about 7 minutes worth of disclosures before they can even start to do their job on a call. Then, at the end of the day, after they had to submit all of their recorded calls to their boss and their client, they have to worry about whether they made as simple of a mistake as saying “the client”, instead of saying “the bank”, which can literally cost them their job for going off script. Being a debt collector is not easy, and the professionals in this industry should be proud of what they do, not worrying about being the target of scrutiny everywhere they go.

Due to the negative stigma attributed to being a professional debt collector, they don’t stand out in the open. So reaching out to and connecting the individual professionals on the front lines of the industry is almost an impossible task. So we want to start a movement. The idea behind this movement is; “2 Keep Calm and Collect Money”. The goal is to unite all the professionals in the industry and show them the appreciation and support for the job they do. We want to help educate everyone on the newest issues, help people face their daily job challenges head on. There do not seem to be local organizations or groups who are linking debt collection professionals in different regions, and we aim to create grass roots movements to get individuals involved and motivated to not only act responsibly in their profession, but to get the word out and send a message that we do not need to hide but we can be proud of our profession and we must always act with integrity and empathy. We hope to take a bottom up approach, and want to show our support to these professionals on the front lines. Not only that, but we want to have “Collector Appreciation Month” every month! We want to reward you for your hard work, all professionals in the industry.

We invite you all to join in on the movement; United we Stand, Divided we Fall! If you want to tell your positive story, give us ideas on things you want to know more about, or even share a story about someone you think deserves positive recognition in the industry, let us know! Our first contest will award the winner with $500 in cash! Click HERE to learn all about it! UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL #2KCCM!

2 Comments

1. 

   Felipe Becerra - September 8, 2014, 12:38 pm Reply

   United we stand is a great initiative!, we need to educate the consumers with what we do, and make them aware that we are consumers as well.

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     Connection2Collections - September 8, 2014, 12:48 pm Reply

     Great point! Thank you for the feedback!