7 Credit Control courses in Edinburgh

This is not a single course but a set of menu options from which you can 'pick and mix' to create a draft programme yourself, as a discussion document which we can then fine-tune with you. For a day's training course, simply consider your objectives, select six hours' worth of modules and let us do the fine-tuning so that you get the best possible training result. Consider your objectives carefully for maximum benefit from the course. Is the training for new or experienced credit control staff? Are there specific issues to be addressed within your particular sector (eg, housing, education, utilities, etc)? Do your staff need to know more about the legal issues? Or would a practical demonstration of effective telephone tactics be more useful to them? MENU Rather than a generic course outline, the expert trainer has prepared a training 'menu' from which you can select those topics of most relevance to your organisation. We can then work with you to tailor a programme that will meet your specific objectives. * Advanced credit control skills for supervisors - 1⁄2 day * Basic legal overview: do's and don'ts of debt recovery - 2 hours * Body language in the credit and debt sphere - 1⁄2 day * County Court suing and enforcement - 1⁄2 day * Credit checking and assessment - 1 hour * Customer visits and 'face to face' debt recovery skills - 1⁄2 day * Data Protection Act explained - 1⁄2 day * Dealing with 'Caring Agencies' and third parties - 1 hour * Debt counselling skills - 2 hours * Elementary credit control skills for new staff - 1⁄2 day * Granting credit and collecting debt in Europe - 1⁄2 day * Identifying debtors by 'type' to handle them accurately - 1 hour * Insolvency: Understanding bankruptcy / receivership / administration / winding-up / liquidation / CVAs and IVAs - 2 hours * Late Payment of Commercial Debts Interest Act explained - 2 hours * Liaison with sales and other departments for maximum credit effectiveness - 1 hour * Suing in Scottish Courts (Small Claims and Summary Cause) - 1⁄2 day * Telephone techniques for successful debt collection - 11⁄2 hours * Terms and conditions of business with regard to credit and debt - 2 hours * Tracing 'gone away' debtors (both corporate and individual) - 11⁄2 hours * What to do if you/your organisation are sued - 1⁄2 day Other topics you might wish to consider could include: * Assessment of new customers as debtor risks * Attachment of Earnings Orders * Bailiffs and how to make them work for you * Benefit overpayments and how to recover them * Cash flow problems (business) * Charging Orders over property/assets * Credit policy: how to write one * Council and Local Authority debt recovery * Consumer Credit Act debt issues * Using debt collection agencies * Director's or personal guarantees * Domestic debt collection by telephone * Exports (world-wide) and payment for * Emergency debt recovery measures * Education Sector debt recovery * Forms used in credit control * Factoring of sales invoices * Finance Sector debt recovery needs * Third Party Debt Orders (Enforcement) * Government departments (collection from) * Harassment (what it is - and what it is not) * Health sector debt recovery skills * Hardship (members of the public) * Insolvency and the Insolvency Act * In-house collection agency (how to set up) * Instalments: getting offers which are kept * Judgment (explanation of types) * Keeping customers while collecting the debt * Late payment penalties and sanctions * Letter writing for debt recovery * Major companies as debtors * Members of the public as debtors * Monitoring of major debtors and risks * Negotiation skills for debt recovery * Old debts and how to collect them * Out of hours telephone calls and visits * Office of Fair Trading and collections * Oral Examination (Enforcement) * Pro-active telephone collection * Parents of young debtors * Partnerships as debtors * Positive language in debt recovery * Pre-litigation checking skills * Power listening skills * Questions to solicit information * Retention of title and 'Romalpa' clauses * Sale of Goods Act explained * Salesmen and debt recovery * Sheriffs to enforce your judgment * Students as debtors * Statutory demands for payment * Small companies (collection from) * Sundry debts (collection of) * Terms and Conditions of Contract * Tracing 'gone away' debtors * The telephone bureau and credit control * Taking away reasons not to pay * Train the trainer skills * Utility collection needs * Visits for collection and recovery * Warrant of execution (enforcement)

It is essential that those charged with responsibility for credit control and debt recovery have a full appreciation of the relevant law: no-one can negotiate effectively to recover a debt if they don't understand the ultimate sanctions they can apply. This programme is designed to give them a practical, up-to-date understanding of the law as it applies to your particular organisation. This course will help ensure that participants: * Understand the relevant laws * Know how and when to invoke legal processes * Avoid legal pitfalls in debt collection negotiations Specific, practical learning points include: * Definition of 'harassment' * How to set up an in-house collection identity * Whether cheques in 'full and final settlement' are binding * The best steps to trace a 'gone away'... and many, many more. 1 DATA PROTECTION AND DEBT RECOVERY There are a whole range of things which can be checked on members of the public and which are not affected by the restraints of the Data Protection Act. These will be explained in simple, clear terms so that staff can use this information immediately. 2 COUNTY COURT SUING The expert trainer will show how to sue for money owed, obtain judgment and commence enforcement action without leaving your desk. This module is aimed at showing how to make the Courts work for you instead of the other way around! 3 ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGMENTS There are many people who have a County Court Judgment (CCJ) against their debtor but who still remain unpaid. This session explains each of the enforcement methods and how to use them to best effect. Enforcement methods covered include: * Warrant of Execution * Using the sheriff (now known as High Court Enforcement Officers) * Attachment of earnings * Third Party Debt Orders * Charging Orders (over property and goods) * Winding-up companies and making individuals bankrupt 4 OFFICE OF FAIR TRADING RULES ON DEBT RECOVERY Surprisingly few people are aware of the Office of Fair Trading rules on debt recovery and many of those that do know think they don't apply to them - but they do. Make sure you know what you need to! 5 NEW METHODS TO TRACE ELUSIVE, ABSENTEE AND 'GONE AWAY' DEBTORS Why write the money off when you can trace the debtor and collect the money you are owed? 6 CREDIT CHECKING OF NEW AND EXISTING CUSTOMERS It makes sense to credit check would-be, new and existing customers to evaluate the likelihood of payment delays or perhaps not being paid at all. This session shows a range of credit checking steps, many of which can be done completely free of charge, including a sample credit application / account opening form. 7 LATE PAYMENT OF COMMERCIAL DEBTS REGULATIONS Do your staff understand this legislation and how to use it to make people pay quicker than ever before? The trainer shows how. 8 THE ENTERPRISE ACT The Enterprise Act made some startling changes to corporate and personal insolvency. What are the implications for credit control and debt recovery within your organisation?

OVERVIEW -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This course can offer you a transparent understanding of the credit management method and increase your confidence when handling credit management matters. This course will equip delegates with a range of enhanced communication skills to enable them to effectively collect debt by phone. These skills can be used to make sure that they are not only more effective at collecting money from customers but also maintain positive working relationships.

OVERVIEW -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This course is designed to give me comprehensive knowledge of the credit control process. This comprehensive and practical course concentrates on the credit control process and effective credit management assessing the risk and the process of credit management. It will enable delegates to get complete pictures and improve their skills at recognizing the warning signs through the use of exercises, discussions, and case studies. 

This course is designed specifically to help improve your collection rates. The UK's leading trainer in the subject uses practical examples and case studies to show how to use debt collection techniques that really work. This programme will help participants to: * Understand debtors and communicate with them effectively * Improve their telephone and writing skills * Appreciate the key legal issues * Track down 'gone-aways' * Improve their collection rates 1 GIVING CREDIT AND COLLECTING DEBTS * The benefits when you get it right * The cost of getting it wrong 2 ANALYSING YOURSELF * The importance of making the right 'first impression' * Assessing your own personal communication style and how this affects your results * How do you (or might you) look in the debtor's eyes? What would you like to change? 3 ANALYSING YOUR DEBTORS * Types of debtor * The delaying debtor * The genuine debtor * The cashflow or hardship problem debtor * The ones who never intended to pay * Spot the most common reasons and excuses for non-payment - and learn how to deal with them 4 UNDERSTANDING DEBT RECOVERY AND THE LAW * Data protection issues * County Court suing enforcement methods * Human rights and debt recovery * Retention of title matters 5 TELEPHONE SKILLS FOR DEBT RECOVERY * A 7-point plan which works every time * Learning by example: listening to and analysing some pre-recorded (or live) collection calls * What was done well? * What should have been done differently? * Did the collector recognise opportunities? * Did the collector create opportunities where seemingly none existed? * Did the collector negotiate well or not at all? 6 WRITING SKILLS FOR DEBT RECOVERY * Key phrases to avoid * What to include * A sample letter which gets results in over 90% of cases 7 TRACKING DOWN THE 'GONE AWAYS' * A unique debtor-tracing plan * Why spend money on external tracers when you can find those 'gone away' debtors for yourself? 8 COURSE REVIEW * The traps to avoid * Key personal learning points

How to protect your cash flow In the current economic climate more and more companies are finding that their customers are taking longer to pay - or are not even paying at all. As cash flow is key to the survival of any business, effective debt collection tactics are vital for all businesses. This workshop concentrates on the telephone skills and techniques you can use to achieve the most positive outcome in any debt collection situation - payment of money owed, as soon as possible, whilst keeping the collection cost as low as possible. The course will help you: * Understand your debtors and communicate with them accordingly * Develop a strategy for more effective debt collection * Make every call count * Handle difficult calls * Reduce the amount of time you need to spend on chasing payment * Increase your collection rates 1 THE DEBT COLLECTION PROCESS * Understanding the reasons behind payment default * Looking at the debt situation from the customer's point of view * Developing a strategy for effective debt collection 2 ADVANCED TELEPHONE COMMUNICATION SKILLS * Techniques for speaking to the person responsible for paying the debt * How to gain the customer's trust when discussing debt * Telephone collection skills best practice * Key phrases that keep the conversation positive and open 3 QUESTIONING AND LISTENING SKILLS FOR GATHERING INFORMATION * Different types of question * Using high-gain questions to uncover key information * Active listening that will help you understand what customers are really saying * Leading with examples and high-impact questions * Summarising and restating 4 OVERCOMING OBJECTIONS AND EXCUSES * Identifying objections * Preparing suitable responses * Probing objections and ways to overcome them 5 GAINING COMMITMENT AND ENDING THE CALL * Learn how to negotiate an agreement to suit both parties * Summarising actions for you and the customer * Ending the call professionally 6 DEALING WITH DIFFICULT AND CHALLENGING SITUATIONS * Understand different personality types * The correct way to respond to an upset customer * Ways to calm angry customers (and handle verbal attacks) 7 ACTION PLANS * Course summary and presentation of action plans

Any team member with Customer interaction (including internal) are the 'Ambassadors' of the company/organisation. If they project positive professionalism - they win others' confidence. If they appear or sound like they are in any way indifferent or unprofessional - they will cost sales and lose clients/customers. With this 2 day Training course, that will be tailored to your company/organisation, each person attending will upgrade their professional standards in people skills, telephone manner and email etiquette. No training in this area may well be a false economy as there is a much greater risk of disenfranchised customers and team members - and probably increases your competitors to win business at your expense. Professional customer care is all too frequently regarded as a token issue in most induction sessions for employees. Surprisingly it is very rarely considered as a key priority, despite being essential for ensuring customer commitment is secure and supplier/partnerships are robust. Excellent customer care is paramount in our ever increasingly competitive market and making customers feel valued and looked after is often a differentiator. This 2-day course will help you understand your customers and the vital importance of customer care in any organisation. You will gain the tools and techniques to apply your learning directly back into the workplace and deliver excellent customer care. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Course Syllabus The syllabus of the Professional Customer Care course is comprised of four modules, covering the following: Module One What is Excellent Customer Care? * Internal versus external customers * Why customer care is important * Meeting customer expectations Module Two Making a Personal Difference * How do you measure customer care? * Making a difference * Taking ownership * Positive mental attitude * Displaying professionalism both face-to-face and over the telephone * Using positive language Module Three Gathering Information and Offering Solutions * Asking the right questions * Active listening skills * Summarising and clarifying skills Module Four * Dealing with Difficult Situations * How to give a 'service' no * Demonstrating empathy * Assertiveness techniques * Handling a complaint * Problem solving * Saying 'sorry' * Making realistic promises and keeping them -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Real Play Scenarios with a Professional Actor (Optional Extra) This programme benefits significantly from our innovative training feature: Real Play. Using a professional actor who performs role plays as different customer characters in carefully devised situations, the delegates have the opportunity to 'pause' the role play to coach and control their character to improve their skill sets and practice the theory delivered. These scenarios can deal with difficult situations and enacting options to ensure good customer relations are intact. The outcome of the scenario is the responsibility of the delegates, not the trainer and actor. The actor will remain in character throughout the de-brief in order to bring to life the impact and possible next steps. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Objectives By the end of the course participants will be able to * Adopt a professional telephone manner * Communicate assertively by taking control and directing the conversation * Deliver information positively by offering options and alternatives * Develop a range of versatile behaviours to use when dealing with difficult situations by: * Listening actively * Using empathy * Gathering relevant information through effective questioning * Finding solutions to concerns/problems quickly and efficiently * Speaking positively and assertively -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WHAT IS THE BENEFIT? For individuals this course will increase confidence and ability to deal with customers in all situations, which will in turn create customer loyalty and raise their profile. For an employer, ensuring that all customer facing employees are demonstrating excellent customer care instils confidence in the customers and promotes a positive image of the company. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- IN-HOUSE COURSES Every single team member or employee that has a role which involves engaging with a customer, client and/or a key partner/supplier has a responsibility for projecting a positive image of the organisation which they represent. That may sound obvious, but how many hundreds of experiences have you had as a customer where you were treated with indifference and a distinct lack of professionalism by the receptionist, the retail assistant, the tele-agent, the delivery person, the credit controller or the departmental manager of the operation that you were dealing with? Far too many to count? This is because professional customer care is regarded as a token issue in most induction sessions for employees - and it is very rarely considered as a key priority to ensure customer commitment is secure and supplier/partnerships are robust. Yet the hugely expensive churn in customer/client commitments and staff is enormously expensive and immensely disruptive to any organisation. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE IMPORTANCE OF CUSTOMERS AND CLIENTS Every client/customer engaging person needs to recognise that it is ultimately the client or customer that pays their wages. If they gain a basic understanding of the clients' motivations and behaviours, coupled with some core skills in how to care for them, they will attain the status of 'professional'. This will very quickly translate into increased revenues, retained loyalty, high commitment and far greater security for all parties. The foundation has to be based on the authentic commitment to both the customer and also to the organisation they work for. Disenfranchisement readily curdles into sloppy behaviours cloaked in unprofessional attitudes and demeanours; plenty there to repel the most loyal of customers. If your company or organisation relies on repeat business and retaining the confidence and commitment of your clients, then all of your team members - perhaps including managers who set the example and have the biggest influence on the where the needle points to in relation to professionalism - need to be trained on the core basics of professional customer care. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CUSTOMER CARE PROGRAMMES FROM DICKSON TRAINING LTD We are delighted to boast about the many successes we have had in providing effective and long lasting improvements for many clients, where awards have been won and, more importantly, talent has been retained because their clients and customers keep on coming back. Professional customer care extends to suppliers and partners that you value and need to get the best service and rates from, as well as any 'internal clients' such as other departments where you need to rely on their support and collaboration in order to achieve your goals. It is amazing what effective professional customer care training can do for any organisation. Without it your organisation may be vulnerable, with it you are much more likely to see increased performances and much greater security and growth. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SCHEDULED COURSES Unfortunately this course is not one that is currently scheduled as an open course, and is only available on an in-house basis. Please contact us for more information.