Philadelphia, PA—March 26, 2024— The Business Intelligence Group today announced that Skit.ai was named a winner in its Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards program. This business awards program sets out to recognize those organizations, products, and people who bring Artificial Intelligence (AI) to life and apply it to solve real problems.
Skit.ai is the chosen winner under the Natural Language Processing category. Skit.ai is the accounts receivables management industry’s leading Conversational AI solution provider, enabling financial service organizations to streamline and accelerate revenue recovery via a suite of multichannel solutions, including voice, text, email, and chat.
Powered by Generative AI, Skit.ai’s compliant and easy-to-deploy suite of multichannel solutions delivers millions of seamless and effective consumer interactions at scale, elevating consumer experiences.
“We are honored to receive this award from the Business Intelligence Group, affirming our position as a pioneering force in Natural Language Processing with our Conversational AI technology, ” said Sourabh Gupta, founder and CEO of Skit.ai. “As we celebrate this milestone, we are eager to continue building state-of-the-art technology, providing even more ways for businesses to interact with consumers in real-time.”
“We are truly honored to recognize Skit.ai with this prestigious award,” stated Maria Jimenez, Chief Nominations Officer for the Business Intelligence Group. “The unwavering commitment of their team to excellence and their innovative AI applications have catapulted them to this remarkable achievement. Congratulations to the entire organization!”
About Skit.ai:
Skit.ai is the accounts receivables industry’s leading Conversational AI company, enabling collection agencies and creditors to streamline and accelerate revenue recovery. Skit.ai’s compliant and easy-to-deploy suite of multichannel solutions—featuring voice, text, email, and chat powered by Generative AI—delivers seamless and effective consumer interactions at scale, boosting recoveries and elevating consumer experiences. Skit.ai has received several awards and recognitions, including Stevie Gold Winner 2023 for Most Innovative Company by The International Business Awards, Disruptive Technology of the Year 2022 by CCW, and Gold Globee CEO Awards 2022. Skit.ai is headquartered in New York City, NY. Visit www.skit.ai.
About Business Intelligence Group: The Business Intelligence Group was founded with the mission of recognizing true talent and superior performance in the business world. Unlike other industry award programs, these programs are judged by business executives having experience and knowledge. The organization’s proprietary and unique scoring system selectively measures performance across multiple business domains and then rewards those companies whose achievements stand above those of their peers. Visit www.bintelligence.com
Contact For media inquiries, please contact: media@skit.ai
Maria Jimenez +1 909-529-2737 jmaria@bintelligence.com
Buy Here, Pay Here dealerships, like any business handling customer payments, face challenges in communicating with borrowers. These businesses need to regularly and effectively remind customers about upcoming payments. However, limited staff and resources mean they can’t make unlimited calls or send countless reminders; so, ensuring payments keep flowing can be tricky.
Automated text messaging with Conversational AI is emerging as an ideal solution to these challenges. The adoption of a new, efficient communication channel for customers can significantly boost BHPH collection operations.
Powered by Generative AI, text message automation enables two-way, multi-turn, intelligent conversations between lenders and borrowers. Buy Here, Pay Here businesses are now adopting this technology to communicate with consumers effectively and affordably, helping them make payments on time.
In this article, we explore the potential of Conversational AI-powered text message automation in transforming the Buy Here, Pay Here industry, not only in terms of customer communication but also operational efficiency.
Why Conversational AI and Why Text Messaging?
Conversational AI is transforming collections into a more adaptive and efficient operation for dealerships. Buy Here, Pay Here dealerships have been using Voice AI to automate outbound collection calls, yielding impressive results. Now, industry leaders are extending additional self-service channels to consumers, including text messaging automation with AI.
Text messages have a remarkably high open rate of 80-99%.
About 90% of text messages are opened within 3 minutes of receipt.
Click-through rates with SMS can vary significantly but typically lie between 15-30%.
Conversational AI facilitates two-way, intelligent conversations with customers, answering questions and providing context-based information. Whether used for automating phone calls or text messages, Generative AI allows auto finance companies to optimize their recovery strategy.
Text message automation is great because it helps businesses stay in touch with customers regularly. Instead of playing phone tag or feeling annoyed by lots of calls, customers can chat whenever they want, in a way that’s easy for them.
AI-powered Text Massaging Turbocharges Outbound Outreach
How can you effectively incorporate AI-powered text messaging capabilities into your collection strategy?
A dealer wants to be able to reach all of its active customers frequently and effectively. While maintaining a dedicated staff is crucial, you can only afford so many live agents and they can only handle so many calls. Automation with artificial intelligence is essential to scale the number of calls or outreach via other channels such as text messaging.
Additionally, it’s important to diversify your communication efforts, so adding channels such as SMS alongside phone calls can greatly increase your chances of reaching all customers.
To adopt Conversational AI, there is no need to have dedicated IT staff on board. The solution can be deployed in as fast as 24 hours, so you can initiate your campaign as soon as tomorrow.
When applied to text message automation, Conversational AI enables auto finance companies to:
Reach borrowers on their smartphones, allowing them to reply at their convenience
Achieve scalability by handling as many conversations as needed
Send frequent reminders at every step of the collection cycle to maximize payments
Facilitate two-way, intelligent conversations with borrowers
Reduce the load on live agents for routine communication and outreach
Thanks to the scalable nature of AI automation, you can contact your customers as frequently as you want, empowering your team of live agents to handle more complex and revenue-generating tasks and perform their jobs more efficiently.
Additionally, offering self-service alternatives to live interactions will positively impact the customer experience (CX).
If you’re interested in learning more about how Conversational AI can enhance your collections strategy, use the chat tool below to schedule an appointment with one of our experts!
Auto finance companies, like all businesses dealing with consumer payments, face a few innate challenges when it comes to communicating with borrowers. Regular outreach to borrowers to remind them of future and due payments is an essential part of the day-to-day operations of an auto finance business to avoid delinquencies.
Common challenges include resource limitations, rising costs, and the inability to send out frequent reminders and handle all inbound calls. As such, reaching consumers at all stages of the collection cycle—from pre-due date reminders to late-stage collections—can be a complex process.
Two possible solutions to these challenges are leveraging top-tier technology and diversifying communication methods. Conversational AI and automated messaging have ushered in new, efficient communication channels with customers, significantly boosting auto finance collection operations.
Powered by Generative AI, text message automation enables two-way, multi-turn, intelligent conversations between lenders and borrowers. This technology is now emerging as a pivotal tool for auto finance companies to communicate with consumers in an effective and cost-efficient manner, helping consumers make payments on time and avoid charge-offs and repossessions.
In this article, we explore the immense potential of Conversational AI-powered text message automation in transforming the auto finance sector, not only in terms of customer communication but also operational efficiency.
Why Conversational AI and Why Text Messaging?
Conversational AI is transforming auto finance collections into a more adaptive and efficient operation. This technology employs natural language processing to understand and respond to customer inquiries, making the process more conversational and less transactional.
Auto finance companies have been using Voice AI to automate both inbound and outbound collection calls, yielding impressive results. Now, industry leaders are extending additional self-service channels to consumers, including text messaging automation with AI.
Text messages have a remarkably high open rate of 80-99%.
About 90% of text messages are opened within 3 minutes of receipt.
Click-through rates with SMS can vary significantly but typically lie between 15-30%.
Conversational AI facilitates two-way, intelligent conversations with customers, answering questions and providing context-based information. Whether used for automating phone calls or text messages, Generative AI allows auto finance companies to optimize their recovery strategy.
The core advantage of text message automation is that it maintains a regular, timely, and non-intrusive communication line with customers. Instead of ignoring calls or feeling exasperated with numerous phone conversations, customers can engage at their convenience and in a format that feels most natural to them.
AI-powered Text Massaging Turbocharges Outbound Outreach
How can you effectively incorporate AI-powered text messaging capabilities into your collection strategy? Let’s start with the outbound use case.
An auto finance business wants to be able to reach all of its active customers frequently and effectively. While maintaining a dedicated staff is crucial, you can only afford so many live agents and they can only handle so many calls. Automation with artificial intelligence is essential to scale the number of calls or outreach via other channels such as text messaging.
Additionally, it’s important to diversify your communication efforts, so adding channels such as SMS alongside phone calls can greatly increase your chances of reaching all customers.
When applied to text message automation, Conversational AI enables auto finance companies to:
Reach borrowers on their smartphones, allowing them to reply at their convenience
Achieve scalability by handling as many conversations as needed
Send reminders at every step of the collection cycle—including pre-due, early-stage, late-stage, and high-risk—to avoid delinquencies
Facilitate two-way, intelligent conversations with borrowers
Reduce the load on live agents for routine communication and outreach
24/7 Customer Service with Inbound Conversational AI
Now, let’s move on to the inbound use case.
As you intensify your outreach efforts and increase the number of outbound communications, borrowers will start contacting your business to make payments or inquire about their accounts, and that’s when you’ll know it’s important to augment also your inbound service with Conversational AI.
Conversational AI gives you the ability to reduce wait times to zero seconds and assist borrowers immediately. When you deploy text messaging automation for inbound communications, you offer 24/7 customer service able to assist customers at any time of the day and week.
Offering self-service alternatives to live interactions will positively impact the customer experience (CX).
Augmenting inbound communications with AI enables your live agents to focus on complex queries and important tasks. As the AI solution addresses the low-hanging fruits, your agents are empowered to do their job more efficiently.
If you’re interested in learning more about how Conversational AI can enhance your collections strategy, use the chat tool below to schedule an appointment with one of our experts!
For third-party debt collection agencies, consumer outreach has always been a multilayered challenge. Because of resource limitations, strict compliance requirements, prohibitive costs, and the difficult ecosystem of consumer collections, it’s rarely easy to reach debtors, with account penetration, right-party contact, and payment recovery being some of the hurdles faced by collectors.
Diversifying the communication methods and leveraging top-tier technology are two solutions to these challenges. The rise of Conversational AI and automated messaging is opening new and efficient channels for communication with consumers, which can significantly boost third-party debt collection operations.
Until recently, few collection agencies would have considered investing in automated text messaging for one simple reason: the technology was not up to par with the needs of the industry, given the lack of two-way communication, user verification, and compliance capabilities.
But now, thanks to Generative AI, things are changing. Text message automation powered by Generative AI handles two-way, multi-turn, intelligent conversations with consumers utilizing the same Conversational AI technology of top-tier Voice AI, all in compliance with the applicable regulations.
In this article, we’ll outline the immense potential that text message automation using Conversational AI has for transforming the industry, both in terms of debtor communication and operational efficiency.
Conversational AI: A Game Changer for Debt Collection
Conversational AI is enabling debt collection to be more adaptive and efficient. This technology relies on natural language processing to understand and respond to consumer inquiries, making the process more conversational and less transactional.
Debt collection agencies have already been relying on Voice AI to automate both inbound and outbound collection calls, delivering impressive results. Now, leaders in the industry are offering additional self-service channels to consumers, so that everyone can utilize the channels they prefer. One of them is text messaging automation with AI.
Text messages have a remarkably high open rate, estimated to be between 80-99%.
Click-through rates with SMS (i.e. clicks on links within the SMS) can vary greatly, but they’re estimated to be somewhere between 15-30%.
Conversational AI handles two-way, intelligent conversations with consumers, answering questions and providing context-based information. Whether you want to use it to automate phone calls or text messages, you’ll be able to harness the power of Generative AI to take your recovery strategy to the next level.
How AI-powered Text Messaging Fits into Your Recovery Strategy
When applied to text message automation, Conversational AI enables debt collection agencies to:
Reach consumers on their smartphones and enable them to reply whenever and however they prefer
Handle two-way, intelligent conversations via SMS on outstanding debt and resolution options
Reduce the burden on live collectors for routine communication and outreach
Share time-sensitive information such as payment reminders, settlement offers, and deadline alerts in real time
Integrate seamlessly with existing software and workflows
The core benefit of text message automation lies in its ability to maintain a consistent, timely, and unobtrusive line of communication with consumers. Rather than ignoring calls or becoming frustrated with multiple phone conversations, consumers can engage on their schedule, in a format that is increasingly the most natural to them.
So, how does adding AI-powered text messaging affect your recovery strategy?
Text messaging offers convenience and personalization. When a consumer feels that an agency understands their circumstances, and offers a practical and convenient way to settle their debt, the chances of recovery increase. AI-driven text messages can:
Respond immediately to queries or requests, expediting the recovery process
Offer personalized payment plans in installments or settlements
Monitor and adapt communication strategies based on consumer response trends
By leveraging AI to handle the logistics of communication, third-party agencies can focus human resources where they are most effective—on complex conversations and personalized negotiations that demand a human touch. AI is not meant to substitute live agents, but rather to augment their work.
AI’s Role in Mitigating Compliance Risks with Text Messaging
With the intricate web of federal and state regulations impacting the debt collection industry, compliance is always a top priority when developing new technology for debt recovery. When properly deployed, technology can actually act as a shield against compliance breaches.
Our text automation solution is programmed with several filters and settings to ensure compliance in terms of outreach frequency, Mini-Miranda (FDCPA), user authentication, and opt-out requests. Thanks to the bot’s capabilities to discern intent, opting out is easy and can be done via a wide variety of keywords.
Enhancing the Overall Consumer Experience (CX)
Consumer experience is also an important aspect to keep in mind when it comes to debt recovery, despite being one of the most overlooked ones. CX might sound out of place here, and yet the experience consumers have when interacting with your agency can greatly impact their approach and behavior.
Offering self-service alternatives to speaking with a live collector can greatly impact the consumer experience, and text messaging is one of the most utilized communication tools, making it a safe bet. Text messaging automation speeds up the resolution process and reaches demographics that typically don’t enjoy phone calls, such as younger consumers.
Additionally, Skit.ai’s text messaging solution is context-dependent and keeps track of previous conversations with the same consumer on other channels, as well, such as phone calls via Voice AI.
Are you interested in learning more about how Conversational AI can improve your collections strategy? Use the chat tool below to schedule an appointment with one of our experts!
In a debt collection industry ripe for innovation, the introduction of Conversational AI is revolutionizing the agencies’ recovery processes as well as consumer experiences. For debt collection agency leaders looking to streamline and accelerate their collections, transitioning to an omnichannel, AI-powered platform undoubtedly marks a significant shift.
In this blog post, we are focusing on the steps needed to go live with Voice AI to automate phone interactions with consumers.
This brief guide provides a simple and intuitive path for debt collection leaders to seamlessly integrate Conversational Voice AI into their existing operations. From initial setup to going live with your first campaign, let’s demystify the steps you need to take to introduce this game-changing technology into your ecosystem.
Here are the 4 easy steps we’ll be following:
Step 1: Complete Your Welcome Questionnaires
The adoption of Voice AI begins with a thorough understanding of your current collection campaigns, business requirements, and state-level compliance. The Welcome Questionnaire serves as the foundation for tailoring the Voice AI system to meet your unique needs.
For the outbound use case, for example, we’ll ask you questions about your inventory and current metrics:
Inventory Question Examples
Volume of accounts
Average debt age
Average account balance
Current Metrics Question Examples
Volume of average dialed calls
Current account penetration
Current RPC rate
Live agent count
We’ll also ask you to share your current third-party vendors and solutions, which will be important for the next step of the process.
Step 2: Select Your Third-party Integrations
A Voice AI solution for debt collections is not a standalone system. It functions best when integrated with your existing technology stack. Selecting the right third-party integrations is crucial for a successful deployment. Skit.ai offers several out-of-the-box integrations, which we already have in place and will require minimal effort on your part.
System of Record: Your CRM or system of record is the heat of your operation. You can rely on simple flat-file transfers or API integrations depending on your organization’s requirements and use cases.
Payment Gateway: Simplifying the payment process for consumers is a significant advantage of Voice AI. Integration with a payment gateway allows consumers to make payments on-call, improving the likelihood of debt resolution. Skit.ai has completed the integration process with several major gateway providers, supporting multiple payment methods.
Telephony Platform: You’re most likely using a third-party telephony platform. Depending on your requirements and use cases, you can rely on Skit.ai’s own telephony system. For inbound use cases, we’ll require integration with your telephony system, allowing incoming calls to be answered by our virtual assistant.
Live Agent Transfers: Our solution is meant to augment your existing operations, and live agent transfers can be necessary in more complex scenarios. Your system should provide a smooth transition from the AI interaction to live agent support when needed.
Step 3: Set Up Scenarios and Workflows
Skit.ai’s Conversational Voice AI solution has a standard set of configurations and multiple scenarios it’s designed to handle. Here are a few examples of the scenarios the virtual assistant can handle on your behalf.
Right-party Contact: The voicebot can easily authenticate or verify the identity of the consumer, to ensure that you are speaking with the actual debtor and not someone else. You can verify RPCs via zip code, last digits of the social security number, or date of birth.
Mini-Miranda: The voicebot can read the Mini-Miranda rights in compliance with the FDCPA.
Disposition Capture: The voicebot can handle various scenarios—attorney representation, consumer requesting not to be contacted, deceased consumer, etc.—and capture the intent of the consumer in regard to the payment of the debt.
Settlements and Installment Plans: The voicebot can negotiate payment plans in installments or settlements in accordance with the creditor or agency’s requirements.
Payment Automation: The solution handles on- and off-call payments. Payments methods include card-on-file, on-call card payment, and payment via SMS link. Additionally, the call can be transferred to a live agent, who can handle the payment. In the case of a promise-to-pay (PTP), the solution will capture the estimated date of the payment.
Step 4: Initiate Your First Campaign
You’re ready to launch your first collection campaign. Congratulations! Here’s how you can do it.
To get started with your first collection campaign using Skit.ai’s platform, you will use a flat-file transfer to upload your campaign data—including name, date of birth, zip code, due balances, and due dates—to a remote server and transfer it via a Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).
During onboarding, you will receive a detailed guide on how to execute your first transfer, and your Customer Success Manager will ensure to support you as needed.
Are you interested in learning how Skit.ai’s omnichannel solution for collections can benefit your business? Use the chat tool below to schedule a meeting with one of our experts.
