Is mailing documents worth the money for debt collection in 2013?

The United States Postal Service plans to bring down internal costs, and insiders are talking about management decisions that could impact businesses dealing in consumer debt collection.

New routes of communication

The use of new media has trended in industry conversation over the past few years, and so far the general excitement around optimized use of such outlets has been in regards to its money-saving aspect. What should be considered next to email and social media's cost-efficiency is its existence in the forefront of modern consciousness - email, text and other instant message systems, according to insideARM.

Alternatively, studies show that when it comes to unsolicited messages, consumers prefer to receive correspondence the old fashioned way. While consumer credit agencies could make an innovative push to change general mindsets on new media use for such contact, it is unlikely - well over half the subjects surveyed by Epsilon, a mutli-channel marketing firm, earlier this month claim their daily intake of emails is already excessive, according to The Huffington Post.

In 2011, small business council members were optimistic about the popularity of new media like email and believed this outlet would serve as excellent primary resources for companies, according to a report by CNBC.

"Everything at MFG.com is done electronically. We are not dependent on USPS and if they went away or downsized it would have little, if any, effect on us," Mitch Free CEO of MFG.com said to the news source.

Advantages in consumer sentiments
Consumer preference of hard mail as reported by The Huffington Post does not necessarily pose a threat to debt collection businesses' use of email or social media contact. In fact, it could shed light on the efficiency of such correspondence. The article makes note that documents advertising services and products consumers have not directly requested are the types which are more effectively ignored. Dealings with debt collectors are of a different nature, and therefore may not be as negatively affected by email correspondence practices as long as they follow best practices.

insideARM offers two important details to cover if businesses should choose online-based communications. One area consumer credit data handling companies must secure is the protection of private or limited-access information used to send wireless messages. The second point made is to ensure consent from consumers. Approval of digital alerts by consumers is vital to debt collection companies' legal compliance.