In some cases, it can be as simple as changing your chosen communications method. For example, physical demand letters sent through the mail are inherently time-consuming and relatively costly. Switching to digital communications methods can lower those costs and speed the identification of debtors who will require active skip tracing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. Look Beyond Mail and Phone Calls<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
That brings us to a second point: It may be time to think very seriously about upgrading your communications strategy, if you aren\u2019t already doing so. TransUnion\u2019s 2024 Debt Collection Industry Report<\/a> showed that 87% and 86% of agencies still utilized physical mail and phone calls, respectively, making them the most widely used methods of contacting debtors.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, both have serious limitations. In the case of phone calls, you may require several attempts before you successfully reach the debtor (if at all), and those attempts are limited under Regulation F. With physical letters, the time physical mail spends in transit (and the lack of feedback, if the debtor has in fact moved), makes them notably inefficient. Shifting to a digital-first collections strategy<\/a>, in this context, makes perfect sense as a time-saver. A growing body of research also shows that digital channels can improve response rates<\/a> and successful recoveries, as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n So which digital options are the front-runners? Email is the most widely used, reaching 74% penetration in the TransUnion study. Although consumers show signs of \u201cinbox fatigue,\u201d email remains a viable communications channel<\/a>, and interest in SMS text messaging<\/a> is high. No-ring voicemail dialers can efficiently replace many phone calls, and social media direct-messaging<\/a> is an overlooked but potentially significant communications channel as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the simplest and most far-reaching steps you can take, if you want to spend less time reaching your debtors, is upgrading the quality of your data. The quality of information in any consumer database deteriorates over time, as people move, switch email addresses, and get new phones and phone numbers. For third-party agencies in particular, the data may already be dated when it reaches you from the original creditor, and it only worsens from there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Periodically validating your data is referred to as \u201cdata hygiene,\u201d and in skip tracing, it can be thought of as the proverbial ounce of prevention. Ideally, you\u2019d check every debtor in any new block of data you receive from a client, and also periodically re-check every debtor you\u2019re not actively in contact with. To do this cost-effectively, you\u2019ll need a tool like Spokeo for Co<\/a>ll<\/a>ections<\/a> that supports batch searches.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Large and well-resourced agencies already had this capability through Spokeo\u2019s powerful Application Programming Interface (API). Now, with the new Batch Append feature, even the smallest of agencies can perform a batch search as simply as an individual search, with no programming (and no investment in IT resources) required. Knowing that your data is accurate and up to date, before<\/em> beginning the collections process, can help ensure you contact the right person more quickly and more often. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You can never have too many ways to reach a debtor. This has always rung true, but is even more important when trying to engage with younger debtors specifically. Their living arrangements are frequently shared and transient; they may not have a landline phone or utilities accounts in their own name, their income may rely heavily on non-standard (\u201cgig economy\u201d) employment, and they\u2019re often among the nearly 1 in 5 Americans who are classed by the FDIC as un- or under-banked<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n To complicate matters, those same factors make many debtors largely invisible to legacy data providers, who draw their core information from credit data headers. With debtors who don\u2019t actively engage with the mainstream financial industry, data can be scarce. Modern, nimble tools like Spokeo for Collections can make up the deficiency, drawing on open-source and especially social media data as well as traditional regulated data. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This deeper, broader approach goes beyond simply providing accurate, up-to-date contact information for your debtors (as described in the previous section). By providing a fuller range of information and contact options \u2014 including alternative emails and physical addresses, phone numbers, and even social media accounts \u2014 this kind of search opens the door to alternative contact methods, and can help track down harder-to-find debtors who are, accidentally or deliberately, living \u201cunder the radar.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n For some especially difficult-to-locate debtors, finding them directly may prove challenging even with new-generation search tools. Some may deliberately choose to evade contact, while others are simply couch-surfing and using an unknown phone, but it\u2019s a struggle to reach them in either case. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This is one way that collections professionals can leverage the deeper, broader information from Spokeo searches in order to establish contact. Aside from identifying current and former addresses, emails, and phone numbers, the search results will typically include a number of the debtor\u2019s social media accounts (assuming they\u2019re active on social media), and the names and contact information of people thought to be relatives of the search subject. Looking at the debtors\u2019 publicly available social media accounts, and those of their friends and family who show up in their Spokeo search results, it\u2019s often possible to identify where they\u2019re living (and how to reach them) by viewing their public posts, their photos, and their online check-ins. It\u2019s entirely possible that some collections firms may survive the next decade by doing exactly what they\u2019ve always done, exactly how they\u2019ve always done it. That said, the odds of succeeding and flourishing are likely to be higher for those agencies that recognize the generational changes underway in consumer (and debtor) behavior, and adapt along with them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The tips we\u2019ve offered in this blog post are for those who take the latter approach. Like many of the other trends in collections, they\u2019re largely dependent on having the right tools in your toolbox. Those, like Spokeo for Collections, are modern products providing advanced search or analysis capabilities. Spokeo is a compelling option for agencies of all sizes, with its power, ease of use, and highly scalable pricing structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To learn more about the product, to see a demo, or to arrange a no-charge, hands-on trial, reach out to our team today!<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sources<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n TransUnion: 2024 Debt Collection Industry Report<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n McKinsey Company: Holistic Customer Assistance Through Digital-First Collections<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"two](\"https:\/\/www.spokeo.com\/pathfinder\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/pexels-mikhail-nilov-6893921-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n3. \u201cClean\u201d Your Data Regularly<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
4. Deepen Your Debtor Data<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Collections](\"https:\/\/www.spokeo.com\/pathfinder\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/pexels-mart-production-7709208-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n5. Broaden Your Search<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Armed with that information, you may now be able to establish a direct connection through a previously inaccessible channel (like social media direct\/private messaging) or by reaching out to friends and family to pass a message and suggest a method of establishing contact. While legacy data providers may struggle simply to provide a valid email address, you\u2019ll be able to make the connection between a debtor\u2019s real name and something as relatively anonymous as a social-media username. In skip tracing, that\u2019s a remarkable superpower to have at your disposal. <\/p>\n\n\n\nA Better Tool in Your Toolbox<\/h2>\n\n\n\n