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Expert: - 8/22/2007


Question
dear michelle,I'm currently a medical billing company who's been in the industry for 24 yrs. I do routine A/R collection work as part of my service to the client, however, I wish to compliment my medical billing with doing more extensive collection work, I would like to know what technology is needed for me to start with if I wish to accept checks by phone, credit cards, debit cards etc., can you please recommend vendors, and their are so many collection software packages, please recommend a package which is user friendly, can I intergrated with my existing medical billing software? As a medical billing company what advantages do I have? Do I need a Website for payment posting by patient or can I get away with some kind of manual system for now? or can I use both electronic and manual? I have read your book starting a collection agency and I have recently ordered 4 other of your books I am waiting for them to arrive. Please inform me when the 3rd addition of the collections book is due to hit the stores. Thank you for your providing people like myself with so much collection information if it were not for your books, I would be difficult to navigate in the industry. thank you again. sincerely, ramona cosme


Answer
Ramona,

I have quite a few free resources at http://www.credit-and-collections.com/startup-tips.html This includes software and all the technology you need to do the checks by phone, credit cards etc.  I think the lowest cost software that is of good quality would be Abacus Totality, a more expensive software that is very good is Collect! by Comtech Systems.

You can also join my networking group at http://www.credit-and-collections.com/index.html to network and learn from others who are just starting their agencies as well as experts and other agency owners.  Some of the members include collection software people, merchant account companies and other resources collection agencies use.

I have also released the “Second Edition of Starting a Collection Agency, How to make money collecting money”, which would be very helpful to you.  You can check that out at http://www.michelledunn.com/book_sca2nd.html  I also offer Starting a Collection Agency consulting if you are interested.

Check out www.startingacollectionagency.com which is run by my good friend David Ward, he has a lot of really great information up on his site.  Good luck and please let me know if I can help further.

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Michelle Dunn

Expertise

As one of the Top 5 Women in Collections, one of the Top 50 Collection Professionals, and winner of the Business Excellence award, I can answer any questions about debt, debt collection, improving business credit, creating a credit policy, enforcing a credit policy and collecting on past due accounts. I can also answer questions in regards to starting a debt collection agency since I have been a bill collector for over 24 years, started and ran my own collection agency for 8 years, and maintain my 12 year old Credit & Collections Association for members of the credit & debt collection industry. I am also the author of the popular and award winning book "Starting a Collection Agency, how to make money collecting money" now on it's 3rd edition. This book has won a the Writers Digest self published award as well as the New York Book Festival Award. I am a repeat contributor to the Wall Street Journal, and have been featured on NPR, CNN, as well as many other national radio and television programs. I have also been featured in national publications such as the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Smart Money, MSNBC and much more. I have 17 published books to my name and am an accomplished speaker and consultant. I currently write 9 columns for newspapers, magazines and online portals worldwide.

Experience

I have over 24 years experience in debt collection, I started and ran my own collection agency for 8 years and I am the founder & owner of my Credit & Collections Association that I founded in 1998. www.credit-and-collections.com

Organizations
My Credit & Collections Association, I was also a member of the American Collectors Association and Plymouth Chamber of Commerce for 11 years. I am a member of many writing groups as well as my local Women Inspiring Women chapter. I am a member of Know More Media as an expert for their blog on business credit.

Publications
Business NH Magazine, Smart Money Magazine, MSNBC, CNN, Forbes.com, The Wall Street Journal, Home Business Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine and website, many books, newspapers and television programs as well.

Education/Credentials
I have written 17 books in my collecting money series and one for Entrepreneur Press called the Ultimate Credit and Collections Handbook. My newest book is being published by John Wiley & Sons in May titled, The Guide to Getting Paid, how to weed out bad paying customers, collect on past due balances and avoid bad debt. This book is also being sold to many colleges as a text book.

Awards and Honors
My book Starting a Collection Agency, how to make money collecting money won an award from Writers Digest and the 2007 New York Book Festival in the "How to" category. I have won 2 awards from Dun & Bradstreet and Governor Jean Shaheen. I was nominated as one of the Top 5 Women in Collections twice as well as having been selected as one of Collection Advisor's Top 50 Collection Professionals by my peers.

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