How CollBox Helped Companies Bring in $10 Million in Cash, and Why You Might Need Their Help

It finally happened.

Our first client put through collections. I dragged the process on for a while. I did not want to deal with the headache of finding a collection agency, of requesting and comparing quotes, and of gathering and organizing our backup documents.

Then I finally googled “how to find a collection agency.” I spent 4 hours reading 27 articles and blog posts. I contacted a firm that seemed reputable. I waited a couple of weeks.

No response.

Collections is the last thing I wanted to spend my time on. It feels unproductive. But I decided to give it one last try. I googled collection agencies again. And what pops up at the top of the page? A link to Collbox’s website.

Ah, I had totally forgotten about them! I met the founders Cameron and Matt in 2017 at Xerocon in Austin. They were just launching their new business—a virtual collection agency that streamlines the painful and laborious process. I loved their energy and product vision. I just never had to use it.

Until now. 

So I reached out to Cameron Desautels. He explained how Collbox’s new process saves business owners time and energy. I was all ears:

“When shopping on your own, it’s impossible to know which of the 5,000+ agencies in the US are good at their job, and sometimes difficult just to know what you’ll pay. We thoroughly vet each agency in our network so you get a fair price and quality results, we automatically provide all of the documents the collectors need to do their work, and we make it easy to track the state of your collections in our app.”

Relieved and excited, I clicked on the web link and signed up.

I linked Xero, our company’s accounting software, to Collbox and instantly our accounts receivable were showing up, color-coded based on due dates. I clicked on our delinquent client’s name, uploaded our engagement letter and correspondence supporting our receivable, and hit approved.

That’s it.

Just 10 minutes including setting up our account. Collbox saved me time, allowing me to focus on our business and adding value to our existing clients instead of wasting time on former ones.

The Collbox platform is easy and intuitive to use.

The integration between Xero and Collbox made the process smooth. The dashboard highlights customers that could potentially be put through collections. It also shows a graphic map of your ongoing collection processes with status updates, keeping you updated at all stages of the process.

Collbox is free. The only cost is the commission paid to the collection agency if they are successful. In our case, the collection agency would get 25% of the amount collected.

And coming soon is a new service. A pre-collections service to help business owners collect faster on current accounts receivable, especially relevant during this COVID period. Cameron Desautels emphasized the importance of improving cash flow while maintaining good relationships with their clients.  So they developed this new service to “help collecting on past-due accounts with a soft, friendly touch to negotiate payment.”

We see it first hand with our clients. Cash flow is key right now.  We are spending a lot of time on treasury management and cash flow forecasts to help business owners make on-the-go strategic decisions in these unprecedented times.

If you are struggling with cash flow or simply don’t have time to follow up on past due collections, you might want to outsource this task.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

IG: @connectedaccounting

IN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phillipsmarie/

Email: marie@connectedaccounting.co

Website: connectedaccounting.co

Author Bio: Marie Phillips is a CPA in California. As an avid learner and self-development enthusiast, Marie holds 3 Master’s degrees (in cost accounting, in accounting and financial management, and an MBA in finance) and attends several conferences annually: Unleash the Power Within by Tony Robbins, leadership conferences, meditation retreats, and of course accounting conferences — including her favorite, Xerocon. She started her career working for large corporations like PepsiCo and Forever 21. But her entrepreneurship mindset and passion for technology and streamlining processes led her to the public accounting industry. After a decade of experience, she started Connected Accounting, a cloud-based accounting firm. She is passionate about helping her clients transform their businesses and about empowering her people. She mentors her team members and thrives to build a meaningful corporate culture. Marie enjoys participating in national panels, speaking at accounting conferences, and writing articles. Marie serves as a local Xero Ambassador to collaborate with other firms and to participate in the national dialogue around the future of the accounting industry. When not working, you can find Marie hiking in national parks, surfing in Central America, or visiting her family in France. That or she’s just reading on her couch 😉