Archives for January 2015

Follow-Up Study on Credit Report Accuracy Finds Disputes Continuing After Two Years

January 24, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

The Federal Trade Commission has issued a follow-up study of credit report accuracy that found most consumers who previously reported an unresolved error on one of their three major credit reports believe that at least one piece of disputed information on their report is still inaccurate.

The study, mandated by Congress, is the sixth and final study on national credit report accuracy by the FTC. It follows up on a study issued by the FTC in 2012, which examined how many consumers had errors on one of their three major credit reports.

The 2012 study found, among other things, that one in five consumers had an error that was corrected by a credit reporting agency (CRA) after it was disputed on at least one of their three credit reports. The study also found that about 20 percent of consumers who identified errors on one of their three major credit reports experienced an increase in their credit score that resulted in a decrease in their credit risk tier, making them more likely to be offered a lower auto loan interest rate.

The follow-up study announced today focuses on 121 consumers who had at least one unresolved dispute from the 2012 study and participated in a follow-up survey. It finds that 37 of the consumers (31 percent) stated that they now accepted the original disputed information on their reports as correct. However, 84 of these consumers (nearly 70 percent) continue to believe that at least some of the disputed information is inaccurate. Of those 84 consumers, 38 of them (45 percent) said they plan to continue their dispute, and 42 (50 percent) plan to abandon their dispute, while four consumers are undecided.

The final study also examined whether consumers from the 2012 study who had their credit reports modified after disputing information on their credit reports had any of the negative information that had been removed subsequently reappear on their reports. The study found two instances of this, representing about 1 percent of these consumers.

The final study recommends that CRAs review and improve the process they use to notify consumers about the results of dispute investigations, and that CRAs continue to explore efforts to educate consumers regarding their rights to review their credit reports and dispute inaccurate information.

Follow-Up Study on Credit Report Accuracy Finds Disputes Continuing After Two Years
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Accounts Receivable Management

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FTC Sues Debt Collection Agency Over Legal Threats and Other Practices

January 24, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

The Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday that on its behalf, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit in federal court against a Texas-based debt collection operation and its current and former principals for illegally threatening consumers with false claims that unless they pay a debt, they will face legal action or wage garnishment.

The FTC’s complaint charges Commercial Recovery Systems, Inc. (CRS), its president, Timothy Ford, and its former vice president, David Devany, with violating the FTC Act and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) by using deceptive methods to collect debts. CRS has been collecting consumer debts nationwide since 1994. The company collects third-party debt, including credit card and auto loan debt.

According to the complaint, since at least 2010, CRS’s debt collectors have deceptively told consumers that unless they pay a debt CRS claims they owe, a debt collection lawsuit will be filed against them. In some cases, consumers are told that such a case has already been filed and will lead to adverse consequences unless the debt is paid.

“When it comes to debt collection, people have rights,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “It’s illegal to harass people, or to make false threats about wage garnishment or lawsuits. Unfortunately, these unscrupulous debt collectors systematically lied to the people they called.”

In addition, the FTC alleges that in many cases, when CRS calls consumers to collect on a debt, its representatives falsely claim or imply that they are lawyers or are calling on behalf of a lawyer, or that they are judicial employees. The complaint alleges in other cases, CRS falsely tells consumers that they will garnish their wages, levy their bank accounts, or seize their property unless they pay the debt. In truth, CRS lacks the authority and intent to take any of these actions.

“The defendants in this case are alleged to have lied to consumers in violation of the law,” said DOJ’s Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division, Joyce R. Branda. “We will enforce these laws and stop those who would use deception to extract money from American consumers.”

In its lawsuit, the FTC is seeking an injunction to stop the allegedly illegal conduct and civil penalties.

FTC Sues Debt Collection Agency Over Legal Threats and Other Practices
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Accounts Receivable Management

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Account Control Technology Partners with Student Account Management Services, LLC

January 24, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

Account Control Technology, Inc. (ACT), a national leader in delivering debt management and recovery solutions, is pleased to announce its partnership with Student Account Management Services, LLC (SAMS 360), a premier student loan default aversion company serving colleges, universities and private lenders – as well as their borrowers. The partnership will enable ACT to offer its many education clients a comprehensive default prevention and cohort default rate management program.

“Through the delivery of communications and reminders directly to borrowers, SAMS 360 can effectively help our clients reduce the number of former students defaulting on education loans,” states Lynn Heineman, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at ACT. “Further, SAMS 360’s work will help clients comply with federal regulations for maintaining low cohort default rates as well as meet ‘enhanced financial counseling’ requirements.”

SAMS 360 helps student borrowers understand the loan repayment process through the use of an interactive website, a sophisticated analytics platform, targeted social and electronic media, and live counseling by knowledgeable agents. In partnership with financial aid departments and lenders, the proactive SAMS 360 approach aims to contact and educate borrowers before they fall into default. The comprehensive program includes predictive analytics to identify at-risk borrowers, grace period outreach, default aversion outreach and delinquency outreach – all supported by skip tracing to stay in contact with borrowers and robust reporting to keep clients apprised of ongoing progress.

“The ACT and SAMS 360 partnership will greatly enhance service offerings for education clients,” said Paul Farinacci, President and CEO of SAMS 360. “ACT has an outstanding reputation in helping education clients resolve defaulted accounts, and SAMS 360 is happy to provide our services earlier in the student loan lifecycle to keep accounts from going into default in the first place.”

Student Account Management Services, LLC (SAMS 360) is a leading student loan default aversion company serving college financial aid departments and private lenders throughout the US and Canada. The company succeeds by offering a full circle of services including data insights and predictive modeling, skip tracing, grace period outreach, and default aversion – all supported by robust client reporting. On behalf of clients, SAMS 360 works directly with students to provide guidance, financial education and mentorship. For more information, please contact Brenda Meli, CMO, at 717-657-2963, or visit www.SAMS360.com

Account Control Technology, Inc. is a leader in providing consultative debt management, collection, call center and business office solutions for education, government, commercial and consumer entities. Established in 1990, ACT has been recognized as an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing private company for the past eight years running. The company serves clients nationwide from five office locations: Bakersfield, California; Woodland Hills, California; Mason, Ohio; Dallas, Texas; and San Angelo, Texas. For more information, call 800-394-4228 or visit www.accountcontrol.com

Account Control Technology Partners with Student Account Management Services, LLC
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Accounts Receivable Management

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Financing an Acquisition

January 24, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

Mike Ginsberg

Interest rates are low, the economy is growing, business is great and you want to make your first acquisition. What’s more, you’ve already identified the perfect add-on opportunity to support the expansion of your current business. However, you don’t like the idea of tying up all of your working capital in a new business endeavor and you still may not have enough cash on hand to make an acquisition outright.

Fortunately, financing options are available if you know how to take advantage of the resources available to you and you’re willing to jump through a few hoops.

There are three main options available when financing your business acquisition. First, you could take out a home equity line of credit. Unfortunately, it doesn’t amount to too much money, takes away equity from your home and may not even be an option given the current housing market. Second, you could take out an SBA-backed loan through a bank or private channels, like friends and family. Third, you could embrace the idea of equity financing, which involves investors or business partners who own a portion of your business.

In today’s business environment, the second and third options tend to be the best for those looking to acquire a business. However, if you are going this route, there are six key preparations you need to make before moving forward.

Prepare a formal business plan – Ideas are great, but at a bank nobody cares how great if you don’t put pen to paper and identify how your business will turn a profit, thereby repaying your financial obligations.
Prepare to sell yourself – Regardless of your audience – friends, family, or the SBA – you need to convince them that your idea is great, your business plan is sound, and you have the skills needed to succeed.
Prepare for background checks – If you need financing, you better have a solid credit rating. Like credit card companies, a business lender needs to know that you are responsible and can handle a sizable loan. Make sure you’ve paid off any outstanding credit card statements, speeding tickets or cable bills. It could come back to haunt you.
Prepare your prequalification of financing – Just like buying a home, you need to get prequalified to buy a business if you are financing the acquisition through debt. This process can be intensive, but it is well worth the effort since it is the same process you will have to go through with all lenders. Like a mortgage, you want to get multiple quotes to get the best financing option available.
Prepare to be asked to supply collateral – Lenders want to know they are secure in their investments, especially something as risky as a new business. You will likely have to show that there is value in your current business, home, accounts or some other asset for the lender to finance your loan. Fortunately, an existing business holds inherent value, since there is already equipment, supplies and receivables to help offset the collateral requirements.
Prepare to make a down payment – No, this is a mortgage. But like a mortgage, sellers and lenders want to see that you are serious by receiving some cash up front. The amount of money you put down to buy a business will range anywhere from 10-50%, depending on how much money you have available or how much collateral the lender will accept.

When this process is all said and done, you may feel like you were just grabbed by the heels, flipped upside down and shaken for all your worth. That being said, if owning your own business or growing your business through acquisitions is something you are serious about, then this process is well worth it.

Kaulkin Ginsberg’s specialty is in outsourced business services, but we have deep roots to the DC region and we’re very familiar with ARM company transactions. Feel free to contact us at hq@kaulkin.com if you are ready to take that next step and acquire your first business.

Financing an Acquisition
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Accounts Receivable Management

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Banking Association Urges Further Scrutiny of CFPB’s Complaints Database by Federal Inspectors

January 17, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

The American Bankers Association this week sent a letter to the Federal Reserve’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) offering support for two ongoing audits of the CFPB’s complaints database and urging the OIG to expand the scope of the audits to address, among other things, the CFPB’s proposed plan to publish consumer narratives alongside complaints.

The Fed’s OIG currently has 11 ongoing audit and evaluation projects within the CFPB. Another three are in the “planned” stage. Two of those projects are focused on the CFPB’s complaints databases. Both are expected to close in the first quarter.

The OIG is auditing certain controls within the CFPB’s Public Consumer Complaint Database, the portal anyone can access and run reports against. Specifically, the audit objective is to “assess the effectiveness of the CFPB’s controls over the accuracy and completeness of the public complaint database.”

The ABA’s letter noted that this audit is very important to the financial services industry. The group wants to make sure the CFPB is not becoming “an official purveyor of unsubstantiated, and potentially false, information.” The ABA said the OIG’s audit should “examine the degree to which complaint data that are published relate to a legal or regulatory violation or a practice or failure, as opposed to a more generalized expression of consumer frustration or anger.”

ABA also wants the OIG to investigate the status of an initiative to update certain complaint categories offered to consumers. Noting that the CFPB has “long promised” this update, the group said that it would impact help not only industry, but consumers.

insideARM has noted in the past that within Debt Collection complaints, the “Sub-Product” field does not have sufficient selections. This field is used by consumers to identify what kind of debt caused the complaint. In 2014, 49.6 percent of all debt collection complaints were tagged as either “Other” or simply unclassified.

In addition to the support offered for the ongoing public complaints database audit, the ABA wants the OIG to expand the scope of the audit to include the proposed controls for the publishing of consumer narratives in the public database.

The CFPB currently provides to consumers a text box to describe what happened and consumers can attach documents to the complaint. When the Bureau forwards the complaint to the company named, the narrative text and documents (if any) are provided. But the information is not published in the public database. Last summer, the CFPB proposed adding that text field to the public complaint record.

The move was met with sharp criticism from the financial services industry, including from ARM organizations. The ABA strongly opposed the move, as it notes in the letter, as did ACA International, NARCA, and a new group formed by former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, among many others.

The ABA wants to ensure that the publication of the narratives has proper controls. The group is concerned that the CFPB’s proposal did not include measures to promote the “objectivity, reliability, and relevance of the information for consumer decisionmaking.” The ABA also wants OIG to make sure the CFPB’s staffing plan within Consumer Response is adequate to handle the additional work sure to be required to vet the consumer narratives for publication.

Banking Association Urges Further Scrutiny of CFPB’s Complaints Database by Federal Inspectors
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Accounts Receivable Management

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ConServe Announces Grand Opening of Call Center in Buffalo Area

January 17, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

Continental Service Group, Inc., d/b/a: ConServe — a leading provider of accounts receivable management and innovative recovery solutions for colleges and universities, government agencies, and private lenders — today unveiled its new, state-of-the-art communication center in Cheektowaga, N.Y. The ultramodern and innovative 25,000 square foot, 250 seat facility is located at 201 Como Park Boulevard in the Apple Tree Business Park.

Headquartered in Fairport, N.Y., ConServe first expanded to the Buffalo Niagara region in 2009 and was a project win of the Buffalo Niagara Enterprise. The company employed more than 100 people at its former location on Walden Avenue in the Town of Lancaster. ConServe officials emphasized that the company is aggressively recruiting and hiring for their new location where they anticipate doubling their current workforce, while maintaining ongoing recruiting efforts in Rochester.

This expansion to their modern, hi-tech facility is supported by the company’s consistent growth as evidenced by ConServe’s top-performing ranking with the U.S. Department of Education’s unrestricted contract and is representative of their expanding stature in their industry. ConServe President Mark Davitt noted that 2015 marks the company’s 30^th anniversary in business and that the new facility is a wonderful way to celebrate the occasion.

“We selected the Cheektowaga site for our new Communication Center due to Buffalo’s extensive pool of talented, solution-oriented professionals and a booming local economy,” said Mark Davitt, President of ConServe. “This move exemplifies our continued growth and success and we are thrilled to inaugurate our 30^th Anniversary year by introducing our new office, as it will provide the space and capabilities that will enable ConServe and its employees to help our Clients and their customers achieve their collective goals.”

The Erie County Industrial Development Agency assisted ConServe’s expansion by approving $122,500 in sales tax savings for the purchase of equipment for their expanded operating space. The average wage of the 100 new jobs that will be created will be approximately $50,000 per year, including performance incentives.

County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz said “ConServe’s expansion into a new facility spotlights their tremendous growth and also demonstrates the strengths of our local workforce. I congratulate ConServe on 30 successful years in business and, as their workforce doubles at the new Cheektowaga location, I wish them many more years of productivity.”

“When you consider even just the average payroll amount created by the addition of these 100 jobs,” said ECIDA President and CEO Steve Weathers, “you are looking at almost $5 million per year being added into the Erie County economy. This will largely be spent locally—on housing, groceries, living expenses, other taxes and recreation. If you multiply that by the two years of the sales tax abatement, I think a $122,500 tax savings is more than worth a $10 million economic influx in payroll expense,” Weathers added.

Buffalo Niagara Enterprise President & CEO Thomas A. Kucharski hailed ConServe’s expansion as a prototype for how economic development projects can increase their impact on the region. “In addition to being a leader in their industry, ConServe is also a testament to the fact that Buffalo Niagara has assets like a productive workforce and quality sites that allow for Advanced Business Services companies to grow and prosper,” said Kucharski. “Their significant growth in this new facility will have a very substantial multiplier effect on our regional economy, and I want to congratulate Mark Davitt and his team and thank them for their commitment to western New York.”

ConServe anticipates a significant demand for additional employees in the near future. They are currently hiring for problem-resolution counselors, training and development advisors, quality assurance analysts and Communication Center managers at both their new Cheektowaga location as well as their corporate headquarters in Rochester, N.Y. Please visit the Careers tab on our website for more information about joining the ConServe team: www. Conserve-arm.com.

ConServe is a leading provider of accounts receivable management and collection services specializing in customized solutions for colleges and universities, government agencies and private lenders.

ConServe has been ranked consistently as a top-performing agency by the federal government and the U.S. Department of Education. Representing less than 1% of collection agencies nationwide, ConServe has achieved the ACA International Professional Practices Management System (PPMS) certification, representing the collection industry’s standard for quality management and has completed the SSAE 16 Type II Engagement. Nationally accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) with an A+ rating, ConServe is a recipient of the Rochester Business Ethics Award, repeatedly appeared on Inc. Magazine’s 5000 fastest growing companies list, named a Rochester Top 100 company 12 times in the last 13 years, was voted a Best Place to Work in Collections for the third consecutive year in 2014 and has earned the Greater Rochester Quality Council’s 2013 Customer Excellence Award and the 2014 Operations Excellence Award.

Please visit our website at www.conserve-arm.com

ConServe Announces Grand Opening of Call Center in Buffalo Area
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Accounts Receivable Management

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Online Lenders to Pay $21 Million to Settle FTC’s Largest Payday Lending Case

January 17, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

Two payday lending companies have settled Federal Trade Commission charges that they violated the law by charging consumers undisclosed and inflated fees. Under the proposed settlement, AMG Services, Inc. and MNE Services, Inc. will pay $21 million – the largest FTC recovery in a payday lending case – and will waive another $285 million in charges that were assessed but not collected.

The defendants in this case had previously settled debt collection charges brought by the FTC.

“The settlement requires these companies to turn over millions of dollars that they took from financially-distressed consumers, and waive hundreds of millions in other charges,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection. “It should be self-evident that payday lenders may not describe their loans as having a certain cost and then turn around and charge consumers substantially more.”

The FTC filed its complaint in federal district court in Nevada against AMG and MNE Services and several other co-defendants, in April 2012, alleging that the defendants violated the FTC Act by misrepresenting to consumers how much loans would cost them. For example, the defendants’ contract stated that a $300 loan would cost $390 to repay, but the defendants then charged consumers $975 to repay the loan.

The FTC also charged the defendants with violating the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) by failing to accurately disclose the annual percentage rate and other loan terms and making preauthorized debits from consumers’ bank accounts a condition of the loans, in violation of the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA). MNE Services lent to consumers under the trade names Ameriloan, United Cash Loans, US Fast Cash, Advantage Cash Services, and Star Cash Processing. AMG serviced the loans.

In May 2014, a U.S. district court judge held that the defendants’ loan documents were deceptive and violated TILA, as the FTC had charged in its complaint.

In addition to the $21 million payment and estimated $285 million in waived charges, the settlement also contains broad prohibitions barring the defendants from misrepresenting the terms of any loan product, including the loan’s payment schedule, the total amount the consumer will owe, the interest rate, annual percentage rates or finance charges, and any other material facts. The settlement order prohibits the defendants from violating TILA and EFTA.

Online Lenders to Pay $21 Million to Settle FTC’s Largest Payday Lending Case
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Accounts Receivable Management

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New Video from TECH LOCK Certified: Sacking Malware & Threats to Your Business

January 17, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

Understanding that there is never 100% information security nor a standard or audit that is a silver bullet to eliminate risk, organizations are left with few choices to save time, money, job, customer confidence, and public image. A clear choice in this multi-regulatory industry is the holistic audit created by ARM Industry professionals: TECH LOCK^® Certified.

TECH LOCK^® Certified, dubbed the “ARM Industry Gold Standard,” is the most comprehensive data security audit performed by auditors that have worked as collectors, held top Executive positions, or worked in IT at some of the largest collection companies in North America. Having an understanding of the client’s business is key to an effective and efficient audit, this is one of the key attributes of TECH LOCK auditors, firsthand knowledge of the ARM Industry.

“Recently, a security software manufacturer stated that anti-virus is no longer effective and catches only 45% of cyber attacks,” says Todd Langusch, TECH LOCK’s president and chief executive officer. “In addition, the average time for a PC to be compromised after being connected to the Internet without full patching or protection is less than four minutes. Due to new Advanced Persistent Threats (APT), more sophisticated malware, and clients’ heightened awareness to third party risk; organizations need to take a different approach. The old “playbooks” need to be reevaluated and a new plan put in place to “sack” malware and reduce risk.”

Watch TECH LOCK’s video, “Sack Malware with TECH LOCK® Certified”:

Organizations can leverage TECH LOCK® Certified to do this and show their clients they are compliant with ALL applicable data security laws. In addition, for organizations in healthcare, TECH LOCK can certify that organization against the HITRUST Common Security Framework (CSF). HITRSUT CSF is specifically devoted to the protection of Protected Healthcare Information (PHI). With HIRTUST’s CSF, organizations can show full compliance with HIPAA as well as State laws like Texas H.B. 300

Michael Wright, TECH LOCK’s chief security officer added, “Some organizations choose our holistic audits because it saves them money and time by getting one annual assessment done instead of two or three separate audits – often a requirement because of multiple clients punting their own preferred security audit standard down the line. But the true power of TECH LOCK® Certified is not in the money saved during the audit – it’s in the reduced risk to the business by treating all consumer data according to the same strict standards. It’s not easy to accomplish, but our TECH LOCK® Certified clients have shown that they truly see data security and reducing the threat of identity theft to be important objectives. This ends up being the true touchdown. The money saved is just the extra point.”

ABOUT TECH LOCK, INC.

TECH LOCK, Inc. is a DBA International Approved Auditing Firm, Payment Card Industry Qualified Security Assessor (PCI QSA), Approved Scanning Vendor (PCI ASV), and HITRUST Common Security Framework Assessor specializing in holistic information security, compliance, and information technology solutions. TECH LOCK’s CEO is an ACA International Certified Instructor and former CIO of one of the largest debt buyers. TECH LOCK is the only auditing services company in the ARM Industry with all of these credentials, which makes TECH LOCK uniquely qualified in serving ARM companies of all sizes as it relates to data security, regulatory compliance, and IT infrastructure needs.
TECH LOCK is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). For more information, please visit www.techlockinc.com.

New Video from TECH LOCK Certified: Sacking Malware & Threats to Your Business

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Accounts Receivable Management

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Judge Rules for Debt Collector; Oral Disputes Do Not Trigger Cessation of Collection Efforts Under FDCPA

January 17, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

A district judge in Georgia last week sided with a debt collector in an FDCPA suit where the consumer plaintiff claimed violations because collection efforts continued after she orally disputed a debt and did not dispute the debt in writing for seven months. The ruling, while positive for the ARM company, further confuses the oral vs. written dispute issue.

In Hinkle v. Midland Credit Management, the defendant collection agency was attempting to collect a T-Mobile debt which its parent company, Encore Capital Group, owned. In December 2011, the collector sent a letter to the consumer seeking a resolution the account, which had an outstanding balance of approximately $300. Defendants offered to settle the account for approximately $270.

The letter contained disclosures including the current balance, amount due, original creditor, current owner and servicer, and a validation notice that stated disputes should be made in writing within 30 days of receiving the notice.

Hinkle orally disputed the debt in a call six days later. But Midland continued to call Hinkle and continued to report the debt to credit reporting agencies. The company placed five collection calls over the next seven months.

In July 2012, Hinkle sent a letter to Midland disputing the debt and informing the company that she was filing an FDCPA lawsuit. Shortly after the verbal dispute, Midland did change the CRA reporting on the account to “unpaid and disputed.”

The suit claimed that Midland violated FDCPA by not including the proper validation notice in the initial letter. Also, since she had disputed the debt, the five calls placed by the company were barred by the statute. She also included FCRA claims for continuing to report the debt.

District Judge Dudley Bowen, Jr. carefully parsed the validation notice and wrote that “The language in the letter is nearly identical to the language in the statute. Thus, there is no question that Defendants provided Plaintiff a proper validation notice. Defendants are therefore entitled to judgment as a matter of law on Plaintiff’s [§ 1692g(a)] claim.”

Turning attention to the oral vs. written dispute, Dudley found that “Plaintiff’s oral notice of dispute did not trigger a statutory obligation for Defendants to cease their collection efforts,” relying on a Texas District Court case from 2011.

The judge granted Midland’s motion for summary judgment.

The ruling is the latest in a long series of extremely contradictory rulings on oral vs. written disputes.

Early last year, the Fourth Circuit held that language in validation notices requiring disputes to be in writing, similar to what Midland provided, did in fact violate the FDCPA and that consumers should have the right to orally dispute debts. That case used as precedent a similar 2013 case in the Second Circuit, which in turn used a decision from the Ninth Circuit.

But in 1991, the Third Circuit ruled the opposite way, writing that a debtor must send a written statement to effectively dispute a debt.

Interestingly, the Georgia court does not fall into any of the above circuits (it’s in the Eleventh) similar to the Texas district case cited by Dudley (in the Fifth).

So for the time being, validation notice language requirements vary on a circuit-by-circuit basis. That is not likely to change until a Supreme Court decision, or more likely, the CFPB passes nationwide regulations mandating validation language.

Judge Rules for Debt Collector; Oral Disputes Do Not Trigger Cessation of Collection Efforts Under FDCPA
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Accounts Receivable Management

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3 Takeaways from the Super Bowl

January 17, 2015 By admin Leave a Comment

Lindsey Walters

With the Super Bowl approaching, I am gently reminded that my beloved Cowboys are now out of the picture. With that being said, I can now fully focus on the other important Super Bowl aspects – snacks and commercials! From a marketing standpoint, the Super Bowl is actually something us marketers can learn from. This year while you prepare to watch the big game, pay attention to these three takeaways:

1.) It’s not all about the football. It has been said and studied that around 50% of all Super Bowl viewers are tuning in merely for the commercials. Super Bowl ads have such a widespread following, that even older ads are still getting attention. YouTube hosts past Super Bowl commercials, each with millions of views, and there are dedicated websites to see categorized years of Super Bowl ads. The fact that people tune in to the Super Bowl for advertisements & continue to engage with them seems crazy when you think about how we typically avoid commercials any other time of the year.

We pay subscription fees and/or higher monthly cable bills just to get out of watching commercials. Things like Digital Video Recording devices, Pay Per View, Netflix, and OnDemand allow you to steer clear of those 8 to 16+ minutes of ads per show. Nevertheless, we all gather around and judge the best and worst Super Bowl commercials – oh, and watch the game.

2.) It’s the King of Creating a Buzz around an Event. An event is an event. A game is a game. However, the true X factor is the ability to get people excited beforehand and even after. The Super Bowl does just that. Even now, a few weeks out from the big game, you can turn on the TV or go to almost any grocery store and find a Super Bowl promotion. There is probably a Super Bowl display of Coke or Pepsi at your grocery store, a Super Bowl giveaway, or a Super Bowl commercial teaser (yes – a commercial for a commercial). The Super Bowl does not just occur on one day. There is build up & excitement around the event. Parties are planned, snacks are made, TVs are purchased, travel is booked, and social media outlets go crazy.

3.) It has some of the highest paid advertising slots in the US. Over 111 million people tuned into watch the Broncos and Seahawks last year. Because this game is one of the highest viewed events/programs in the US alone, there is stiff competition for advertisers. Getting in front of this massive audience comes at a price. When you search “Super Bowl Advertising” you will instantly come up with results either on the expense of ads during the Super Bowl or past super bowl commercials. Companies pay millions and millions of dollars to capitalize on the amount of people who are turning in for this game. This year, a thirty-second commercial spot will go for $4.5 million.

Advertising, no doubt, comes at a tradeoff. Companies everywhere try to get their largest target audience, but they have to be willing to pay. Once they have made their decision to purchase an advertising slot, they must then get their perfect commercial in place – no doubt, costing another pretty penny. It’s not all about the insane amounts of cash though; you have to stick out in in any form of advertising from other promotions. Your ad has to make a splash, be bold, and keep those people interested enough to take action. It takes a lot of work to prepare for this. I mean – you aren’t going to put just anything you have laying around in front of viewers, are you?

When preparing your marketing initiatives for this year, think of these three takeaways from the Super Bowl. While the Debt Industry is not the same thing as football, you should always strive to have your marketing be as big and as successful as the Super Bowl. If you are exhibiting at a conference, for example, don’t you want people to come see your booth and not just attend all the sessions? Don’t you want people talking about going to your company’s booth or what they saw/experienced while they were there? Is it worth it for your company to not only pay the price to go to the conference, but also have the best possible marketing booth, materials, and people there? You tell me.

Events happen in the debt industry all the time. Whether it is a meeting, webinar, conference, trade show, or summit, the end goal is the same: getting people to attend. Need help getting people there? Let insideARM help with your next event! We have plenty of marketing services to help promote your next event.

3 Takeaways from the Super Bowl
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