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Wrapping Up Another Season of Adopt a Family

By Sarah:

The best part of the holiday season is when you’re able to give your time and effort to a cause that helps others. One of the most fun, heartwarming and fulfilling causes that I have participated in the recent years is the Adopt-a-Family program. Being able to come together with my coworkers to help raise money and provide a Christmas for multiple families is one of the most rewarding feelings I have ever experienced. Ryan Ethan Kevin 2015-sm

The families that APR have adopted have always asked mostly for items that the children needed as far as clothes and day-to-day items with a few entertainment […]

2021-04-03T15:57:28-04:00January 10th, 2016|Categories: Team APR|

How can I tell a customer is not going to pay me?

Like it or not, as businesses, we all take on customers that are not going to pay-or they pay very late. Because of this, we are forced to make other arrangements to cover our expenses from time to time, leaving us in situations of negative cash flow. For a small business, it’s all the more troubling when this happens.

Collection agencies are often asked, how can I spot a customer that is going to pay late-or not pay me at all? There are several signs that a business can spot early on and after the time of service.

Early on, if you’re a business that checks […]

2020-11-30T16:17:33-05:00December 28th, 2015|Categories: Advice for Businesses|

Worth Believing In

In the spirit of the Xmas season that is upon us and the New Year that is right around the corner, this question is for all the professional Debt Collectors out there as we welcome in 2016. As a Debt Collector what is worth believing in? The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) believes in ‘…empowering consumers to take control over their economic lives,’ how about you?

With the advent of the CFPB our industry is finally no longer an infant and has reached toddlerhood! Yes collections has been around ever since the first line of credit was extended and the first handshake agreement that binded the obligation was broken, but just because it’s been around for […]

2021-04-03T15:56:59-04:00December 24th, 2015|Categories: Advice for Businesses, Laws|

“Fish” Food For Thought…

In preparation for my holiday vacation, I borrowed some books from Matt.  So, on Sunday, after my 16th annual Buffalo Bills-being-all-but-mathematically-eliminated-from-the-NFL playoffs viewing, I started and finished the first one.  It was “Fish! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results,” and it tells the story of how a routine, seemingly dead-end-job of a department at a bank completely changed the culture of their workplace by emulating (of all things) a fish market.

The book details how the manager of this bank’s department, desperate to change her team’s culture and reputation, studied how Seattle’s world famous Pike Place Fish Market chose to become not only a great place to work, but a great experience for […]

2020-11-01T12:57:38-05:00December 16th, 2015|Categories: Advice for Businesses|

Happy Tuesday!

By Joe W.

Today marks the tenth day before Christmas. If you’re like me, you still have a whole list of people who you need to shop for! Lucky for me, I am able buy gifts for my family and friends.

But there are some families who can’t buy gifts, even for their own children. Here at APR, we have done adopt a family for several years. I have always embraced this, and brought in gifts. This year, I was given the chance and honor to help Plymouth Goodfellows hand out the gifts to families in need.

When you drop off a toy at the charity, you don’t get to […]

2020-11-01T15:55:35-05:00December 15th, 2015|Categories: Community Outreach|

Can I collect on accounts I have already written off?

I’ll put this right up front; we are not a CPA firm and we are certainly not lawyers. We are a collection agency. But our customer service reps get a very frequent question at this time of the year. Can I still collect on accounts I’m writing off?

The short answer is yes. There is no harm in continuing collection efforts on accounts you have already written off. If you do end up getting paid on those accounts, then you’ll need to check in with your CPA or tax attorney on how you handle that on your books.

The reverse is also true; if a collection agency is already working accounts and then you decide to write […]

2020-09-27T12:49:48-04:00December 11th, 2015|Categories: Advice for Businesses|

Biz Advice- Spend Wisely During the Holidays

The last thing any business wants to do is go into unnecessary debt at any time of the year. But with the end of the year fast approaching and the holidays upon us, it can be very easy to spend more than you take in and get yourself in a bad situation. Collection agencies see this with both consumers and businesses at this time of the year.

There is a fine line when it comes to ending your year the right way and hitting January 1 with more debt than you ever thought you had. With holiday parties for your company and bonuses or employee gifts costing money, […]

2020-09-27T12:10:36-04:00December 9th, 2015|Categories: Advice for Businesses|

Look at Your Small Business Expenses for a Profitable Future

Keeping a sharp eye on your finances does not mean you are a cheap skate. There is something to be said about living within your means, especially if you are a small business just starting out and looking to maximize your money. Here are a few quick tips to save you a few bucks on your small businesses expenses.

Consider travel expenses: If you are a small business dependent on making deliveries or one that must consider other travel expenses consider a few factors. Look for more effective routes that may be less mileage or combine trips to cut down on miles traveled. Also, if possible, try not to […]

2021-01-04T08:45:42-05:00November 27th, 2015|Categories: Advice for Businesses|

What do you do with that credit report?

Once again, we are tackling the issue of the credit report. We have discussed this many times and yes, we’ll keep talking about it because it’s an important tool in your financial stability and if you’re not careful in watching this, you could be starring down the path of things you never imagined.

Working at various levels of a collection agency for over 20 plus years, I have seen many cases of individuals and businesses for that matter getting into unnecessary situations of adverse credit issues because of human error or criminal activity such as various levels of identity theft. As I have mentioned before on our blog, pulling […]

2021-04-03T15:22:10-04:00November 23rd, 2015|Categories: Advice for Businesses, Advice for Consumers|

Positive Attitude…

I’ve been talking about our three core values; integrity, work ethic and now this one, positive attitude. I like to believe that we weed this type of thing out when we bring a team member on board here. In fact, I would think unless you’re hiring for a sleep study, you’re looking for someone to represent your company that has a positive attitude. I know this collection agency does…

If you know us, you know we are always really excited about what we do here. In short, we help people. We help businesses stay in business and we help consumers resolve their debt. We also help bridge the divide […]

2021-01-04T11:42:35-05:00November 20th, 2015|Categories: Team APR|
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