AI is becoming widely adopted, but in delinquency management, its true power isn’t realized until it’s paired with behavioral science. Together, they create strategies that resonate, engage, and motivate repayment—unlocking outcomes you didn’t think were possible.

AI alone isn’t enough without the human touch

A growing number of collections teams are in the process of adopting horizontal AI tools, which due to their speed and scalability promise to transform segmentation and messaging. However, these capabilities fall short when it comes to addressing the emotional and psychological factors that drive repayment decisions.

For example, AI can identify a customer’s payment history and segment them into a high-risk category—but it can’t recognize the underlying stress or cognitive biases influencing their ability to repay. Without human intelligence and behavioral science to fill in these gaps, even the most data-driven strategies risk feeling impersonal and ineffective.

Behavioral science: The missing piece in debt recovery strategies

When we combine AI with behavioral science, we can build strategies that bring segmentation and messaging together seamlessly. Behavioral science provides the human understanding needed to drive positive outcomes. It offers insights into how customers think, make decisions, and respond to financial stress—factors that AI alone cannot interpret.  

Precise segmentation ensures that customers are grouped based on relevant behaviors and needs—not arbitrary demographic data—while personalized messaging translates these insights into empathetic, action-inspiring outreach. When these elements work together as part of a behavioral science-driven strategy, they overcome common barriers like stress, time pressure, and cognitive biases—ensuring outreach that builds trust and motivates repayment action.

For instance, the anchoring effect—where initial information heavily influences subsequent decisions—plays a significant role in repayment behavior. By highlighting a manageable payment amount early in communication, behavioral science can help “anchor” customers to a realistic starting point. This makes repayment feel achievable rather than overwhelming and, as a result, inspires action.  

Here’s an example email:

Subject line: Start reducing your $1,500 balance—pay $75 today.

Body:

We understand that catching up on payments can feel overwhelming. Why not take a manageable first step? Begin reducing your $1,500 balance by paying just $75 today—and avoid additional fees. Click here to make your payment.

This example leverages the anchoring effect by contrasting the larger balance with a smaller, actionable step. This shifts the past-due customer’s focus and motivates repayment.  

The next step: Turning insights into action

By integrating AI with behavioral science, we add the contextual knowledge and human intelligence needed to make collections strategies more effective. This transforms delinquency management from a transactional process into a trust-driven strategy—one that creates opportunities to engage customers meaningfully, build long-term relationships, and improve repayment outcomes.  

But what does this look like in practice? In our next blog, we’ll explore real-world examples of how AI and behavioral science work together to deliver messages that motivate action and foster lasting connections.  

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