To set up Collections Manager to generate dunning letters, you must run Email Data Manager (DM) and load your dunning letter templates.

You can customize dunning letter data before it is stored in the BRM database. For example, you can enrich the standard data with additional information, such as the date on which the account will be inactivated. To do so, customize the PCM_OP_COLLECTIONS_POL_PREP_DUNNING_DATA opcode. See BRM Opcode Guide.

PCM_OP_COLLECTIONS_POL_PREP_DUNNING_DATA enables customization of dunning letter data before it is stored in the database. You can modify the type of data gathered by customizing the opcode. For example, you can enrich the standard data with additional information, such as the date on which the account will be inactivated.

You load dunning letter templates by using the pin_load_template utility. These dunning letter templates are used in Collections Configuration to set the dunning letters action and the invoice reminders action.

Dunning letter templates are XSL documents that provide the basic content of the letter, leaving placeholders for specific information such as the customer's name, overdue balance, and so on. You can design and load multiple dunning letter templates for different scenarios and situations.

Collections Manager includes two sample dunning letter templates: dunning_first.xsl and dunning_last.xsl. Both templates are stored in BRM_home/sys/data/config/stylesheets. You can use a third-party XSL editor to modify these templates or to create your own templates.

After creating your template, load it into the BRM database by using the pin_load_template utility. Templates are available in Collections Configuration immediately after you load them. See "Defining Collections Actions".

To load a dunning letter template:

1. Go to a directory that contains a valid configuration (pin.conf) file.

   Note:

   A configuration file is installed automatically in BRM_home/sys/data/config.

   The pin_load_template utility uses information in the configuration file to connect to the BRM database. See "Connecting BRM Utilities" in BRM System Administrator's Guide.

2. Load the XSL template by entering the following command:

   pin_load_template -brand brand_POID - name template_name -type dunning -locale locale_name -template file_name -usexsl 
   

   where:

   • brand_POID is the Portal object ID (POID) of the root account.

   • template_name is the name of the template as it should appear in Collections Configuration.

   • locale_name is the BRM locale of the template. See "Locale Names" in BRM Developer's Guide.

   • file_name is the name and full path of the template file.

For example, the following command loads the dunning_first.xsl template for the root account:

pin_load_template -brand "0.0.0.1/account 1" -type dunning -locale en_US -template BRM_home/config/dunning_first.xsl -name DunningTemplate -usexsl 

You specify how to deliver dunning letters to non-invoice bill units by using the pin_collections configuration file (BRM_home/apps/pin_collections/pin.conf).

For non-invoice bill units, you can set the following delivery options:

• Whether to deliver the dunning letter as hardcopy or by email.

• For email delivery, whether to send the dunning letter as part of the message body or as an attachment.

• For dunning letters sent as email attachments, the file path to use for providing customized content in the email body.

By default, dunning letters are printed and sent as hardcopy.

To set the delivery option for dunning letters to email:

1. Go to BRM_home/sys/data/config.
2. Use the following command to create an editable XML file from the Collections instance of the /config/business_params object:

   pin_bus_params -r BusParamsCollections bus_params_collections.xml

   This command creates an XML file named bus_params_collections.xml.out in your current directory. If you do not want this file in your current directory, specify the path as part of the file name.

3. In bus_params_collections.xml.out, set DeliveryPreference to email:

   <DeliveryPreference>email</DeliveryPreference>

   Caution:

   BRM uses the XML in this file to overwrite the existing instance of the /config/business_params object. Use care when updating parameters in the file.
4. Save and exit the file.
5. Rename the bus_params_collections.xml.out file to bus_params_collections.xml.
6. Use the following command to load your changes into the /config/business_params object:

   pin_bus_params bus_params_collections.xml

   You should run this command from the BRM_home/sys/data/config directory, which includes support files used by the utility. To run it from a different directory, see "pin_bus_params" in BRM Developer's Guide.

7. Read the object with the testnap utility or the Object Browser to verify that all fields are correct.

   For general instructions on using testnap, see "Using the testnap Utility to Test BRM" in BRM Developer's Guide. For information on how to use Object Browser, see "Reading Objects" in BRM Developer's Guide.

8. Stop and restart the Connection Manager (CM).

   For more information, see "Starting and Stopping the BRM System" in BRM System Administrator's Guide.

By default, dunning letters are delivered in the body of the email.

To set the email delivery preference for dunning letters:

1. Open the BRM_home/apps/pin_collections/pin.conf file in a text editor.

2. Change the value of the email_option entry:

   • To deliver dunning letters as email attachments, enter 1.

   • To deliver dunning letters in the email body, enter 0. This is the default.

     For example:

     - pin_collections_send_dunning email_option 0
     

3. Save and close the file.

When you send dunning letters as email attachments, you can include customized information in the email body. You specify the path to a text file for the content of the message.

To specify the path to the message content:

1. Open the BRM_home/apps/pin_collections/pin.conf file in a text editor.

2. Set the path in the email_body entry:

   - pin_collections_send_dunning email_body Path
   

   For example, the following entry specifies the path to the letter file:

   - pin_collections_send_dunning email_body ./letter

   Note:

   This option takes effect only if email_option is set to 1.

3. Save and close the file.