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Case Study: Which?
We now have real-time online call statistics which enables us to manage call spikes and plan resources more effectively. This has resulted in an increase in answered calls from 65% to 99% and a better customer experience.
Background
The organisation campaigns to get a fairer deal for consumers and publishes unbiased information and reviews to help consumers make
purchasing decisions. Which? runs up to five call centres and employs over 500 staff, resolving approximately one million consumer problems each year.
The Challenge
Which? had set up a freephone service some years previously, but the system was no longer able to cope with the volume of traffic the organisation was dealing with and the rates were no longer competitive.
Additionally, Which? had run a series of television adverts promoting free guides. Each advert featured a dedicated phone number viewers could ring to order the guide, with the ultimate aim of converting these enquiries into paid-for memberships.
However, the Which? call centre would receive huge spikes in incoming queries immediately after the advert aired, putting the call centre under enormous pressure. This would then be followed by dead periods until the advert aired again.
The Solution
IP Solutions provided Which? with Call Care web statistics and Queue Manager solutions, enabling the organisation to take advantage of the increased functionality of an advanced IVR platform with no additional capital expenditure or infrastructure.
After analysing appropriate call packages, IP Solutions provided a tailored solution involving a series of inbound 0800 numbers, enabling Which? to log and track calls. With the additional ability to monitor real time call queues via an online portal, Which? has far greater control over its inbound call delivery, allowing staff to transfer calls instantly if one of the call centres reaches full capacity.
To manage the mass increase in activity spurred by the television adverts, IP Solutions then advised Which? to include an SMS number as well as a phone number, thereby easing pressure on the call centre without losing out on enquiries.
The aim was to allow staff to address the telephone enquiries first and call back text enquiries during the traditional ‘dead’ periods, making productivity more balanced and consistent.
Results
Which? has seen annual savings of around 30% – totalling £300,000 per year – with the new system, and the user experience has improved significantly. With the new network-based call queuing system, Which? can answer more calls and can capture up to 1,500 consumer messages daily via the sophisticated call capture solution.
The new SMS number has led to an impressive 25% increase in enquiries from the adverts, achieving a speedy return on investment without increasing marketing spend. In fact, text leads turned out to be easier to convert to memberships, making them more profitable in the long term.
