Investment in technology improves customer service at Plumbcare

New call centre technology now in place

As a reactive plumbing and heating company, being able to contact us in an emergency is paramount. While many end users contact us via their insurer originally, they still need to be able to get in touch for updates (for example, where jobs require parts or revisits) and our insurer clients also need to be able to speak to us on the phone in a timely manner.

We have been experiencing some issues with our phone system for a little while now and this has been a major source of frustration for our staff, for customers, and for our insurer clients. We recognised several months ago that it wasn’t fit for purpose and have been planning an appropriate replacement for a while. However, the covid-19 pandemic disrupted our plans while we focused on creating safe working protocols for staff and customers.

Finally, after several months, we are pleased to report that all the hard work planning the new system has paid off and state-of-the-art call centre technology is now in place. This is a major investment in our systems but, being such a core part of our offering, one that was very important to implement.

How the new system is improving our service

The new system is helping us in the following areas:

• Call volume stats give us live information on how many calls are waiting and how long they have been waiting
• Operator reporting lets us know how many are engaged on calls and how many are available. We can easily move resources from non-urgent tasks to live calls to help us reduce waiting times during busy periods. This includes those who are working from home.
• ‘Soft phones’ enable seamless home working as we continue to work to covid-safe practices with staff divided into team bubbles. Callers would not be able to distinguish between an operator working in the office from one working at home
• We report on missed calls several times a day and all are returned to ensure that all callers are able to speak to us within the same day. Missed calls can happen for a number of reasons and now account for less than 10% of all incoming calls
• We have a separate call group for engineers, allowing us to prioritise customer calls and prevent the system becoming overloaded

How has the service improved for customers?

Most importantly, call waiting times have been vastly reduced. We’re also providing more information to those waiting, with the system advising on position in queue and estimated waiting time. This enables customers to make an informed decision on whether to continue to hold during busy times or try later (one of the common reasons for missed calls).

In short, the new system has created huge improvements in efficiency, accuracy, and service levels. Our staff have been amazing, getting to grips with the system really quickly and making implementation a smooth process. We have introduced an Employee of the Month scheme for our call centre staff, based in part on performance indicators from the system. This will allow us to recognise and reward staff for their hard work and dedication.

Ultimately, of course, better service for end users means better service for our insurer clients and that is something that we continuously strive for.