The challenge

After working with a large home energy supplier for a number of years, we were invited to bid for an enhanced out-of-hours service. The existing service was an emergency line only –with any other enquiries encouraged to call back during business hours. Agents were also limited in what they could do to help, and often ended up taking messages, to be dealt with the next day.

Our client wanted to extend the service, improving customer experience by handling all calls, whatever their nature, through a scalable approach to customer service outsourcing for energy companies, opening the service up to all customers. But this kind of service can prove costly. Our idea was to take advantage of the fact that we already had a team working with the client and offer a blended services solution.

We submitted a bid and were delighted to be trusted with this crucial service, beginning in October 2023.

The solution

As we were already working with the client – managing digital enquiries (emails, etc) within business hours from our Cape Town operation – we suggested sharing resources and merging these two services and teams. That way, we had energy specialists already experienced in working with the clients’ customers, and we could also deliver back the benefits of economies of scale.

From the start, we focused on careful planning, real-time resource management, and a data-driven approach to ensure we could meet demand efficiently and flexibly. By combining a customer-first mindset with skilled specialists, we were ready to respond effectively, no matter the challenge.

We began gradually, taking 10% of the calls to start, then built up to 100% over a planned period of time. The first week at 100% of the calls was Christmas week, the most important week of the year to ensure customers get the best experience in the event of an emergency.

We’re happy to say that first week was a complete success. Since then, we’ve continued to handle all out-of-hours calls, including emergencies and general enquiries, even during the challenging winter months. We’ve kept service levels high, despite call volumes exceeding forecasts.

The Results

We currently take calls from 5pm until 9am, and throughout the weekend and bank holidays, 365 days a year.

The new enhanced out-of-hours service we now provide covers much more than the previous ‘emergencies only’. We will speak to a customer about anything they need, emergency or not. If it’s important enough to the customer to ring in those hours, we will help them.

Combining teams and sharing resources, alongside our sector expertise. data-driven approach and careful planning, we ensured efficiency, even during high-demand periods. And our performance data is testament to our commitment to always improving. Customer satisfaction has risen, repeat calls have dropped, and we’re outperforming the previous provider.