Multi-ChannelCustomer Contact:

Channels, Choice and ChangeGlasgow PSCSF Oct 2013

Gerald Power

www.trapeze-transformation.com

Todays SessionThe aims of this presentation are to:

• Stimulate some critical thinking on what you have heard today

• Show the value of a benefits based approach and use of evidence and insight to mitigate risk

• Emphasise how important it is to take a holistic approach to channel use and channel shift

Who have we worked with?

We have worked across a wide range organisations:

• Cabinet Office, Ministers and Direct.gov

• Local Government

• Jobcentre Plus

• Third Sector and Industry

• DWP, HMRC, DoT, DH, CLG and others

Message 1: It’s the dog that wags the tail – services determine

channels

Fashions ChangeIn Vogue

• Web-chat• Social Media• SMS• Apps & Phones• Multi-Channel

Out of Fashion• Face to Face• The Call Centre• Paper• E-mail• Posters and leaflets

Example 1: Reducing Face to Face

This was a Borough Council in England:

• Very successful award-winning F2F proposition

• Relatively affluent community

• But, rising contact costs and falling utilisation

How to cut the cost without compromising the actual or perceived quality of service

Why were people are visiting face to face?

11.80

20.31

33.23

34.66

% Visits by Purpose

Contact for other Agencies including RavenHousing Options, Housing Register & Council taxBenefits (Housing and C Tax)General Enquiries and other purposes

UK Borough Council 2012 Data

Did the Residents Want or Need Face to Face?

Group E Middle income families in moderate suburban semis

10,886 19%

Group C Wealthy people living in the most sought-after neighbourhoods

7,858 13.7%

Group F Couples with young children in comfortable modern housing

7,546 13.2%

Group D Successful professionals in suburban/semi-rural homes

7,396 12.9%

Group H Couples & young singles in small modern starter homes

5,874 10.3%

In this LA 70% of the population was web ‘savvy’ and didn’t want or need Face to Face for most services

But, there was a need to check where the 30% of residents that have higher desire/need for Face to Face were living

All relatively easy with MOSAIC

Face to Face was in the right place, but there was massive over-provision

Outcomes & Enablers• New ‘high value’ help desk proposition• Approx. £200K p.a. savings on-going by year 2

through giving up leases and reducing manpower• Customers happy and Ward Councillors happy

Key Enablers• Communicating a clear and positive proposition• Actively managing out low and no value contact and

adding value to what remains• Working across teams

Message 2: You must understand where

the savings and improvements are coming

from

Customer insight, process mapping and customer

journey mapping

If you don’t know what's linking the changes to the benefits there many be no gold at the end of the digital

rainbow

Example 2: Online FormsThis was a Borough Council in England:

• Had paper based Housing Benefits forms

• Face to Face personnel heavily involved in new Housing Benefits applications

• Sporadic problems with back-logs and processing times.

How to improve the service and make savings using online forms?

Making a Housing Benefit application ‘old’

I would like to make a claim

DWP/Pension Service

In person at the Council

Complete paper form & post it or hand it in

Get paper form from web

Phone ask for paper form

Gov-Techprocesses form

Claim uploaded on Northgate automatically

Normally sent electronically

Making the Housing Benefit application ‘new’

DWP/Pension Service

Phone application

Complete paper form & post it or hand it in

Online formUse paper form

Gov-Techprocesses form

Claim uploaded on NorthgatePhase out paper and

phone is not elective

Making the Housing Benefit application ‘to be’ assisted

DWP/Pension Service

Phone application

Complete paper form & post it or hand it in

Online formUse paper form

Gov-Techprocesses form

Claim uploaded on NorthgateAim to phase

out paper

The Assisted service will operate either via the phone or web using an ‘advocate’ type service

But, where’s the saving?

Where does investing in digital save you manpower effort and premises

costs?

Processing the Housing Benefit application - ‘old process’

Assess the claim on

Northgate

Create case on Civica

Identify requirement for extra evidence

Contact applicant

Process extra evidence

Receive extra evidence

Make Decision

Decision accepted

Decision appealed

Evidence gathering was the main source of delay and driver of customer and personnel effort. Both the CS and Benefits teams expend effort in contact with the customer to gather the required evidence by phone & letter.

Checking the application - ‘new’

Assess the claim & make decision at

Interview

Create case on Civica

Identify requirement for extra evidence

Notify applicant of evidence

required

Decision accepted

Decision appealed

Agree date for F2F interview

Initial check by benefits team identifies the evidence needed and this gets communicated to customer by letter, e-mail and text prior to the interview.

At the interview the benefits assessor can make a judgement and issue a decision letter.

Outcomes & Enablers

• Major improvement in processing time• Customers happy and 80% + online applications• Councillors happy personnel happy• Cashable savings in F2F, potential back office savings

Key Enablers• Deep understanding of the processes• Good metrics and monitoring• Clear and targeted communications [internal & external]• Courage to close channels

Message 3: Insight, communication and behaviour change

Understanding behaviour, understanding your personnel and customers and delivering change

Build it and they will come…. if you did your homework

For every Amazon and Facebook there are many forgotten online failures

Success requires a very good understanding of your customers, your services and the technology

• Its a household name and most of us have used it• Its had a volatile and very high profile history• It was part of the .com bubble that burst

Key Lessons from lastminute.com

• Marketing can win the new channel customers• But, e-business still have back office costs • Sometimes its your behaviour that needs to change

Customer Insight

Example 3: Getting Customers Online

This was a consortium of partners in England:

• Multiple partners interested in getting service users online

• Big commitment for ‘self service’

• Channel shift needs to happen against a backdrop of service cuts

How do you get the customers to shift?

Outcomes & Enablers

• More than 70% self service was going to be hard• But, we could communicate directly with more than 50%

of service users via three thematic groups• Coaching, communication and working through key

partners was going to be critical

Key Enablers• Understanding who is capable of self service• Understanding what's possible/credible• Marketing behaviour change at specific groups• Choosing the right partners based on location and reach

High Above Average

Average Below Average

Low0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

Service A Service BArea Polulation

Digital channel usage from mosaic: Service users and general population

Did Residents Use Digital Now?

Self-service propensity from mosaic: service users and general population

Can Residents Self-Serve?

Very High

High Average Low Very Low

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

Service A -Ability to self-serveService B - Ability to self-serveArea Polulation

Singles and transient singles

G32 Students and other transient singles in multi-let houses SMS text marketing (High) Cinema marketing (High) Face to face marketing

(Average)

G33 Transient singles, poorly supported by family and neighbours

I43 Older town centres terraces with transient, single populations

Families in need

I44 Low income families occupying poor quality older terraces Radio marketing (High) Local newspaper marketing

(Above average) Face to face marketing

(Average) SMS text marketing (Average)

K51 Often indebted families living in low rise estates

O69 Vulnerable young parents needing substantial state support

K50Older families in low value housing in traditional industrial areas

Low income couples

N61Childless tenants in social housing flats with modest social needs Face to face marketing (High)

Local newspaper marketing (High/Above average)

Radio marketing (Above average)

O67Older tenants on low rise social housing estates where jobs are scarce

K49Low income older couples long established in former council estates

How to Communicate?

These represent more than 50% of service users

Mosaic type O69-vulnerable young parents

Where to Communicate?

Message 4: Partnerships and enlightened self

interest is the future

HousingBenefit

SocialServices

EmergencyHousing

HousingProvision

Education

StateBenefits

SocialLandlords

LocalAuthorities

DWP

Phone/internet

TV/Sport/FilmsIndustry

Health

Your service users are also somebody else's service users

Mutual BenefitsOrganisations are increasingly recognising that:

• There is mutual benefit in looking beyond their organisations remit

• No single organisation has the reach or resources to change the behaviour of this client group

• Bring together the right partners and you probably do have the ability to get these people self-serving

Todays Session

• Critical thinking – Challenge channel solutions you are presented with, the good options will survive it never assume a channel is ‘cheap’

• Evidence and insight – These are vital in creating a robust benefits based business case and implementation plan

• Holistic approach – You must think about the end to end journey and end to end process, plus the bigger context of your service

Change often involves a leap of faith

But, it shouldn’t be a leap in the darkGerald Power

There are more resources available at our websitewww.trapeze-transformation.com