Customer case study:

The challenge

Payzone UK is a leading consumer payments network, with 25,000 payment terminals throughout the UK. Before we got involved, it was a labour-intensive operation. Every day a Bacs report was produced detailing unpaid Direct Debits from retailers. Collectors had to work their way through the list manually, calling each retailer to resolve the issue. To complicate things further, collectors had to work from two different legacy systems to obtain the right contact numbers. There was a time pressure too – if the payment wasn't collected by 3pm, the retailer's terminal had to be disconnected. Payzone needed a more efficient way to manage the whole process.

The answer

Having carried out a detailed evaluation of Payzone's existing processes, we built a bespoke application that takes the unpaid Direct Debit information each day and automatically logs into the two legacy systems to obtain the right contact information. An SMS campaign is then automatically generated at 8-30am, with a personalised message for each client, detailing the relevant reference numbers and reason for the problem. The system updates at 1pm and 3pm, with further tailored messages sent to each client. All this without staff having to make a single phone call.

The difference

Our application has enhanced the way Payzone's collections department operates. Instead of working their way through lists of outbound calls, collectors start the day with phones ringing from retailers making payments. It means Payzone can stay in continual contact with its customers without the need to employ more collectors. Terminal disconnections have fallen and total collections revenue has increased.

The next step

Building on this success, we have introduced an inbound Interactive Voice Response (IVR) service. It means customers can call up any time to make an automated debit or credit card payment. As soon as a payment is made, an email is automatically sent to the collections department, containing instructions on whether a terminal should be removed from the disconnection list or reconnected depending on the state of their account. The system now captures over £600,000 of payments every month. Payzone has recently expanded the IVR service to enable retailers to order more stationery, SIM cards and pre-paid cards – all saving valuable staff time.