The OPA’s call centre a success

Since its launch in April 2007, the OPA’s call centre has handled thousands of calls from Ontarians on the full range of the OPA’s mass market programs. “In fact,” says Linda Filippi, the OPA’s call centre manager, “we handled more than 90,000 calls during the five-month period from June 18 to October 30, with approximately 60 percent of that volume related to the Great Refrigerator Roundup program.”

One of the most popular requests is for information on the Great Refrigerator Roundup program as Ontarians decide to put their old energy-hogging refrigerators out to pasture. During the summer and fall peak periods, the call centre was taking an average of 1,000 calls per day. Approximately 60 percent of that volume resulted in customers booking appointments to pick up refrigerators, freezers and other secondary appliances. The remaining 40 percent of the calls were related to general inquiries about the program.

The call centre also handled over 1,000 e-mails through the Chief Energy Conservation Officer’s email account by responding to information requests and questions about the OPA’s conservation programs. The nature of the e-mails is varied, and can range from a complex request that requires the input of a program manager to a simple “thank you” for a job well done or a conservation program that is making a difference.

Over the phone and by e-mail, from the Great Refrigerator Roundup program to the Every Kilowatt Counts and Hot and Cool Savings programs, the call centre is making it easier for Ontarians to get the information they need about the OPA’s conservation programs.

The call centre is managed by The FSA Group, a privately owned full-service company that has been providing direct marketing production and call centre solutions to global businesses since 1993. From 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Friday and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, the call centre has 17 customer care representatives who are trained to answer questions knowledgeably about all of the OPA’s mass market programs.

“The idea behind the one-call centre is ease of access to information,” says Linda. “Ontarians now have a one-stop resource for information on all our conservation programs. The call centre plays an important role in keeping the public engaged, increasing conservation awareness and building a culture of conservation.”

Peter Love will be presenting a Certificate of Recognition to the FSA Group on behalf of the Conservation Bureau “for providing excellent customer service during OPA’s Summer Savings, peaksaver®, Great Refrigerator Roundup, Cool Savings and Every Kilowatt Counts programs, helping participants to develop a culture of conservation in Ontario.”