It is 18 months since Carpetright started arming its estimator field support team with iPads and giving head office and store staff access to a new centralised booking system, and the benefits are already being seen by senior management.
Speaking at RBTE on 9 March, Steve Johnson, head of central operations at the flooring retailer, said that a new centralised digital platform for booking estimator home visits is helping optimise sales, boost organisational efficiency and improve the customer experience. He described the latter as top of the company's agenda, at present.
Over the last two years all 460 Carpetright stores across the UK and Ireland have undergone a revamp, which includes the introduction of new hardware and upgrades on systems and performance measures. The new internal online booking service utilises tech company Kirona's range of field service solutions.
"That puts us in a much better place now," noted Johnson, who said it had been approximately eight years since the retailer had undergone significant tech investment, describing the previous situation as "a bit of a challenge" for the business.
Carpetright's decision to replace paper diary booking with Kirona's software suite is part of a wider customer-focused strategy developed under CEO Wilf Walsh, who took over the reins of the business in the summer of 2014 and has led a turnaround in profit and sales. The retailer uses Kirona's tools to centralise estimator bookings, send field workers relevant information about their home appointments and allow estimators to input details about their individual customer visits.
Kirona's Infosuite package is also used by head office to gather and monitor data, such as appointments made and kept, aborted and completed jobs, and the general performance of its estimators.
Showing RBTE delegates a slide that detailed examples of the company's previous estimator tracking process, which often involved scribbled notes on paper in view of store customers, Johnson quipped: "I feel as if I'm baring my soul here. The more I look at where we came from, the more I break into a colder sweat."
Reported benefits and direct actions since implementing the new technology include a 70% reduction in aborted visits, primarily due to the integrated text message reminder service for customers, and a 30% increase in rooms being measured without a significant hike in travel expenses.
There has also been a 13% headcount reduction at Carpetright over the last year, partly as a result of the business having a better understanding of how its field workers are utilised.
"The icing on the cake is the customer gets confirmation of the appointment straight away," Johnson remarked.
"We have seen enhanced customer service experience. Our customers receive a text confirmation, a reminder and they are able to book a one-hour slot. It's not am or pm or when we dictate it; they book an appointment slot that is suitable to them."
Johnson described the positive reaction of staff to the new system as the most refreshing consequence of changing the internal processes, but the key business benefit he identified was a 34% increase in estimated sales.
"We had been running a paper diary for 25 years and all of a sudden we stuck a tablet under the estimator's nose, we put an online diary booking system in the stores and we said to them 'that is the way of the world, take away your paper diary – that's how you manage it now'," he explained.
"I honestly thought we'd come up with a real big challenge, but luckily I was very disappointed from that perspective because the guys and the girls in the stores and the operational field team really embraced it. It was fantastic."
Johnson said the retailer is putting customer and staff feedback at the heart of its future strategy, and this could result in a number of internal and external changes to the business in the coming months.
The company is piloting a self-service customer booking system online, while Johnson and his team are looking at ways they can smooth out and centralise the appointment booking process for insurance policyholders.
He added: "Internally we're in discussions as to how we could manage an online fitting diary and we're looking to take some further analytical software from Kirona which will support and enhance the review of the workforce going forward."
Click below for more information: