The Project - Automated Membership System

The Client: Living Ventures

Living Ventures Ltd operates 17 restaurants under the Gusto and Blackhouse brands, and several other exciting businesses such as Australasia, the Alchemist and the Oast House. The company is reputed to be one of the best restaurant operators in the UK.

The Brief

When Living Ventures wanted to launch a new membership card system they talked to PowerText, as we already handled their database and email broadcasts, about building a bespoke system to manage the process.

An old in-house system was labour intensive and required many hours of work per week to process requests. Emails were sent manually confirming that membership cards had been dispatched, further checking, balancing and reporting on the number of members etc was exceptionally cumbersome and time consuming.

The Approach

PowerText specified a system that automated the whole membership process. Firstly we redesigned the customer application forms, then automated the broadcast of staged emails; one when their card was ready to despatch, another to let them know it was in transit. At the back end, the system delivered a file at regular intervals to the mailing house, who sent the cards as required.

The Results

Thousands of new members, increased membership bookings and hours of staff time saved every week. New members were kept informed as to the progress of their application, including a likely delivery date of their card.

Testimonial

'We have been working with PowerText since October 2010, they helped us pull together our databases, so that for the first time we had complete control over our data streams. Having email marketing expertise on hand to give guidance has enhanced our campaigns, driving up open rates and interactions while providing reporting to help us prove ROI. In October they developed our membership system, saving us time and ensuring that the customers receive an excellent marketing experience. I would have no hesitation in recommending PowerText to your business.'

Jeremy Roberts - Commercial Director