Case Study: Grocery and Pharmacy Chain

Helping a Vaccine Partner Answer the Call
After a year of uncertainty—one that forced businesses to adopt new protocols at a moment’s notice—a supermarket and pharmacy chain received some good news: The family-owned company was notified it would be a COVID-19 vaccine provider as soon as the vaccines were available. With stores stretching across multiple states, the supermarket chain was in a unique position to help bring the country closer to a post-COVID world.

The Challenge
Knowing demand for the vaccine was at an all-time high, the chain proactively assessed its calling capabilities. Its current setup relied on SIP Trunking services from Frontier, as well as a toll-free number that drove to a call center where people heard an announcement giving them the option to transfer directly to an agent. Although this configuration had worked in the past, the team knew it would be overwhelmed with calls for the next 12-18 months. If they didn’t act now, call traffic would eat through the trunk groups that supported the toll-free number, rendering it useless.

“Anyone in customer service will tell you that a smooth call experience is essential,” said Jack Hansen, Vice President of Engineering at Frontier. “And with the added stress of COVID-19, that smooth experience doubles in importance. Vaccines are on everyone’s mind, so it’s up to us to get them the answers they need.”

The Solution
Jack went to work right away. Having supported the supermarket chain in launching its Ethernet Internet, LAN and Private Line, he was in a unique position to anticipate the company’s needs. Within 72 hours, he and his team helped distribute call traffic across multiple carriers to alleviate the potential pressure on its existing carrier trunk group.

The Outcome
The chain’s SIP capacity has officially doubled from 1,000 to 2,000 trunks. To support this expansion, Frontier proactively increased Ethernet access across two datacenters. With the trunk lines in place, the supermarket chain added 200 call center representatives, doubling its team to support an anticipated incoming call volume of 1,000 calls per day. Widespread vaccinations may still have been some way off, but the family-owned business knew it was ready.

Doing different together
“As vaccines steadily become available, we want those offering it to know that their phone lines and call centers are able to handle the traffic,” Jack said. “We’re all about partnerships at Frontier and we want to support our customers in the same way they support theirs.”