Toco Warranty - Customer Service Training or Coaching Program of the Year
Company: Toco Warranty, Los Angeles, CA
Company Description: Toco Warranty offers month-to-month breakdown protection against vehicle breakdowns. Toco’s easy, affordable, & stress-free solutions shield customers from unpredictable disruptions, protecting their assets, families, and budgets. Toco's emphasis on customer satisfaction, company culture, and community outreach create an industry-leading experience and legacy that goes beyond the point of sale.
Nomination Category: Customer Service & Call Center Awards Achievement Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Customer Service Training or Coaching Program of the Year - Business Services Industries
Nomination Title: Toco Warranty
“You owe me $3,285.” How do you want to pay for that?
This is what it sounds like to be hit with an unexpected car repair bill.
Most of us do not have that kind of money lying around. What would you do?
This is not a sales pitch, but that is a real question. COVID-19 has tightened everyone’s budget. Most of us are watching our finances, minimizing expendable income expenditures, and do not want to purchase a new vehicle (or pay the cost of fixing a used one). Toco’s business has grown 120% YOY.
Toco customers buy a VSC, Vehicle Service Contract, to avoid having to come out of pocket or being forced to buy a new car. Some just buy it for peace of mind or to plan into their budget. Many buy it to avoid getting taken advantage of by mechanics who oftentimes overcharge or prescribe un-needed repair work.
Toco’s Customer Care team supports customers who commonly need billing and claims assistance. Toco’s call center actively services tens of thousands of customers who find themselves in financial hardships due to the COVID-19 pandemic, providing peace of mind and security during uncertain times.
Training and Development:
Training and development of agents requires one thing above all, Trust. Toco understands that earning the trust of others presents opportunities to be candid yet compassionate and create an environment where we “Make Each Other Win”, Toco’s primary core value.
Toco strives to answer one question: “How do I know I am doing a good job”?
Using quantitative and qualitative metrics Toco identifies the factors that allow us to answer that question and set action plans to celebrate successes and improve any shortcomings.
2019 sparked a year of hiring, training, and continued development that the previous year did not have. Toco re-invented the QA process & scorecards and implemented weekly “Roundtable” sessions. As a result, Toco saw:
-Employee turnover decrease (lost 18 employees in 2018, 3 employees in 2019)
-Sales increase 27% YOY
-Customer Retention increase 8%
-Customer Reviews increase by 400%
-BBB Complaints reduce by 44% (39 in 2018/ 17 in 2019)
Hiring:
Toco’s employee onboarding begins in the hiring process, focusing on three aspects for new team members:
-Can they do the job?
-Will they do the job?
-Are they a culture fit?
Finding employees who fit this mold is the first step to Toco’s training and coaching process. Toco looks for candidates that have the skills to be successful, the drive to give 100% everyday, and those that portray qualities of someone we would want to sit next to everyday. Culture fit is the most important qualification Toco looks for. Skills can be taught and desire doesn’t always translate, but finding Talent and Character translates to what Chris Petersen calls an “OKG” or “Our Kinda Guy/Gal”. Toco knows that a great customer experience comes from a great employee experience. https: //www.forbes.com/sites/jasonbelzer/2013/04/04/boise-state-football-and-the-blueprint-for-organizational-greatness/#11936d746be3
Toco began hosting “Roundtable Sessions” for agents in Sales, Service, and Retention. These weekly meetings consist of groups of 4 (3 agents, 1 coach) to listen to each other’s calls, offer feedback and tips, and encourage each other to grow and provide a Toco branded experience for every customer.
Month 1: Evaluation on-call performance by the coach, noting:
-Strengths
-Weaknesses
-Tendencies
-Points of Excellence
-Difficulties
An agent profile is created by the coach and will be discussed in the first 1-on-1 meeting. A “Self-Evaluation” is sent to the agent so that they can assess their own performance.
Month 2: Agent 1 on 1s
-Align with agents on pre-program abilities
-Identify areas of growth
-Set monthly goals
-Weekly call monitoring and mutual scoring
-Discuss alignment after each call
-Set specific, quantifiable weekly improvement Goals
Month 3: Small Groups
-Groups of 3-agents and a moderator listen to and discuss a call
-Set team improvement goals
Month 4+: On-going development and team rotation (every 3-months or as needed)
-Continued group collaboration
-Monthly focused areas of growth
Agent Feedback:
“Through listening to calls and teaching techniques, it has helped me to qualify customers more consistently and have a better understanding of WHY we are qualifying each customer the way we do” Doane K. (Sales)
“I like listening to my calls so I can improve my skills and not get too comfortable in my habits. It’s nice to look a the good and the bad. You can make a change on the next call for the better and see results instantly” Max M. (Customer Care)
“It was hard at first, listening to your calls in front of other people and getting criticism. I’ve been doing this longer than most of them, and it’s hard to get notes. But what we are building as a brand requires every call to be the best, it is ultimately for the best.” Nate S.
Safe Space:
With the right people on board, the next step is to make sure that leaders have permission to lead and agents are open to improving. Toco begins each meeting with a “Safe Space” caveat. This is intended to create a place that is not based on judgements, rather much like a coach and an athlete, we are looking to improve our game without punishment.
The safe space depends on four consistencies:
-Identify the goal that we are trying to accomplish
-Identify how it directly affects the agent (what’s in it for them)
-Reiterates that this is a place to be open and candid, knowing that some of the information may not be easily digested
-That everyone leaves knowing with an understanding of what was discussed and what actions need to be taken moving forward.
When Toco brings on new employees, they go through the same process so that they have experienced 1 on 1s prior to joining a group. Upon joining a new group, we ask them to wait 2 weeks before commenting on other agents so that the “new kid on the block” isn’t criticizing a veteran, reducing the potential for ill-feelings.
Briefly describe the nominated organization: its history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Growth:
Toco grew employee count 48% over the year, creating and implementing digital training for remote workers. Beyond initial onboarding training, Toco’s continued employee development programs lead to increased sales, improved customer retention, and a longer customer lifetime value. Toco created projects involving every employee (Sales, Service, Retention) to meet in weekly roundtables, listening to each other’s calls and analyzing performance, offering constructive criticism in a safe-space designed around our main core value: “Make each other win” and “Do right by your Customer, Colleagues, Company, and Community”.
Outline the nominated achievement since July 1 2019 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Toco feels great pride in the success of our employees and our customers based upon the new hiring strategy, agent onboarding training, and continued development programs such as the Roundtable initiative.
Customer Experience:
Toco maintains the highest overall BBB rating in our space with an A+ accredited rating and 4.75% favorable reviews (Carshield “F”, E ndurance “C+, Protect My Car “NR”).
https: //www.bbb.org/us/ca/west-hills/profile/auto-warranty-services/toco-warranty-corp-1216-1015707
https: //www.bbb.org/us/mo/saint-peters/profile/auto-service-contract-companies/carshield-0734-310030296">
https: //www.bbb.org/us/il/northbrook/profile/auto-warranty-plans/endurance-warranty-services-llc-0654-88077689">
https: //www.bbb.org/us/fl/saint-petersburg/profile/auto-service-contract-companies/protect-my-car-0653-90067737
In 2019, Toco joined Trustpilot (4.6- Stars) this year and Consumer Affairs (5-Stars) as an accredited partner, sending out review requests to customers and receiving an outstanding response. Toco responds to every review, positive or negative, and seeks out resolutions to customers with complications in their situation.
https: //www.trustpilot.com/review/tocowarranty.com
https: //www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/toco-warranty.html
“I have the most amazing experience calling talking to my Toco Warranty customer service agent. Miss Shannon is such an amazing asset to this company. She's very descriptive and everything and anything that you need to know she's knowledgeable about all products and make you feel at ease to what you're doing is the right thing. This should be more customer service agent such as she. Thank you so much Miss Shannon.” Thomas V of Las Vegas
Explain why the achievement you have highlighted is unique or significant. If possible compare the achievement to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
Achievements:
Business Metrics
-Sales increased by 120% in 2019
-Past Due Rate under 10%
-Customer Retention Rate over 48% (for customer cancellation requests), a +13% growth YOY
-38% Customer Re-enrollment rate on expired contracts
-All agents currently performing 90 or higher in individual metrics (QA Scorecard attached)
Reviews
-Highest Rated provider in the VSC Marketspace (Competitor Comparison attached)
-Toco BBB: A+ Rating, Accredited, 4.5 Stars, 103 Customer Reviews: https: //www.bbb.org/us/ca/west-hills/profile/auto-warranty-services/toco-warranty-corp-1216-1015707
Toco Trustpilot: 4.5 Stars, over 300 Customer Reviews : https: //www.trustpilot.com/review/tocowarranty.com">
Toco Consumer Affairs: 5-stars: https: //www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/toco-warranty.html">
Exceeds all global call center metrics
-Under 20 second hold time
-3% ABN rate (1000 weekly incoming calls)
-97% One-Call Resolution rate