Telerx’s Partnership With Dean FoodsDeveloping A Consumer Affairs Department That Protects and Nurtures Dean’s Customer Asset

Case studyCase study

SiTuATioN:

Develop – from scratch – a centralized

consumer affairs department that:

• Adds value to Dean Foods’ brands by

enhancing consumer service and increasing

consumer satisfaction.

• Impacts Dean’s bottom line by providing

actionable data that leads to product and

process improvement.

• Functions as a full-service “internal”

department – even though it’s outsourced.

ReSulT:

The successful outsourcing of an entire consumer affairs function that:

• Fosters brand loyalty by establishing one-to-one relationships with Dean’s consumers.

• Exceeds consumers’ needs and expectations – and surpasses best-in-class service levels,

thereby increasing repurchase and maximizing Dean’s brand value.

• Creates strategic knowledge from consumer data and provides Dean with critical insights for

marketing, distribution, product development, and quality assurance.

• Operates as a Dean Foods corporate department and enables Dean’s internal resources to

focus on its core competencies – manufacturing and distributing food products.

BACkgRouND

Dean Foods is one of the leading food and beverage companies in the United States. It is

the largest processor and distributor of milk and dairy products – marketing under recognized

brands like Hershey’s, Land O’Lakes and regional dairy brands. Dean’s Specialty Foods

Group is a leading manufacturer of pickles, sauces, dips and other specialty food products.

Prior to 1995, Dean Foods had no consumer affairs program. Most products did not contain

toll-free numbers, and those that did directed consumers to individual production plants. With

decentralized consumer services, there was no brand, marketing or consumer affairs orienta-

tion. This resulted in a lack of standard service protocols as well as the absence of processes

for collecting, analyzing and benefiting from data acquired through consumer interactions.

Subsequently, Dean was planning a major market expansion through the acquisition of ad-

ditional dairies. Executives recognized that then-current consumer communication practices

within the dairy industry did not engender one-to-one consumer relationships – and failed to

support the brand identities they sought to build and leverage in the marketplace. Aware of

the potential value of customer feedback and communication, Dean made the strategic deci-

sion to centralize consumer services and include toll-free numbers on all products.

SeARChiNg FoR A CoNSumeR AFFAiRS CATegoRy leADeR

In 1995, Dean Foods began searching for a service bureau that could help launch its consumer

affairs initiative. Dean set out to find a partner that could provide:

• Vast experience and expertise in consumer affairs – particularly in the food industry.

• The depth of experience required to not only build a dedicated team of product experts, but

also lead Dean in the development of its consumer affairs policies and procedures.

• The skill to create an effective, stable team that would function as a completely outsourced

corporate department.

• Specialized technology and analytical tools that could provide actionable knowledge about

Dean’s consumers.

• Demonstrated commitment to the success and growth of client companies’ brands.

• The ability to grow Dean’s consumer affairs capabilities as the organization grows – without

the need for Dean to provide capital funding.

Dean’s search for a consumer affairs partner ultimately led to Telerx and the beginning of a

long-term, successful partnership.

Telerx, recognized as a “Top 50 Inbound Service Bureau” and a “Rising Star” by Customer

Inter@ction Solutions Magazine, helps clients succeed by protecting and maximizing the

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investments they make in brand building. Telerx carefully manages consumer interactions,

strengthens relationships and provides clients with valuable market intelligence … providing

return on investment in the marketing, product and process improvement areas. Telerx pro-

vides flexible options and advanced technology to tailor solutions that fit each client’s unique

goals, market and budget. Telerx operates through dedicated client teams of highly trained

customer service representatives that interface with customers in the media of their choice

including toll-free numbers, white-mail, email, and internet chat.

BuilDiNg DeAN’S BeST-iN-ClASS CoNSumeR AFFAiRS DePARTmeNT

Initially, the Dean consumer affairs team at Telerx fielded consumer inquiries for a handful of

Dean’s dairy brands. Over the years, though, the team’s scope of responsibility has greatly

expanded to include support of many additional dairy brands as well as products in the

company’s Specialty Foods Group. Today, the Telerx team supports more than 26 brands and

8,000 SKUs.

With an extensive and varied product line, every Dean consumer services representative un-

dergoes six to eight weeks of intense training on products, procedures, and use of the contact

information system before receiving certification to handle consumer inquiries.

Given the length of time required to train a new representative, retaining experienced repre-

sentatives is key to the success of the program. The team manager, a registered dietitian who

has been with the program since its inception, is responsible for the development and delivery

of all team training. More than 50% of the Dean team has tenure exceeding five years.

Operating under a standardized set of consumer-friendly policies and procedures is also key.

Today, those standard policies and procedures – established jointly by Telerx and Dean – exist

in an online reference manual developed and maintained by the Telerx team. In addition to

housing consumer affairs policies, the manual contains ingredient and packaging informa-

tion for all Dean dairy and specialty food products. The manual is a valuable resource for the

consumer affairs team and other Dean departments.

AN ouTSouRCeD CoRPoRATe DePARTmeNT

The Telerx team operates as a full-service Dean corporate

department. It:

• Reports directly into Dean’s corporate and manufacturing

management and interacts with them on a daily basis.

• Maintains frequent contact with individual manufacturing

plants to discuss specific product issues and provide weekly

and monthly quality assurance reports.

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• Has been empowered by Dean to resolve consumer issues and provide exceptional service.

For example, customer service representatives have complete responsibility and autonomy

for resolving consumer compensation claims and issuing payments accordingly.

• Works directly with Dean’s insurance provider to investigate and settle larger claims.

The SouRCe oF ACTioNABle kNoWleDge

Dean relies on its consumer services team to bring the voice of the consumer to corporate

departments and individual manufacturing plants. Often, the data brought forth by the team is

the catalyst for significant change to product development and marketing strategies.

All consumer interactions – regardless of the originating media – phone, white mail, e-mail and

fax – are entered into the Wilke-Thornton Consumer Response System hosted and managed

by Telerx. Coupled with Telerx’s propriety reporting tool – Consumer Insights™ –Telerx’s Dean

team is able to provide a wealth of information and strategic knowledge regarding consumer

preferences, trends, potential opportunities and quality issues.

When necessary, Telerx quickly identifies issues and brings them to the attention of the proper

parties within Dean. For example, product availability is a sensitive and critical issue. As such,

Dean’s Telerx team is trained to pick up trends from live calls and bring them to the client’s at-

tention to stimulate additional analysis and necessary action. This combination of short-term

triaging and longer-term analysis helps Dean ensure sales at all retail outlets are maximized

and brand loyal consumers are not disappointed.

The power of this level of data and the speed with which it is communicated is particularly

invaluable during product launches. When Dean launched a flavored milk product, consumers

complained the milk didn’t retain the new flavor coloring and quickly turned white. Armed with

specific data, the consumer affairs team swiftly informed the appropriate production facilities,

and immediate action was taken. The result was a rapid change in formulation that eliminated all

discoloration complaints and allowed the uninterrupted roll-out of the newly launched product.

Dean has implemented several packaging improvements as a result of data provided by the

consumer services team. In one instance, the addition of new wording on a product label

resulted in a dramatic 78% decrease in complaints for that product.

Recognized as the main touch-point between Dean’s corporate departments and its consum-

ers, Dean turned to its Telerx consumer affairs team to help with the development of content

for its new website. The consumer affairs team contributed to the FAQ section by identifying

the areas of greatest consumer interest and concern based on historical information contained

in the database. The website FAQs section has since become a proven vehicle that allows

consumers to efficiently and effectively self-serve during hours when representatives are not

available, thereby enhancing the overall customer experience.

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For more information about Telerx Marketing, Inc. please visit the company’s website at www.telerx.com or call 1-800-2-Telerx.

about telerx

Telerx, headquartered in Horsham, PA is a leading provider of customer care solutions. From its contact centers in Pennsylvania, Texas, North Carolina, British Columbia, the Philippines, and Latin America Telerx’s 2000+ associates help companies maximize their customer relationships and build brand loyalty.

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723 Dresher RoadHorsham, PA 190441.800.2TELERXwww.telerx.com

CoNCluSioN

Eight years ago, Dean Foods was keenly aware that the lack of a centralized consumer affairs

department was impeding the relationships it was seeking to establish with its consumers.

By selecting Telerx as its consumer affairs partner, Dean aligned itself with the leading industry

specialist. Telerx not only helped Dean establish a consumer affairs department, it was instru-

mental in helping Dean realize its vision of providing best-in-class service for its consumers.

Dean helped ensure the success of the partnership by empowering the Telerx team to utilize

its proven, industry-leading training and management techniques.

Through the power of the data gleaned from Telerx’s sophisticated reporting and analysis

tools, Dean has gained valuable insight, leading to documented improvement in product de-

velopment, distribution and packaging.

Acting on the knowledge the consumer affairs team brings to various levels of Dean

management:

1) Problems have been averted or minimized

2) Opportunities have been maximized, and

3) Processes have been improved.

“The economic value of these initiatives is extremely significant,” reports Dan Pierce, Dean

manager of the Telerx program, “and that’s before we take into consideration the enhancement

of brand value Telerx has brought to us by directly managing all of our consumer interactions.”

Over the years, the Dean Foods and Telerx partnership has flourished and expanded in size

and scope – thanks to one reason: This relationship has built meaningful, tangible value for

Dean by protecting and nurturing the company’s valuable consumer asset. By outsourcing

this function, Dean has had the flexibility to concentrate on its core competencies, avoiding

the capital cost of maintaining a best-in-class consumer services department.