BELLS A RINGIN' ON BUSIEST DAY FOR OPTUS CALL CENTRES

Customers DIY with self-serve on Christmas Day

With nine days left ‘til Christmas, today is expected to be the busiest day of the year across Optus call centres as gift givers ready their pressies and holidaymakers sort out their bills before they go away.

Optus is preparing for over 75,000 calls in the next 24 hours, as last minute Christmas shoppers prep presents in time for Santa’s sleigh. Call volumes will remain high throughout the week, with a predicted 31% increase compared to a normal week.

We’re here to chat
In comparison, Christmas Day is predicted to see the lowest call rate since 2000 as customers head online to DIY. The peak time on the big day is expected to be 11am after gifts are unwrapped and eager beavers get their new phones working. 90% of calls will likely be mobile activations and set up, compared to the usual queries on bill payments and general tech support.

Customers take the reins
On Christmas Day, Optus is expecting 64% of customers to jump online to activate their new mobile phones, a 24% increase compared to five years ago. For those that do head online but still have some questions, Optus will have web chat support available for the first time ever on the 25th.

Gus Cerezo, Vice President of Operations, Optus, said, “Gifting mobile tech presents without a SIM or recharge is like giving a child a toy without batteries. It’s important that gift givers plan in advance to make Christmas Day fuss and drama free.

“Christmas Eve and Boxing Day are also busy for Optus’ call centres, so we’ve got extra people ready for the influx of calls and web chats to make sure we provide the best experience possible for our customers.”

Spend less time setting up and more time eating turkey:

• Have your account info ready when you ring – that’s your account number, the service you’re on and the phone number that’s on the account.
• Have your bill in front of you so you can see the numbers in black and white.
• If you’re calling tech support, have the product in front of you. It’s much easier to talk about if you can see the flashing lights or the shiny buttons.
• We want to answer your call as soon as possible, so to avoid calling outside our peak times of 8-10am and 4-6pm.
• Online is always open! Activate your fancy new phone online at http://www.optus.com.au.

We’re here for you over the holiday period:

• Web chat will be live from 5.30am to 5.30pm AEST on Christmas Day at http://www.optus.com.au
• Give us a ring on 133 937. Tech support and prepaid are open 24/7, general enquiries and bill payments will be open during business hours or you can speak to our virtual agent here: https://optus.intelliresponse.com/.
• Social media response and all ‘yes’ Optus stores will be closed on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
• Keep track of the essentials including downloading and paying bills, monitoring usage and recharging on My Account or My Optus App.

Media contact:
Claire Wong
Optus Corporate Affairs
(02) 8082 7850