The new communications system from Oxygen8 replaces Accrington Stanley’s original localised telephone number from BT. As part of the club’s recent new ownership and corporate re-brand, the 08 number will help Accrington Stanley to achieve a more professional image, reflecting that of other well-known football clubs throughout the football league.
Dan Warburton, Commercial Manager, Accrington Stanley Football Club, explains, “One of the key reasons for switching to an 08 telephone number was the profile opportunities that this will bring to the club. Having a non-geographical telephone number will really help us to promote the club as a professional business within the football industry. This is the first time that Accrington Stanley has embarked upon a project like this, and whilst we are often perceived as being a relatively small club, we do receive a high volume of calls and enquiries – which the new telephone system will help us to handle more efficiently.”
Warburton continues, “We decided to partner with Oxygen8 Communications as they have a fantastic reputation within the football industry for providing this type of service. Having spoken to a number of other football clubs and businesses who have worked with Oxygen8, we were very impressed with the high quality of service and delivery that was provided, and so it made logical sense for us to partner with a supplier that we knew we could trust.”
A key way in which the new 08 number will benefit Accrington Stanley is in the club’s ability to direct calls to the correct departments quickly and effectively. Warburton adds, “As an historic football club, we receive enquiries about all sorts of topics from fans and supporters both nationally and internationally. We have already begun to see the huge benefits that the new telephone system is bringing to the club, particularly when handling ticket purchases. A great example was when we played Fulham in the fourth round of the FA Cup. We were inundated with calls from fans wanting to buy tickets for the biggest game in Accrington Stanley’s recent history, and the new system really helped us to deal with the extra demand.”
Warburton concludes, “The relationship that we have with Oxygen8 is fantastic. We don’t have any technical in-house staff that could manage the implementation, so having Oxygen8 handle the whole process was very reassuring. The Oxygen8 team has been very helpful and should we ever come up against any problems, I know that our account manager is always at the end of the phone.”