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When someone moves house and leaves no forwarding address, returns (or “goneaways”) pile up fast…
For years we’ve used technology to capture and process them, but there were always limits.
Fuzzy handwriting, vague details and endless checking meant our teams were still spending too much time re-keying the same information.
The Challenge
Goneaway management is one of those unglamorous but essential processes. Without it, member records become out of date, communications miss the mark, and service standards slip.
The problem? The old system leaned too heavily on our people. Talented teams were tied up with repetitive tasks like checking, double-checking and re-entering — work that added little value when their skills could be put to far better use.
And then we were struck with an idea.
The Solution
So, we taught our systems to think a little smarter. By layering AI on top of our existing process, the returns journey has completely changed.
Now, when a return is scanned, the system interprets the details, runs confidence checks and decides what happens next. If the information is clear, it flows straight into the CRM automatically. If it’s uncertain or messy, it’s flagged neatly for Customer Services to review in seconds.
The repetitive work has been stripped out, while human judgement still sits firmly at the heart of it all.
The difference we have seen in testing has been immediate. Manual workload has dropped, accuracy has improved and even the totally illegible returns are logged to provide learning and insight.
We’ve started with magazine returns, but letters and other formats will follow. Beyond that, we see real potential to apply the same approach to bigger, trickier tasks such as show order captures, gift aid submissions and even reading and writing jobs.
This project is a great example of our approach to AI at ESco. Not hype. Not gimmicks. Just clever tools that strip away repetitive tasks, give our teams more headspace, and ultimately help us deliver better results for our clients.
