Leading independent holiday cottage rental agency

Client overview

One of the UK’s leading independent holiday cottage rental agencies, this client represents 22,500 holiday homes across the UK, Ireland, and New Zealand – ranging from cosy cottages for two to larger properties accommodating 20 or more.

Client challenge

With aspirations to become the top provider of UK holiday breaks, the client aimed to offer the best selection of holiday homes alongside exceptional service for both customers and property owners. They sought an outsourced contact centre partner to support their growth and enhance their internal operations. The goal was to find a strategic partner to manage telemarketing, outbound and inbound sales, as well as customer service.

Our solution

Initially, the client was searching for an outsourced contact centre partner to assist with strategic outbound lead generation, appointment setting, owner acquisitions, research and market intelligence, market sizing, and the development of new partnerships. After a thorough selection process, they chose Ant. Ant impressed them with its strategic approach, extensive experience, and overall capabilities.

Results

Following a series of strategic outbound telemarketing projects, the client requested assistance with their customer support overflow service during a post-lockdown staycation peak. In just three weeks, we recruited and trained 24 advisors who managed incoming calls and emails, liaised with holidaymakers and property owners, handled bookings and amendments, and processed refunds and holiday insurance. As further government announcements led to localised lockdowns, we recruited and trained an additional 11 agents to cope with the increased demand in calls and emails.

To ensure seamless integration with their existing team and processes, we collaborated closely with their team managers on knowledge sharing – initially accessing and replicating their systems. During the initial set-up phase, we held daily calls, participated in team briefings, and quickly built up a significant understanding of both the tacit and documented knowledge held by their in-house team, which had accumulated over many years of experience.