Outlook to Zendesk: Transforming Customer and Employee Experience for a Fitness Chain
Introduction
Jims, a leading fitness chain in Belgium and Luxembourg, faced significant challenges in streamlining customer support for both external customers and internal club managers. As a subscription-based business, Jims’ customer service was inundated with high volumes of cancellation requests, support inquiries, and operational issues from its 80+ fitness clubs. In 2021, after being acquired by Colruyt Group, Jims recognised the urgent need for a more structured and efficient digital customer and employee experience.
With the help of Premium Plus, a Zendesk Premier Partner, Jims implemented Zendesk to centralise and optimise its support operations. This transformation significantly reduced backlogs, improved response times, and enhanced both the customer and employee experience.
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The Challenge: Overwhelmed by Manual Processes and Lack of Insights
Prior to implementing Zendesk, Jims struggled with several major issues in digital customer and employee experience:
- Inefficient Ticket Management: Customer service requests were managed manually via Microsoft Outlook, leading to a backlog of over 2,000 open tickets.
- Slow Response Times: Without a structured system, some customer inquiries took up to two weeks to receive a response, leading to lost opportunities.
- Lack of Club Involvement: Club managers had no visibility into customer cancellations and inquiries, limiting their ability to assist members effectively.
- No Backup or Continuity: If a key employee was on leave, customer support came to a halt, further exacerbating response delays.
- Scattered FAQs and Inconsistent Information: FAQs were spread across multiple locations and often contained contradictory information.
Frederic Schroyens, Chief Digital Officer at Jims, explained
The Solution: A Structured, Scalable Support System with Zendesk and Premium Plus
Recognising the urgency, Jims partnered with Premium Plus to set up Zendesk within 4 to 6 weeks, allowing for a seamless transition to a structured support system. The solution was deployed in two key phases:
1. External Customer Support Transformation
- Zendesk was implemented to manage customer inquiries, reducing the backlog from 2,000+ open tickets to manageable daily volumes.
- Automated workflows ensured that cancellation requests and general inquiries were resolved within 24 hours.
- Improved customer communication helped prevent lost opportunities, ensuring that inquiries about trial sessions and memberships were addressed promptly.
Frederic noted
2. Digital Employee Experience for Club Managers and Staff
With +80 clubs across Belgium and Luxembourg, Jims also needed to streamline the digital employee experience for club managers and fitness coaches, who frequently required assistance on various operational matters.
- A dedicated Zendesk instance for employee experience was launched, allowing club managers to log facility issues, HR inquiries, and administrative questions.
- A structured ticketing system was introduced, ensuring that club-related requests were centralised and prioritised.
- Integration with external partners allowed Jims HQ to track maintenance requests and monitor invoices related to club repairs.
Frederic explained
3. Knowledge Management and Self-Service Enhancements
To further reduce manual workload and improve efficiency, Jims and Premium Plus developed a comprehensive Help Center integrated with Zendesk Guide:
- An internal knowledge base provided club managers with answers to common operational and HR-related questions.
- A unified FAQ system ensured that customers and employees had access to up-to-date and consistent information.
- Zendesk AI-powered search automatically suggested relevant help articles, reducing the number of incoming tickets.
Frederic shared
The Results: A Drastic Improvement in Digital Customer and Employee Experience
Jims’ transformation led to significant improvements in both external customer service and internal operational efficiency:
- Backlog Reduction: Reduced from 2,000 open tickets to a structured, manageable workflow.
- Faster Response Times: Most tickets are now handled within 24 hours, compared to two weeks previously.
- Increased Internal Efficiency: Club managers now have a clear, structured process for resolving facility and administrative issues.
- Higher Customer Satisfaction: Improved response times and streamlined processes led to better overall member experience.
Looking Ahead: AI and Automation for Future Growth
As Jims continues to expand, the company is now exploring further AI-driven automation for customer and employee experience with Zendesk and Premium Plus:
- AI-powered chatbots to assist customers with subscription inquiries and automate routine interactions.
- A subscription recommendation wizard to help potential members choose the right plan based on their preferences.
- Predictive analytics to anticipate customer churn and proactively engage members before cancellations occur.
- Continuous Improvement Collaboration together so that we can assist Jims Fitness in staying ahead/on top of everything new.
Frederic concluded
Conclusion: A Future-Proof Customer and Employee Experience Strategy with Zendesk and Premium Plus
By centralising support operations, enhancing automation, and leveraging AI-powered insights, Jims has significantly improved its customer service efficiency and internal operational support. The partnership with Premium Plus and Zendesk enabled Jims to transform its customer and employee experience, setting a strong foundation for future growth.
With continued innovation in AI, self-service, and automation, Jims is well-equipped to scale operations while maintaining exceptional support for both members and staff.
