The Challenge
As more than half a year’s worth of rain fell in one three-day period, residents of numerous counties in central and northern Colorado (USA) were victims of historic flooding. In response, the American Red Cross opened shelters and mobilised staff and resources to respond and provide relief to the affected communities.
The Solution
Although the devastation was heartbreaking, the generosity and compassion of Coloradans was uplifting. Every television station in the Denver-metro area – and some radio stations as well – joined together to host a live broadcast fundraiser to support Red Cross Disaster Relief efforts. Red Cross workers recognised that volume would be beyond the capability of the host site’s phone systems. To help this effort, we provided contact centre assistance to support the organisation’s fundraising endeavors, answering nearly 7,000 phone calls during the Colorado Flood Relief live broadcast fundraiser within a week of the floods. Overall, 191 employees volunteered to answer incoming donor calls during the Red Cross fundraiser, and we turned our headquarters into a temporary donation centre. In addition, we deployed our new proprietary cloud-based technology platform to route and answer donors’ calls and provide reporting on call statistics and volunteer availability. This platform provided a communication engine compatible with any Sessions Initiation Protocol/Voice over Internet Protocol (SIP/VoIP) phone. It also eliminated the need for landline phones for a quick and flexible standup of the donation centre.
The Results
We were able to mobilise our resources in less than 48 hours to help the Red Cross raise significant amounts of money, with 100 per cent of donations received going directly to Red Cross disaster relief and recovery assistance for flood survivors. As our mission statement declares, we consistently aim to impact the communities where we live, operate and invest. We remained true to our vision, bringing positive change to those residing in the affected areas.