Challenge
OVO Energy relied heavily on outbound call centres to engage home movers and set up payment plans. Around 80,000 outbound calls each month yielded limited results, with Direct Debit uptake capped at about 30% within the first 30 days. Costs were high, customer experience was poor, and churn risk stayed high during a critical phase of the customer lifecycle.
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Solution
Equator partnered with OVO to create and launch Tili, the UK’s first virtual home-move assistant. The programme integrated digital strategy, behavioural insights, UX, branding, and platform delivery to engage customers earlier and shift activity from manual calls to digital self-service.
- Defined an end-to-end digital strategy focused on the home-move moment
- Built Tili as a friendly virtual assistant engaging customers up to 14 days pre-move
- Designed journeys that create informed choice and reduce friction
- Automated payment set-up and product selection through a digital-first experience
- Introduced a new brand identity to support trust and engagement
- Enabled cross-sell of adjacent home services, including broadband, TV, and insurance
Results
80% platform engagement
40% Direct Debit penetration within three days of the move date
80% of customers are completing sign-up digitally
40% reduction in outbound telephone calls
Customers 25% less likely to churn than offline cohorts
1 in 5 customers are purchasing more than one product
Net Promoter Score increase of over 50 points
Outcome
Tili transformed OVO’s home-move economics. By engaging customers earlier and digitally, OVO reduced cost to serve, improved payment compliance, increased cross-sell, and significantly lowered churn. The initiative unlocked new revenue streams beyond energy and demonstrated how automation and experience design can deliver measurable commercial returns in a regulated utility markets.
