Contact centre supports Disabled Persons Railcard

Contact centre and ticket fulfilment operator Journeycall is delighted with the continued popularity of the Disabled Persons Railcard, despite fears of a recessionary slowdown in railcard holder numbers.

“Users are at an all-time high – there are 10,000-plus Disabled Persons Railcard holders in Scotland alone, and over 120,000 UK-wide,” says Journeycall Client Services Director Lesley Stewart. “Electronic marketing has ensured that people are still buying new cards and renewing their existing cards, even with the economic downturn”.

Lesley Stewart continues: “Innovative marketing approaches are being used to promote awareness of the railcard. For instance, too often people are afraid to see the funny side of disability. In a rail-industry first, our colleagues at the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) have teamed up with disabled comedians to raise awareness of the Disabled Persons Railcard.”

Popular stand-up acts such as Simon Minty, Laurence Clark and Steve Best (all members of the comedy company, Abnormally Funny People) feature in eight rail-related short films that can be viewed online.

“This is primarily about putting a smile on people’s faces. With a broad range of comedy styles and performers, there’s something for everyone,” says John Horncastle, ATOC’s Disabled Persons Railcard manager.

So far, a film called “The fastest wheelchair in Britain” showing a spoof race between Simon Minty on a powered scooter and Laurence Clark, a wheelchair user, has proved the most popular. “Disabled Persons Railcard website hits have topped a thousand per day,” says Lesley Stewart. “Many of these have translated into railcard purchases, enabling the disabled community to continue to enjoy the freedom of travelling throughout Britain’s rail network at a discount rate. This is a key benefit to many people whose budgets are particularly tight currently.”

Other films used to market the Disabled Persons Railcard, focus on the humour that sometimes results when disabled people use public transport.

4 Nov 2009

Filed under Call Centre News