Bridging the Gap: How Yarra Valley Water Enhanced Community Connection

The Challenge

Melbourne's largest water corporation, Yarra Valley Water, faced a common challenge for essential service providers, maintaining effective communication with customers across their vast network of over 21,000km of water infrastructure spanning 4,000km².

Traditional reporting channels created barriers to quick and easy communication, making it difficult for customers to report water-related concerns. This led to delayed issue resolution and reduced visibility of emerging problems in the community.

For Yarra Valley Water, the consequences were significant: minor water leaks often went unreported until they developed into major bursts, creating substantial operational challenges and costs. Their customer service team also struggled to balance emergency calls with less urgent reports, potentially compromising their service level agreement of answering 80% of phone calls within 30 seconds.

“We have some really tight service-level measures for phone calls that are hard to meet when we have some big faults out there.” Stephen Pepping, Manager Service Interactions.

The Solution

Yarra Valley Water partnered with Snap Send Solve to make it easier for customers to report faults online, improving access while easing demand on phone lines.

Non-urgent issues are now directed through the Report a Fault page, where customers are encouraged to manage their query online instead of calling. On the page, a prominently featured map shows known issues, helping reduce duplicate reports. The Snap Send Solve webform sits alongside this map as an easy, intuitive way for customers to submit new concerns.

By embedding our webform where customers already go to find fault information, Yarra Valley Water has created a seamless reporting journey that strengthens community connection and service responsiveness.

Empowering Residents to Report Any Issues

The implementation of Snap Send Solve's user-friendly digital reporting tools has dramatically increased community engagement. Residents who previously wouldn't make a phone call to report minor issues now have a convenient way to communicate concerns.

"Sometimes customers may notice minor issues such as leaks and not bother calling," explains Stephen Pepping, Manager Service Interactions. "If they use Snap Send Solve they will report it earlier, which means we can get to it before it becomes a larger leak. We are getting more of the lower priority leaks because it's easier for customers to report."

This ease of reporting has led to a 400% increase in Snap Send Solve reports over two years. With steady growth, Snap Send Solve now represents 9% (14,000) of fault reports to Yarra Valley Water today - creating a vital early warning system that helps prevent small issues from becoming major problems

Demonstrating Responsiveness to Community Needs

This digital reporting system has enhanced transparency between Yarra Valley Water and the community they serve. By embedding the Snap Send Solve webform next to their faults map online, customers can immediately see if an issue has already been reported before submitting their own, helping them make informed reports with full context.

This visibility and consistent responsiveness have built trust within the community.

As Stephen Pepping notes, "Snap Send Solve does bring us closer to our customers and it means our customers feel closer to us."

The impact of this improved transparency is reflected in community feedback:

"Extremely fast personalised response by text and email. Then follow-ups with updates. They also go and actually do the work quickly as well," reported one Snap Send Solve user.

This excellence in responsive communication was recognised with a community-voted VIC Customer Service Award in Snap Send Solve's 2022 Solver of the Year Awards.

Building Trust Through Early Intervention

Early identification and resolution of issues has led to better-maintained public water infrastructure. By addressing minor leaks before they develop into major bursts, Yarra Valley Water has improved the quality and reliability of essential services.

This proactive approach has resulted in financial and operational savings associated with avoiding major repair projects. More importantly, it's created a positive feedback loop: as customers see their reports leading to tangible improvements, they become more engaged in caring for and reporting issues in their community spaces.

The result is a more sustainable approach to infrastructure management that benefits both the organisation and the customers they serve.

Digital Service Transformation

The implementation of Snap Send Solve has significantly improved digital service utilisation, allowing Yarra Valley Water to maintain their high customer service standards even as report volume increased. This digital channel shift has been particularly valuable during peak periods.

"Snap Send Solve really helps with levelling out the peaks and troughs of faults calls," explains Stephen Pepping. "When we have a peak, everyone can focus on the calls, then when it has levelled out we can focus on the Snap Send Solve reports."

This flexibility has improved work prioritisation and resource allocation while maintaining high service standards. Over two years, Yarra Valley Water improved their already impressive average customer satisfaction rating from 82% to 88%, even as reports increased by 400%.

The partnership between Yarra Valley Water and Snap Send Solve demonstrates how digital solutions can transform community engagement while improving operational efficiency.

"At Yarra Valley Water, we're committed to transforming around our customers' needs. Partnering with Snap Send Solve has revolutionised how our community connects with us, creating a seamless channel for reporting that builds trust while helping us allocate resources more efficiently. The 9% of reports now coming through this platform represent not just problems being solved, but stronger relationships being built with the people we serve. This digital transformation has been essential in maintaining our high service standards while improving community satisfaction and involvement." - Stephen Pepping, Manager Service Interactions.

By focusing on community satisfaction and engagement through accessible digital reporting tools, Yarra Valley Water has created a more responsive, efficient, and community-centered approach to managing their essential services.This work aligns with their broader goals to transform around customer needs, support thriving communities, and take a proactive, sustainable approach to service delivery.  The result is a more engaged community, better-maintained infrastructure, significant water savings through early leak detection, and an organisation better equipped to meet the needs of the residents they serve.

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