Members of Yell's PR and Publishing teams joined forces with individuals from Deya's Operations department to help out with this year's Basingstoke Yellow Pages distribution.
Two routes were delivered in Bentworth and North Waltham and the surrounding areas. It was the first day of August and it seemed like summer had finally arrived - the thermometer hit 27 by lunch when we stopped for a sandwich and a long cold drink at The Star Inn in Bentworth. After a short break it was back to work for the afternoon session before meeting up for a final debrief. The routes covered difficult rural areas and despite nine people working on them they were not finished in the day.
Ian Maynard, Deya's Operations Director, said; "The new smaller directory is great. It looks good, goes through letterboxes and is popular with customers but it still takes time to deliver in rural areas. You are still driving the bulk of the route and walking up a lot of long drives."
Feedback from the Yell team was positive with everyone agreeing that it was a good experience. Delivery is the final stage of the Yellow Pages life cycle and possibly not the most glamorous one. However, it is an essential one, it is no good Yell producing the directory if it is not delivered quickly and properly to its customers.
The delivery was finished off the following day. Apart from an enquiry from the Hampshire Constabulary questioning why three men in a car were seen cruising around Bentworth for a couple of hours and a particularly feisty Jack Russell taking a dislike to one of the team, all went well. The final route-checking also confirmed delivery was complete.
The route payments, plus a donation from Deya's charitable trust, have been donated to Red Balloon in Reading. Red Balloon's aim is the recovery of bullied children. They provide an 'intensive care' full-time education for children aged between 10 and 17 who are unable to go to school because they have been severely bullied. The students are offered a safe environment with clear boundaries for behaviour, and an individual full-time academic, pastoral and therapeutic programme. Once the students have rebuilt their confidence and are able to cope academically and socially, Red Balloon support them in their return to mainstream school, their entry to further education or to employment.