UniPress Software, Inc. announced that its customer base for the FootPrints Hosting Service has grown considerably in 2004 and shows strong signs of growth next year. Used by organizations seeking to leverage an on-demand service desk solution to address their business-critical customer support needs, UniPress has recognized a consistent increase for its FootPrints Hosting Service and anticipates even stronger growth in 2005. The company cites the hosting solutions ease of deployment, affordable pricing model, and flexible customization capabilities as the key drivers for this growth.

Among the organizations that have either selected or converted to the FootPrints Hosting Service include, Zone Labs, Inc. (a Check Point Company), Expedite Group, Perini Corporation, A3 Integration, PartnerSolve, LLC, RINET, Benefits Connection, Distributive Software, Smart Solutions, Inc., and many more.

The FootPrints Hosting Service is ideal for organizations of any size that need a web-based platform to help centrally manage and automate customer support requests, and deliver self-service online capabilities. The hosted solution offers all the functionality and benefits of the licensed version FootPrints, without requiring the IT infrastructure associated with implementing and maintaining such a solution on-site. With the FootPrints Hosting Service, organizations do not have to invest in database and web server tools, and they do not need to hire a support staff or consultants to fully deploy and configure their service desk. They can be up and running with the FootPrints Hosting Service within days, and can easily and continuously customize and scale the system as needs change.

FootPrints in a hosted environment has proved to be a very successful choice for Zone Labs, explained Gary Garcia, Senior Director of Customer Care and Technical Services at Zone Labs, Inc. (a Check Point company). We handle over 40,000 requests per month with very little or no down time. Overall, I would say a wonderful experience.

The FootPrints Hosting Service also allows users to centrally manage all types of service and support requests received from multiple channels, including phone, email, chat, and the web. With 11 built-in templates, organizations can easily create a wide range of projects to track and manage other business activities, such as facilities management, IT resource tracking, development and bug tracking, and more. Addressing the need to deliver personalized customer service, the FootPrints Hosting Service also includes two-way email management support, service-level management, knowledge management, and an eService portal to deliver self-service online capabilities.

The FootPrints Hosting Services multiple-project support comes standard, with no additional costs, and allows organizations to setup and partition as many projects as desired within their service desk. This allows them to sort service and support by product, customer, department, or by any other criteria they establish. For service and support outsourcing providers, this is especially valuable as they can create client-specific projects and databases, complete with custom product and service-oriented FAQs and self service functionality. With this functionality, combined with the positive attributes of the hosted model, FootPrints becomes a business enabler for many organizations.

Over the past year, we have seen an increase in the demand for hosted offerings, explained Mark Krieger, President of UniPress Software. We expect this demand to continue through 2005 and well into the future, and believe it will emerge as the pre-eminent hosted service desk solution available to the mid-market. With the FootPrints Hosting Service, organizations are receiving a service that allows them to outsource their service desk IT infrastructure and on-going administration, enabling them to focus on what matters to them most; delivering world-class support to their internal and external audiences, all while saving time and money.