The Web-Enabled Call Center:
Reaching Out To The Online Community
BY STEVEN DRESNER
A revolutionary technology is on the horizon. It will change the way companies
communicate with customers and create a new market for telecom services. It will combine
the convenience of IP telephony and the flexibility of traditional calling to bring buyers
closer to sellers and sellers closer to a return on their investment. The technology is
Web-to-phone calling and it will unveil itself as another winning application — the
Web-enabled call center.
What Is IP Telephony?
IP telephony (also called Internet telephony) is simply the use of an IP network to
transmit voice, video, and data. IP stands for ’Internet Protocol’ and is the
networking protocol most commonly used in modern data networks. Such networks can be either private, as is the case with a corporate local-area network
or public, as is the case with the Internet. IP telephony has been used to reduce the
costs associated with long-distance communication from PC-to-PC, PC-to-phone, phone-to-
phone, and fax-to-fax.
IP telephony have come a long way in the past year. Both PC-to-PC and phone-to-phone
communication over IP networks have become commonplace for millions of people. Worldwide
virtual networks, which piggyback on the Internet, have been used to offer callers reduced
rates on PC-to-phone calling by way of telephony gateway technology. This technology
bridges the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and the Internet so callers can use
both networks to communicate. By using a PC-based application such as an Internet phone, people can originate calls
on the Internet and terminate them on the PSTN.
The same people who use Internet phone and telephony gateway technology to reduce
long-distance calling charges use the Internet (particularly the WWW) for both
recreational and professional purposes. These people have validated IP telephony, which
has, until now, been used by hobbyists and Internet fanatics. And as the quality of
Internet calling improves, even more people will explore this alternative means of
communication. In turn, a new use for IP telephony will be created — one that
combines both the recreational and practical elements that attract a growing number of
people to the Internet — Web-to-phone calling.
THE WEB-TO-PHONE INTERFACE
Web-to-phone calling represents a major advance in IP telephony technology. It’s more than just the ability to call from a PC to a regular telephone.
PC-based calling requires a client-side application running on the user’s
computer. This client application must first be purchased and installed on the user’s
machine in order to operate. This requires some advance planning and, therefore, limits
the practical uses for such a technology.
Web-based calling gives people the same benefits without having to first purchase
client software. The Web-to-phone interface works via a Web browser plug-in, which can be
down-loaded from a Web site in minutes. Once downloaded and installed, people can use the plug-in to place calls to other PCs
or to regular telephones. The plug-in is simply a button, which appears on a Web site
after it is active on the user’s machine. Once active, users are able to communicate
in real-time using their computer’s microphone and speakers.
What makes this technology so special is the immediacy by which users can attain the
plug-in. With no software to purchase, people are more likely to use IP telephony and, in
turn, companies are more likely to offer telephony services. A company with a Web site can
distribute the plug-in on their homepage for free. The plug-in is programmed to call fixed
numbers as defined by the company. By clicking the plug-in "button," users can
connect to the company’s staff or wherever the company wishes to route calls. These
calls can then be terminated at either PCs or telephones.
The appeal of Web-to-phone calling should be obvious. Companies spend large sums of
money on their Web site without getting a significant return on investment (if any at
all). They use fancy graphics and applets designed to keep Web surfers coming back, but
make little attempt to really reach out to the user. Until recently, online text chat and
callbacks have been the closest attempts companies made to contact users.
The Web-to-phone interface gives both the company and Web surfer what they really want
— an interactive experience. Streaming audio and video technologies has provided the multi-media aspect of Web site
design and online text chat addresses the missing communication element, but it’s the
Web to phone interface that provides the first true interactive, real-time Internet
experience.
THE WEB-ENABLED CALL CENTER
- According to the Gartner Group, 35 percent of call center access will come from
nontraditional electronic technology by the year 2000.
- International Data Corporation forecasts that by the year 2000, 200 million people
worldwide will have Internet access.
- Presently, the call center industry generates over $600 billion in sales annually.
These points illustrate the need for Web-to-phone calling and hint at a practical use
of IP telephony — the Web-enabled call center. The Web-enabled call center will
revolutionize Internet communications by bringing the users and creators of Web-based
content closer together. By strengthening this bond, IP telephony will gain acceptance by
both groups and will provide the impetus that the IP telephony community has been waiting
for.
The importance of the call center has grown in recent years. Companies are making big
investments in technologies that promise to please customers by bringing them closer to
the services they need. They now view the call center as a revenue-generator because
studies have shown that customer satisfaction impacts the bottom line.
Whether the call center is providing sales and ordering services, or help desk and
technical support, companies are reaching out to customers in any way they can.
One way companies are pleasing customers is via their Web site.
Customers can typically retrieve all kinds of useful information from a Web site and
can even request a call-back by submitting forms or sending e-mail.
Many Web sites even offer text chat capabilities.
The Gartner Group study cited above predicts 35 percent of call center access will come
from nontraditional electronic technology by the year 2000. This figure includes call
center inquiries made by e-mail, fax, Web-based forms, and Web-based calling. The
Web-enabled call center is an extension of these non-traditional technologies and
represents the next logical step towards improving customer intimacy.
Online Commerce
Companies conducting sales-related business on the Web are perfect candidates for the
Web-enabled call center. Once the call center components are in place, people browsing a
company’s Web page can use the Web-to-phone plug-in to speak over the Internet
directly with someone in an ordering, technical support, sales, or customer care
department.
Building a Web-enabled call center means installing some basic hardware. This includes the following components:
- Personal Branch Exchange (PBX) — provides switching functions.
- Automatic Call Distributor (ACD) — facilitates routing and queuing of calls.
- Internet telephony gateway — bridges the Internet and PBX networks.
- Web server — provides the Web-based content and Web-to-phone plug-in.
- Agent terminals — includes desktop phones and workstations.
Once the investment in hardware and software has been made, Web-to-phone calling is
just a click away. After the Web surfer downloads and installs the Web-to-phone plug-in
located on the company Web site, they can click a plug-in button to connect to a call
center agent. To further understand the use of this technology, lets look at an example.
Perhaps a user browsing an online catalog is interested in placing an order for
clothing. They want to know if a sweater they like comes in blue, but cannot call the
usual toll-free number because they have only one telephone line which is currently being
used for their Internet connection. Typically, the person would either send a request for callback by e-mail or disconnect
their Internet connection to use the telephone. The Web-to-phone plug-in overcomes this
barrier by opening up a separate channel for communication over their active Internet
connection.
After clicking the Web-to-phone plug-in button, the call is routed over the Internet
and through the telephony gateway into the company call center. The call might be sent to the regular customer service department or
to a specialized center for Web-based callers. In either case, the caller is given
immediate access to the services they need and the company gets one step closer to a sale.
In a typical implementation, the caller might be greeted by a voice response recording.
"Welcome to our Online Service Center. Your call is being transferred to an available
agent." If an agent is in fact available, the caller might be immediately connected
with a friendly voice from the company call center. If the caller must wait on hold,
companies might choose to employ push technology so Web content can be sent to the
caller’s Internet browser.
A more robust call center application might include the use of Common Gateway Interface
(CGI) scripts. These scripts are programs executed on the Web server, which enable the caller to send
information to the agent before the audio connection is established. This information is entered into a form and might include the caller’s name,
address, and reason for calling. In this manner, the agent knows something about the user before answering the call
— truly a powerful use of IP technology. Even expensive caller identification
services such as Automatic Number Identification (ANI) and Dialed Number Identification
Service (DNIS) cannot retrieve caller information without previous customer contact.
No matter how advanced the application becomes, the calling sequence remains
transparent to the user. All the user knows is that they are being serviced in a timely
and convenient manner. This is at the heart of the Web-enabled call center —
satisfied customers.
WIN-WIN TECHNOLOGY
The Web-enabled call center adds a new dimension to customer service without making a
significant investment in infrastructure. If a company has an existing call center, the
only additional hardware requirements are a Web Server, Internet telephony gateway, and
associated peripherals. And since many vendors are competing for dominance in the IP
telephony market, prices for this equipment are rapidly declining.
Toll-free calling will not be replaced by the Web-enabled call center. People have
grown accustomed to traditional telephone services through years of use and a quality of
service that is typically better than that offered by IP telephony. Rather, the Web-enabled call center will complement existing services by giving people
another way to contact company personnel. By offering such services, companies will be
paving an avenue for growth and helping to reach out even farther to those interested in
their offerings. All in all, this represents a real win-win solution for companies and the
customers who keep them in business.
Steven Dresner is a managing director at Essl Technologies, Inc., in New York, NY. Essl
Technologies is part of VocalTec’s Premier Partner Program and is assisting in the
development and implementation of custom call center applications that incorporate IP
telephony and networking technologies. Steven can be reached by telephone at 212-974-0555
or by e-mail at [email protected].
For more information, visit the company’s Web site at www.essltech.com.
|
SUBSCRIPTIONS
TMCnet LOGIN
WEBINARS
