Customer interaction software provider E.piphany, Inc. this week deepened its
working relationship BroadVision,
Inc.
The two companies are taking a dose of their own customer management
medicine to integrate technologies and improve information links between
their contact centers and e-commerce systems.
The extended business deal enables E.piphany and
BroadVision to provide more highly personalized
customer interaction in real time.
Based on E.piphany’s E.5 System and BroadVision’s One-To-One integrated
suite of e-commerce applications, the duo plans to develop integrated
solutions that ubiquitously share customer data. The system delivers
personalized commerce transactions, service interactions, and marketing
offers in real time over the Web.
Roger Siboni, E.piphany president and chief executive officer, said the
deal represents a natural extension of its alliance with BroadVision.
“With the increased capabilities of the new E.5 System, we’re excited to
extend our work with BroadVision to solve customer challenges,” Siboni,said.
“Currently, the market is demanding greater synergy between marketing,
contact centers, and online environments,” Siboni added. “Tthe combined
strengths of E.piphany and BroadVision in multi-channel interactions will
present a compelling solution to satisfy these new requirements.”
Dr. Pehong Chen, BroadVision president and chief executive officer, said
its partnership with E.piphany has already yielded superior CRM solutions
for joint customers.
“In this next phase, we will further drive innovation and deliver an all
encompassing solution for marketing, sales, and service that quickly
becomes a de facto-standard for customers and system integrators alike,”
Chen said.
The extended alliance coincides with the launch of the E.piphany E.5
System, designed to be a customer relationship management tool that melds
marketing, sales and service applications.
E.piphany’s E.5 program is being pitched as the only Web-based, intelligent
solution that unifies all inbound and outbound customer interactions across
multiple communication channels.
The system leverages customer information obtained from various channels to
generate a single enterprise view of the customer. The client insight
program provides a single source for business interaction, marketing
campaigns, and enhanced customer services in real time.
BroadVision’s One-To-One program delivers does much of the same, but
tailors the information to produce a single customer profile that includes
contact information, as well as detailed buying and service histories of
the client.
The combination of the two technologies strengthens ties between customer
contact centers and Web sites.
For example, a customer with one or more open service requests in the
contact center can receive information about the status of their cases when
they visit the company’s Web site. The recorded Web activity of a client
can cue businesses to pick up the phone or send and e-mail to initiate
highly targeted cross selling offers from the contact center.
It’s been a bumpy road for Web-based customer satisfaction since the rise
of e-commerceon the Web. The E.piphany, BroadVision alliance attempts to
replace an old-fashioned handshake and meticulous note keeping with today’s
fast-paced online ordering systems and e-fulfillment systems.
According to Forrester Research,
Inc. customer service is the heart of driving future online sales.
In a report about online consumers expectations, Forrester analyst Christopher Kelley said Web shoppers seek and expect customer
service at each step of the transaction process.
“Exceptional
service actually increases online buyers’ total satisfaction,
which encourages repeat visits and word-of-mouth recommendations,” Kelley
said.
“One big piece of the loyalty puzzle is customer satisfaction,” Kelley
added. “A satisfied customer wants to share the positive experience, which
helps drive traffic to a retailer.”
Forrester identified the customer service features that most significantly
impact customer satisfaction, including reactive and proactive initiatives.
According to the independent research firm, the three most critical
components to solid reactive services are a well staffed, responsive
service organization, a simple return process, and easy order tracking.
Businesses that fail to react to effectively answer customers’ concerns
lack the foundation for a solid enterprise.
Effective proactive service involves going above and beyond the traditional
call of customer service duty by offering smart, unexpected touches that
serve to assist shoppers throughout the entire purchase process.
According to Forrester Research, 37 percent of online consumers use
customer service more from e-tailers than from bricks-and-mortar “take a
number” systems for addressing customer concerns because a Web-based update
is far more timely and convenient.
Online businesses that fail to manage customer relationships don’t stand
much of a chance in keeping their clients satisfied with their goods and
services.
