LiveTalk Call Center solution I. Introduction LiveTalk enables real-time interaction between callers and a pool of technical and customer support or sales agents via a completely web based interface. With a mouse click, callers connect to technical support or sales specialists and communicate via chat, voice or video. LiveTalk s web based architecture requiring no software installs for callers and agents alike, enables fast and effortless deployment for internal or external web sites. LiveTalk enables a significantly more efficient callcenter environment since agents can take simultaneous calls and can solve issues through remote control tools without the spoken language barrier. Chat, voice, video, remote control Caller Internet or Intranet Agent
II. Use Cases In this section we describe two internal and external deployments of LiveTalk and present their logical operational processes. 1) Internal Technical Support LiveTalk Media Servers are hosted at omnovia or within the corporate protected Intranet. Administrators provide agents with access username and passwords upon creation of their accounts. Agents log in through a simple web-page from any location: their office desk, home or a hotel room as an example. No software installs are required and all popular Internet browsers such as Internet Explorer, Firefox or Opera on Windows and MacIntosh are supported. Callers seeking help can call technical support by going to the support web site and clicking a LiveTalk button. Alternatively a button can be added to all employees PC desktops or to the Taskbar next to the clock in the lower-right corner of their PC desktop. An initial customizable form may ask the caller for some information including the reason for the call. An optional integration with a Knowledge Base may also offer keyword based solutions immediately hence alleviating the technical support burden for frequently asked questions.
Based on various priority rules, an agent gets an audio and visual notification on the LiveTalk Control Panel (which resides within a web page and does not require any software installs) and can opt to answer the call. Similarly to the telephone based Caller ID, the LiveTalk system passes the caller s information to the agent. But the information can contain significantly more detailed data helping in the diagnosis and the resolution of the problem. Examples of transmitted data are: Name, Location, Email Address, PC Operating System version, version of various installed software, history of problems the caller has encountered, etc.
By default the caller and the agent communicate using the chat function by typing questions and answers. However the omnovia LiveTalk also integrates high quality VoIP audio and web cam video. Optionally the agent can turn on the microphone and respond via voice. The agent may also turn on the camera. With the permission of the caller agents can take remote control of the caller s PC. This means that the agent may view the caller s PC desktop live and move the mouse and operate the keyboard in order to resolve a technical issue remotely. In case a more specialized agent is required, the first agent can transfer the call to another available agent. A record of the call with the transcript of messages is available in the Reporting section for managers to review along with usage statistics.
2) External Technical or Sales support Similarly to the case above, a LiveTalk button may be placed on an external web site for customers or business partners. Clicking the LiveTalk button connects the callers to the adequate specialist. III. List of features and functions IV. Benefits Easy integration to any web page with 6 lines of HTML code Fully customizable interface Customizable Call Form allows you to add questions caller would need to answer before reaching the agent. Example: Nature of your call? Number of years employed? Etc. Chat, high quality voice and live video List of pre-saved questions for agents with individual, group and company wide scope. Examples of messages that agents do not have to type, but can choose from a pull-down menu: Is there anything else I can help you with? or Have you tried to reboot your computer? Remote Control allows agents to view and interact live with the caller s PC Desktop upon caller s permission Full reporting Integration with the third party applications such as web conferencing or knowledge base systems There are a number of tangible advantages in using the omnovia LiveTalk compared to phone based systems. Below are some of the compelling ones: Agents can take multiple calls When an agent is talking with a caller over the phone, his or her full attention must be dedicated to that conversation and may not take any other calls even while waiting for the caller to, as an example, reboot his or her PC. Also when an agent is on the phone, there is some type of time pressure to finish the task quickly while a complex problem may take a long time to resolve. Through LiveTalk an agent can take multiple calls at the same time, communicate via chat, have them wait if needed, turn on the Microphone to talk when necessary and easily solve multiple problems simultaneously. LiveTalk is easier for callers For technical support and sales purposes, end-users would most probably be on a web site or in a software application. In this situation clicking a simple button to connect is more natural than dialing a number on the phone. If traveling employees have to remember the number while they can easily click a button on their laptop or simply go to support.companyurl.com.
LiveTalk offers a context specific environment helping in solving problems When a caller places a LiveTalk call useful information from the caller s PC is passed to the agent. As an example, the LiveTalk system can automatically inform the agent from which specific web page the caller is calling, what his or her user ID is etc. This type of information can help the agent in providing better and more efficient support with faster resolution of problems. LiveTalk Lowers the language barrier In a geographically diverse environment where callers contact support and do not have a strong command of the English language or the official language of the support department, telephone support can cause problems and discourage certain callers. This results in a number of employees never getting the adequate level of support. Same holds true in calls for sales inquiries. Using the omnovia LiveTalk callers type their questions and receive answers through chat (unless the agent enables voice). Studies show that a much larger number of people feel comfortable in writing and reading than speaking a foreign language. LiveTalk brings significant cost savings The omnovia LiveTalk offers unlimited calls at a fix rate and does not cost any extra for international calls. Using LiveTalk also brings a high level of efficiency and optimization to agents work as explained above. Further cost savings are hence achieved by reducing the number of agents or having them take care of other tasks while being on-call. LiveTalk offer a Remote Control option In addition to optional voice and live video, LiveTalk allows the agent to take remote control of the caller s PC with the caller s permission. It is often much easier for a support specialist to work on a PC and solve problems within seconds or minutes as opposed to tell the caller what and where to click over the phone. The LiveTalk Remote Control option is fast and allows mouse and keyboard control in a secure environment. V. Corporate Deployment Implementation of the LiveTalk system is simple. a. Hosted model All servers are hosted by omnovia. No major setup time or costs are involved. LiveTalk buttons can be placed on any web page with just a few lines of HTML code that omnovia provides. b. Enterprise model Based on the covered population a low number of LiveTalk Media servers are provided by omnovia to be placed within the Intranet of the client. The omnovia team provides an excellent level of support and engineering work for either cases.
VI. Case Study and Cost Savings As described in the previous section, the omnovia LiveTalk solution brings a number of advantages over telephone based call centers. Below is an example of ROI calculation over a period of 12 months for a new customer. 1) Hard ROI Company C: Industry: Financial services Number of supported people: 7,600 Number of countries: 12 Spoken Language: Mostly English Number of support agents before LiveTalk deployment: 26 Average compensation and charges per agent: US $42,000 / year LiveTalk implementation: Implementation Type: External (hosted by omnovia) Technical Implementation of LiveTalk solution: 4 days Training of agents: 4 days Initial cost of deployment including customization: US $ 2,500.00 Monthly Recurring Cost: US $1,200 / month Using LiveTalk, the following results were produced: 3) Soft ROI A problem takes on average 35% less resolution time An agent can take 2.5 times more calls in a day 25% of problems are answered by the Knowledge Base responses LiveTalk has a lower gross cost of 30% (no long distance carrier involved, no expensive telephony devices) The number of agents was reduced to 12. While 8 were able to handle all LiveTalk calls, they still decided to have 4 agents provide phone support for the transition. After 9 months, they reduced the number phone agents to 2. A combined 55% (US $600,600.00) cost reduction was obtained in 12 months. In addition to the concrete cost savings above, a significant enhancement in the quality of support was observed: Callers expressed a higher level of satisfaction as their problems were resolved faster and more often. 77% found the quality of support superior. 15% found the quality of support unchanged. 8% preferred the phone support. Better reporting allowed the administrators to fine-tune their processes and verify agents answers quality. Agents had more time in their daily shifts to execute other tasks.
Agents could log in from home in certain circumstances. 100% of agents recognized the advantage of LiveTalk solution over phone-based system. VII. Optional Modules The omnovia LiveTalk has a web based architecture that offers a high level of flexibility and scalability. Due to its architecture it can be easily integrated to other platforms or can redirect callers to other web pages or systems. Below are two examples of such integration. a. Knowledge Base When a caller clicks on the LiveTalk button, an optional and customizable form appears for the caller to fill out. One of the fields in this form may be the reason for the call or a short description of a technical problem. Before actually calling agents, LiveTalk through integration to 3 rd party Knowledge Base systems can offer pre-saved answers to their questions. This can accelerate problem resolution and reduce the number of calls. b. Secure Conference access LiveTalk can redirect callers to other services. With a few mouse clicks, agents can invite the caller to join a web conferencing room for further interactions. LiveTalk can automatically connect to the omnovia Secure Conference, which is a very advanced and easy-to-use web conferencing platform. Contact Information To view a demo of LiveTalk or to seek more information please contact sales@omnovia.com or dial +1 281 500 4065 x2 www.omnovia.com