Customer relationship management (CRM) vendor eGain Communications
is set to launch an improved version of its Assistant 5.0 Web
self-service software.
Assistant 5.0 is a Web-based support tool that answers questions
that visitors submit in a natural-language format.
To make the system more lifelike, a Web agent projects animated
facial expressions onto a box in the screen.
New to the product is an expanded case-building capability that
automates eGain's ability to build the product's answer database.
The software's ability to answer questions is based on clusters of
knowledge such as frequently asked questions.
"Basically, when we go out to build an application for a customer,
we request the customer to provide us [with] all the knowledge that
he wants to build from in a question-and-answer format," said Pedro
Cortopassi, engineering manager for eGain Assistant.
"What they've done in 5.0 is they have incorporated, or fine-tuned,
more of that case-based reasoning," said Assistant 5.0 user Milton
Santiago, first vice-president and head of electronic banking
products at ABN Amro Bank. "It makes it very conversational, so
that in some cases people think they are really speaking to a live
person."
ABN AMRO uses Assistant 5.0 for a self-service cash management
application.
"The self-service component of eGain gives us the ability to give
the customer self-service responses that are first of all accurate
and consistent," Santiago said.
Santiago said, however, that he would like to see more animation in
the application so that the face the customer sees looks more
lifelike. But he said he anticipates this kind of progress from
eGain in the future.
Version 5.0 also includes enhanced reporting, which allows almost
instantaneous daily activity reports. The software also contains
support for Japanese and Italian.