Wine merchant Oddbins has invested in contact centre software to
help it cope with the massive influx of e-mails being generated by
its e-tailing operations.
Oddbins praised the eService enterprise system from software firm
eGain Communications for improving customer service and said it has
enabled the company to handle a greater volume of e-mail
enquiries.
Neil Bench, Oddbins' customer services and direct sales manager,
said the company has seen a large increase in e-mail enquiries from
customers wanting updates on their online orders or looking for
store and product information. The previous e-mail system, based on
Lotus cc:Mail, could not cope with demand, he said.
Oddbins set out with a "low-tech" vision to improve e-mail
management but is now "adding the bells and whistles", explained
Bench. The system now automates the e-mail query process, tracking
each e-mail and routing it directly to the appropriate agent, who
has access to a shared database of answers to common questions.
The firm's call centre staff can also now deal with spikes in
demand at key times such as Christmas. "It is much more scalable,"
said Bench. The system also maintains a history of customer
communications and monitors agent performance.
"It is a customer service function we could not do without now,"
said Bench, who added that the system will enable the company to
give e-mail a bigger role in its promotional campaigns and on its
Web site.
Bench said the company's next goal is to fully integrate the system
with its customer relationship management system and "close the
loop".
The software was implemented six months ago at Oddbins' call centre
in Wimbledon.