The year 2000 problem turned out not to be as great as many had feared. Chances are that last year, the issues you encountered most often did not involve Y2K as much as customer relationship management (CRM) and on-line customer service.

Many of the products that became available in 2000 sought to address these two broad concepts, and sometimes it was difficult to pin down what they did or cite significant differences among them. One of our goals in choosing the top products of 2000 was to find systems that do certain things exceedingly well, like identify agents who can communicate on-line, assist on-hold callers or provide multimedia training courses to agents. Most of the best products of 2000 fell into this category.

Some other products that debuted in 2000 are more complex. They include software that gathers information about customers during calls and on-line correspondence, and lets you use this information to create campaigns you conduct by phone or over the Internet. In selecting products of the year among these systems, which can serve as part of a call center's infrastructure, we considered the experiences of the companies that use them, including companies we profiled in recent issues and supplements.

With that said, please keep in mind that we feel there are many CRM and eCRM products that work very well and are very important for you to know about. Many we like are not recognized here because they have received awards in prior years. Several existing CRM and eCRM suites did announce new modules or increased functionality last year, which we have written about in our First Looks section or product guides.

Whether you've devoted your entire career to customer service, or you're in a business that is only beginning to recognize the value of call centers, you need more than technical guidance from telephony gurus and computer whizzes. You also need strategic guidance, which you can best gain through experience, including the experiences of others.

The true test of call center products, especially those that are the most complex, occurs in the lab of real life. That is why this year, in case studies and upcoming Second Looks, we'll show you how companies use the new products we write about and what it's really like to implement them. In May and September, we'll offer special case study features on eCRM and CRM, respectively. Next month we'll look at all of the available CRM products and in July we'll outline hosted services that offer viable options for using CRM and eCRM software. Your ongoing experiences with these products will be among the key factors we'll consider as we help you find the best systems for your center.

Your success with installing different call center systems will depend on your existing infrastructure and the willingness, capability and responsiveness of the vendor you choose. This is another reason why customer references mean so much. In the following pages we outline the products we selected along with why we think they stand out.

Assessment Solutions' REPeValuator

Assessment Solutions' (ASI; New York, NY) REPeValuator is one of the first software products we've seen that screens for agents who can serve on-line customers effectively.

REPeValuator runs candidates through 30-minute simulations of text chat sessions and voice-over-IP conversations with customers. The software also tests whether agents communicate accurately and how well they perform different tasks, such as answering live text messages and looking up information, at the same time.

The simulations include a variety of scenarios, such as inquiries about products, requests for technical support and service terminations. Candidates communicate with hypothetical customers who epitomize a variety of attitudes and emotions. Some customers are methodical and businesslike; others are confused or angry.

REPeValuator comes at the right time, now that more call centers recognize the value of hiring agents who are proficient at communicating with on-line customers.

800-584-5154/212-319-8400
www.asisolutions.com

Cincom's Encompass

Cincom's (Cincinnati, OH) Encompass 3.4 CRM software enables customers to reach your company through different channels and lets your company share information about customers among multiple departments. Along with phone calls, Cincom's Encompass Web module lets you create rules for routing e-mail messages, text chat sessions, Web callback requests, voice-over-IP calls and video-over-IP sessions.

This latest version of the software also includes the eResponse module, which automatically replies to e-mail messages and on-line forms that customers submit from your Web site. The eResponse module can also suggest answers for agents and it can send automated acknowledgements to customers to assure them that your company received their e-mail messages.

Another important feature of Encompass is that it lets you create rules that automate the way your company gathers information about customers and their transactions with your company. Encompass also lets agents receive screen pops and view information customers entered while using your IVR system. The system includes predictive and progressive dialing modules, as well as a module for tracking customers you're trying to reach during outbound marketing campaigns.

800-2-CINCOM/513-612-2300
www.cincom.com.

E.piphany's E.piphany E.5

With E.piphany's (San Mateo, CA) E.piphany E.5 CRM software, you can view information within your company through a Web browser. The software gathers information about your company's customers from different databases, financial systems and other third-party data sources. Besides enabling your company to create outbound telephone and e-mail campaigns, E.5 also gives customers the choice of getting in touch with your company using on-line forms, e-mail, text chat and Web callback.

Real-Time Personalization, a component of E.5, consolidates the most current information your company possesses about customers, such as their preferences, demographics, purchase histories and customer service histories. The software creates profiles from this information and lets your company apply these profiles to the way it communicates with callers and visitors to your Web site. For example, you can use this software to provide agents with onscreen sales scripts that target particular customers based on how they responded to previous campaigns.

Some of the capabilities of E.5 are the result of E.piphany's acquisition of Octane Software last year. For example, Service Portal is a module that lets customers update their profiles, search your on-line knowledge base and view the status of their orders.

The year 2000 problem turned out not to be as great as many had feared. Chances are that last year, the issues you encountered most often did not involve Y2K as much as customer relationship management (CRM) and on-line customer service.

Many of the products that became available in 2000 sought to address these two broad concepts, and sometimes it was difficult to pin down what they did or cite significant differences among them. One of our goals in choosing the top products of 2000 was to find systems that do certain things exceedingly well, like identify agents who can communicate on-line, assist on-hold callers or provide multimedia training courses to agents. Most of the best products of 2000 fell into this category.

Some other products that debuted in 2000 are more complex. They include software that gathers information about customers during calls and on-line correspondence, and lets you use this information to create campaigns you conduct by phone or over the Internet. In selecting products of the year among these systems, which can serve as part of a call center's infrastructure, we considered the experiences of the companies that use them, including companies we profiled in recent issues and supplements.

With that said, please keep in mind that we feel there are many CRM and eCRM products that work very well and are very important for you to know about. Many we like are not recognized here because they have received awards in prior years. Several existing CRM and eCRM suites did announce new modules or increased functionality last year, which we have written about in our First Looks section or product guides.

Whether you've devoted your entire career to customer service, or you're in a business that is only beginning to recognize the value of call centers, you need more than technical guidance from telephony gurus and computer whizzes. You also need strategic guidance, which you can best gain through experience, including the experiences of others.

The true test of call center products, especially those that are the most complex, occurs in the lab of real life. That is why this year, in case studies and upcoming Second Looks, we'll show you how companies use the new products we write about and what it's really like to implement them. In May and September, we'll offer special case study features on eCRM and CRM, respectively. Next month we'll look at all of the available CRM products and in July we'll outline hosted services that offer viable options for using CRM and eCRM software. Your ongoing experiences with these products will be among the key factors we'll consider as we help you find the best systems for your center.

Your success with installing different call center systems will depend on your existing infrastructure and the willingness, capability and responsiveness of the vendor you choose. This is another reason why customer references mean so much. In the following pages we outline the products we selected along with why we think they stand out.

Assessment Solutions' REPeValuator

Assessment Solutions' (ASI; New York, NY) REPeValuator is one of the first software products we've seen that screens for agents who can serve on-line customers effectively.

REPeValuator runs candidates through 30-minute simulations of text chat sessions and voice-over-IP conversations with customers. The software also tests whether agents communicate accurately and how well they perform different tasks, such as answering live text messages and looking up information, at the same time.

The simulations include a variety of scenarios, such as inquiries about products, requests for technical support and service terminations. Candidates communicate with hypothetical customers who epitomize a variety of attitudes and emotions. Some customers are methodical and businesslike; others are confused or angry.

REPeValuator comes at the right time, now that more call centers recognize the value of hiring agents who are proficient at communicating with on-line customers.

800-584-5154/212-319-8400
www.asisolutions.com

Cincom's Encompass

Cincom's (Cincinnati, OH) Encompass 3.4 CRM software enables customers to reach your company through different channels and lets your company share information about customers among multiple departments. Along with phone calls, Cincom's Encompass Web module lets you create rules for routing e-mail messages, text chat sessions, Web callback requests, voice-over-IP calls and video-over-IP sessions.

This latest version of the software also includes the eResponse module, which automatically replies to e-mail messages and on-line forms that customers submit from your Web site. The eResponse module can also suggest answers for agents and it can send automated acknowledgements to customers to assure them that your company received their e-mail messages.

Another important feature of Encompass is that it lets you create rules that automate the way your company gathers information about customers and their transactions with your company. Encompass also lets agents receive screen pops and view information customers entered while using your IVR system. The system includes predictive and progressive dialing modules, as well as a module for tracking customers you're trying to reach during outbound marketing campaigns.

800-2-CINCOM/513-612-2300
www.cincom.com.

E.piphany's E.piphany E.5

With E.piphany's (San Mateo, CA) E.piphany E.5 CRM software, you can view information within your company through a Web browser. The software gathers information about your company's customers from different databases, financial systems and other third-party data sources. Besides enabling your company to create outbound telephone and e-mail campaigns, E.5 also gives customers the choice of getting in touch with your company using on-line forms, e-mail, text chat and Web callback.

Real-Time Personalization, a component of E.5, consolidates the most current information your company possesses about customers, such as their preferences, demographics, purchase histories and customer service histories. The software creates profiles from this information and lets your company apply these profiles to the way it communicates with callers and visitors to your Web site. For example, you can use this software to provide agents with onscreen sales scripts that target particular customers based on how they responded to previous campaigns.

Some of the capabilities of E.5 are the result of E.piphany's acquisition of Octane Software last year. For example, Service Portal is a module that lets customers update their profiles, search your on-line knowledge base and view the status of their orders.