Opening trouble tickets
Before TechCare added the Avaya IR systems, customers called an 800 number and pressed 1 to open a trouble ticket. The call was routed to an agent, who took information from the customer, accessed and reviewed the customer's account, discussed the problem with the customer, and scheduled a technician visit, if necessary.
With the Avaya IR systems, customers still call the 800 number, are welcomed, and press 1 to open a trouble ticket. However, call handling is automated after these initial actions, and an agent is involved only when necessary. Callers may communicate through TouchTone or by speaking their responses, which are interpreted by speech recognition. The voice response application drives the interactions:
- Recorded speech prompts ask callers to provide their account numbers, which the application uses to retrieve configuration and contact information from a data base.
- Callers are asked to select from a brief list that describes typical problems. Subsequent actions depend on their choices and on their account information:
- Callers who have Internet-related problems and have TechCare's customer as their Internet Service Provider (information gleaned from the account) are put in queue for an agent. Callers with Internet-related problems who have another ISP hear a recorded message advising them to contact their ISP for assistance.
- For callers who indicate that their systems are not operating, the application checks a database for technician availability and plays recorded speech that identifies the next available service time. Callers accept the proposed time by pressing 1 or saying, "yes" or by requesting further options. Once a service call is scheduled, the voice response application sends the data to the service application for scheduling of the call and provides the caller with a trouble ticket number.
- Callers who report installation problems with hardware or software purchased from TechCare's customer choose to leave a message or be put in queue for an agent. If callers want to leave a message, they can do so in the voice response application's mailbox. Because the voice response application interacts with Avaya Interaction Center's EDU data base, messages can be accessed or included in future transactions by Avaya Interaction Center.
- Callers who report less-serious problems are offered the choice of IVR assistance or talking to an agent only if they are gold or platinum level customers. Customers below the gold or platinum level may listen to Frequently Asked Questions, visit the support page of the website, or leave a message for a technician to return their call within 24 hours.
