Mobile Social Cloud CRM for smaill business , allows any business to interact with customers on any major social network , via a mobile device. The company said in a statement that the service is "so simple that any company, even one without an IT staff, can get up and running over a weekend."
With nearly a quarter of all time spent online being spent on social networks like Facebook and Twitter, has become a leader in integrating social networks into its customer service offerings.
The company envisions a scenario such as a customer posting a critical comment on Facebook about its newly purchased widget. While a desktop-based customer service worker for the widget maker might be the first stop for responding to the comment, the actual resolution might be better handled by a technical service person, who could be out in the field.
With Desk.com, that ticket can then be picked up by the technical service employee, and resolved via a mobile device. The ticket can be reassigned, have its status or priority changed, or have its customer information modified.
Hes said that, according to its data , nearly three-quarters of small businesses use mobile applications in their daily operations. With Desk.com, SMBs can use a help desk that integrates social networks, e-mail, phone and other Web components, making social networks into what the company described as "first-class citizens along with traditional support channels."
Hourly for 'Casual' Reps
He runs on any smartphone that supports HTML 5, such as Android -based devices and Apple's iPhone. Reporting includes information on how many cases customer service agents have opened, resolved, replied to, reassigned, or reopened, and a dozen pre-built reports offer such data as handling time, time to first response, and first contact resolution rate.
CRM has priced the offering to appeal to SMBs. The first seat is free, and then it's $49 per agent per month. There's also an hourly model for what the company calls "casual" customer support reps, at $1 per hour.
He is based on the technology that yours obtained when it purchased social customer service startup Assistly last fall. Assistly's product allowed companies to organize customer conversations on social networks into a to-do list, and provided tools for support staff to respond, see customer histories, automate procedures and produce analytical reports.
Social, Mobile, Simple
In our interview with Alex Bard, vice president and general manager, Bard explained this service Cloud, a key part of its "social enterprise " efforts, had previously been optimized for the mid-market and large enterprises, but his extending the cloud toward the lower end of the market.
Bard said that, in researching smaller companies' needs, Sales "kept hearing three things -- it has to be social at its core, it needs to be mobile, and it needs to be simple." He added that thousands of Assistly customers have been moved to sale, and the response has been "overwhelmingly positive."
Laura DiDio, an analyst with Information Technology Intelligence Corp., said Desk.com represents "the ultimate in the consumerization of IT, and a recognition of how we're no longer tethered to an office with a traditional PC ."
She noted that Salesforce made "a pretty quick turnaround" in readying Assistly for the new product launch, adding that the model of customer support from virtually any mobile device "will absolutely become a standard."
Monday, February 13, 2012
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Company Reimbursed Customers for Product Reviews of CRM
Online reviews of products and businesses should be taken with at least a few grains of salt, since it's usually not clear if real customers have actually posted their honest assessments. Now, a new report shows how one company compensated customers for good reviews.
As described in a story published Thursday in The New York Times, a company named VIP Deals received rave reviews online about its Vipertek black leather case for the Kindle Fire tablet on Amazon. Out of 335 reviews, 310 gave the case five stars.
'Totally Off-Base'
Following reports that VIP Deals was offering the case for free in exchange for writing a product review, the company issued a denial. The Times quotes a representative as saying via e-mail that such charges were "totally off-base."
But three customers revealed a VIP Web notice that sold the $59.99 case for $10 plus shipping. When the product arrived, an included letter offered to "refund your order so you will have received the product for free," in exchange for writing a product review for the Amazon community.
The letter did not explicitly require a five-star recommendation in order to get compensation, but it strongly hinted it wanted such a review. "We strive," the letter said, "to earn 100 percent 'FIVE-STAR' scores from you!" The customer received the product for free, regardless of what the review actually said.
VIP Deals does not have a Web site, and its street address is a mailbox drop. Possibly as a result of the adverse publicity, the product is no longer being offered on Amazon. The Vipertek Stun Gun, also made by VIP Deals, has similarly been taken down -- and which similarly had a plethora of five-star reviews.
Lucas Fayne
Federal Trade Commission rules require disclosure if there is a connection between an endorser and a seller. The FTC's associate director for advertising practices, Mary Engle, told the Times that "advertising disguised as editorial is an old problem, but it's now presenting itself in different ways." Amazon said its guidelines prohibit customers from receiving payment for their reviews.
The issue of fake online reviews is increasingly gaining attention. For instance, there's the well-known fake online reviewer Lucas Fayne. Fayne has posted many favorable reviews about building contractors on a variety of sites.
It turns out that Lucas Fayne is the placeholder name in a template for small-business owners who set up Web sites using Intuit software . A spokesperson for Intuit has told news media that the name is only given as an example in the template, and is supposed to be overwritten by a user's name accompanying an authentic review.
Consumer Reports, which takes no paid advertising, says on its Web site that there are giveaways that could indicate fake reviews.
The publication said these include multiple exclamation points and overly enthusiastic language in a posting, too many references such as "my wife" or "my family," and very detailed references to product specifications.
As described in a story published Thursday in The New York Times, a company named VIP Deals received rave reviews online about its Vipertek black leather case for the Kindle Fire tablet on Amazon. Out of 335 reviews, 310 gave the case five stars.
'Totally Off-Base'
Following reports that VIP Deals was offering the case for free in exchange for writing a product review, the company issued a denial. The Times quotes a representative as saying via e-mail that such charges were "totally off-base."
But three customers revealed a VIP Web notice that sold the $59.99 case for $10 plus shipping. When the product arrived, an included letter offered to "refund your order so you will have received the product for free," in exchange for writing a product review for the Amazon community.
The letter did not explicitly require a five-star recommendation in order to get compensation, but it strongly hinted it wanted such a review. "We strive," the letter said, "to earn 100 percent 'FIVE-STAR' scores from you!" The customer received the product for free, regardless of what the review actually said.
VIP Deals does not have a Web site, and its street address is a mailbox drop. Possibly as a result of the adverse publicity, the product is no longer being offered on Amazon. The Vipertek Stun Gun, also made by VIP Deals, has similarly been taken down -- and which similarly had a plethora of five-star reviews.
Lucas Fayne
Federal Trade Commission rules require disclosure if there is a connection between an endorser and a seller. The FTC's associate director for advertising practices, Mary Engle, told the Times that "advertising disguised as editorial is an old problem, but it's now presenting itself in different ways." Amazon said its guidelines prohibit customers from receiving payment for their reviews.
The issue of fake online reviews is increasingly gaining attention. For instance, there's the well-known fake online reviewer Lucas Fayne. Fayne has posted many favorable reviews about building contractors on a variety of sites.
It turns out that Lucas Fayne is the placeholder name in a template for small-business owners who set up Web sites using Intuit software . A spokesperson for Intuit has told news media that the name is only given as an example in the template, and is supposed to be overwritten by a user's name accompanying an authentic review.
Consumer Reports, which takes no paid advertising, says on its Web site that there are giveaways that could indicate fake reviews.
The publication said these include multiple exclamation points and overly enthusiastic language in a posting, too many references such as "my wife" or "my family," and very detailed references to product specifications.
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