Device and system to facilitate remote customer-service

Abstract

A device and system for providing customer-service over the Internet via remote browser control, text communication and two-way audio / one-way video link is disclosed. A user at a customer workstation accesses the system through a network, such as the Internet. The user is then identified by a queue manager. The queue manager then queries a customer database to determine which operators previously communicated with the user and the nature of the information previously requested. The queue manager then connects the user with operators with which the user previously communicated with. The user communicates with the operators by sending information by means of text, audio and / or video. Generally, video signals will only be sent one way from the operator to the customer. During the idle time while the user is waiting for an operator, the queue manager sends information to the user in the form of text audio and / or video relating to information which the user previously requested. The call can also be transferred from one operator to another over the data network.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 09 / 671,680 filed Sep. 28, 2000 and entitled “Device and System to Facilitate Remote Customer-Service”.FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] This invention relates to a device, system and process for facilitating remote customer service. More particularly, the present invention relates to a data transfer device to facilitate communication between a plurality of users and a plurality of human customer service representatives using text, audio, video and workspace remote-control mechanisms to improve the human-to-human aspect of the customer service experience. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] In the competitive market of internet services, from book selling to banking, from furniture selling to tax advice, customer confusion using web-tools is a large source of lost revenue. Customers engaged in online-transactions will often find themselves confused, or in doubt as to the meaning or purpose of part ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0018] A further advantage of the present invention is that the central help data base can be replaced with an operator-user data base which make the operator-user relationship the central concept. The queue management can be refined to select an operator previously used by a user, across a pool of operators for several client companies. In this way, operator-client rapport can be improved thereby facilitating remote customer services.

[0019] A further advantage of this invention is to make optimizations for the efficient and effective delivery of two-way audio / one-way video stream from the operator to the customer. The optimizations shall add realism to the portrayal of the operator via the audio / video medium. Furthermore, the user sees visual symbols identifying the status of the link, so that any missed frames, or delayed video frames will not be mistaken for operator inactivity.

[0020] Still a further advantage of this invention is to provide a queue management mechanism which allows the company or individual offering the service to customize the audio / video information displayed while the user waits for the operator. In part, this is arranged by the queue management system associating the customer identification with other aspects of customer service. For example, in a company scenario, a customer waiting for help with an income-tax form from a tax consulting firm, may see audio / video advertising the consulting firm's other services. In the case of an individual, such as a customer waiting to connect to an operator running an auction at a web-auction site, the customer may see information about the operators other auctions at that site. The contents of the audio / video stream encountered during the wait for operator period may be varied according to other customer information, such as income level, or other non-customer associated data, such as time of day, day of year, etc.

[0021] A further advantage of the present invention is that if the customer selects to wait for service, the established video feed to the customer can be used to provide the customer with topics, advice, or advertising, in full-video, relating to the service or system they are requesting help on, and relating to further environmental conditions, such as time of day, or local weather. The topics can also be queued to correspond to services that the customer may be interested in based on previous information collected on the customer. Furthermore, in addition to one-way video feeds, the link can be used for interactive customer activity, including, customer identification, completion of customer surveys, customer feedback on service, and other customer-driven activities.

[0022] It is a further object of this invention to provide a means for the operator and user to view the same browser information, without opening up the user's entire desktop or computer to the operator. This type of device and system provides a large security advantage over existing systems. The device and system allows the operator to have control and access only to a viewable portion of the user's web browser program or device. The activities of the user outside of the browser viewable area would not be known to the operator. Similarly, the operator will have no ability to influence the customer's desktop or computer or device, apart from the visible area of the browser.

[0023] It is a further object of this invention to allow the customer to continue work unimpeded once the call request has been queued. That is, once the customer has chosen to wait for an operator, and has been informed of the expected queue time, the customer can continue to use the browser to go on to other activities. When the operator is available, the queuing system will provide the operator means to navigate the user's browser back to the point where the call is made. This mechanism allows to user to spend the idle time in productive or leisurely activities at the customers discretion. The customer's satisfaction is heightened by not being forced to wait idly, as with existing multi-media call center technology.

Problems solved by technology

In the competitive market of internet services, from book selling to banking, from furniture selling to tax advice, customer confusion using web-tools is a large source of lost revenue.

Customers engaged in online-transactions will often find themselves confused, or in doubt as to the meaning or purpose of part of the process they are following.

However, in some specific fields, such as tax services, the process by its very nature cannot be simplified.

While these systems aid internet-literate customers with common problems, it often alienates novice internet users and trepidatious customers.

However, despite the obvious advantages of a multimedia call center over previous methods for providing customer help online, there are several disadvantages to the current technology.

One of the disadvantages to the existing technology arises out of the concept of a pool of help operators.

Non-multimedia help sessions, where the customer hears the call operator's voice, but does not see the operator, results in a level of impersonal service, such that the customer and operator develop very little rapport.

As a result, call centers treat the operators in an operator pool as equal resources, and attach no specific benefit to a customer talking to one operator over another.

However, customer-operator rapport takes time to develop.

However, this violates one of the basic precepts of existing call queuing systems, namely that all call operators are equivalent.

Existing queue management systems cannot take this into account, but rather simply send a customer to one of the operators in the pool each time a customer calls.

A further disadvantage of existing queue management techniques in existing multimedia call center technology is that operator queues are managed in terms of the companies for which help service is being offered, rather than being centered around the customer-operator relationship.

Therefore, prior art queue management techniques suffered for the disadvantage that they were focussed around the central help database, rather than the customer.

Another disadvantage of the existing technology is that video conferencing means employed do not take into account optimizations which can be made for one-way conferencing.

However, while the customer and operator must engage in two-way communication, there is very little value added when the operator can see the customer.

First, the rapport generated between the customer and operator is intended for the customer's benefit, so seeing the customer does not help the operator.

Secondly, the operator must access knowledge-based software and perform remote-control functions to facilitate explanations to the customer, which effectiveness would be lessened by the presence of a video feed from the customer.

Thirdly, customer privacy is impinged by the use of a customer to operator video feed.

Another disadvantage of the existing technology is that during the customer idle time, as the customer's call has been initiated, and the queue management system is locating and queuing the operator, there is no mechanism to use the captured customer data to help retain the customer during the wait period.

A further disadvantage of the existing technology as it applies to the remote control aspect of multimedia call center systems, is that existing remote-control applications allow the operator access to the entire user desktop.

Access to the entire desktop represents a security compromise that may cause many would-be-users to avoid the multimedia call center service, on grounds that relinquishing control of the desktop is too great a risk, or a violation of security policy.

A further disadvantage of the existing technology in the domain of remote control, applies to the possibility of intercepted communications between the user and the operator.

A scenario exists in the current technology whereby a third-party can intercept and monitor the application under remote-control, thereby violating the privacy of the user.

A further scenario exists whereby a malicious third-party may insert control imperatives into the communication channel between user and operator, and cause unwanted activity on the user's and operator's system, thereby compromising the security of both.

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