Web Widget for Dynamic Customer Support Channel Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Integrating customer-support resources into websites requires significant programming effort and becomes challenging due to changing availability of support channels, making it difficult to provide a coherent user experience.
Innovation Solution
A web widget system that automatically determines the availability of customer-support agents and provides either a call-related or non-call-related interface, facilitating omnichannel access through a talk embeddable service that mediates communications and consolidates requests, allowing users to choose from various support channels like phone calls, online chats, and self-service help.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If customer-support resources are integrated into websites through custom programming, then functionality and customization are improved, but programming effort and implementation complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal customer-support widget that can be deployed across multiple websites without custom programming. The widget provides omnichannel support capabilities (phone, chat, email, social media) through a single standardized integration, eliminating the need for separate custom programming for each website while maintaining full functionality and adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses template-based widget configurations that can be copied and deployed across multiple websites. The same widget code and configuration templates serve multiple clients, reducing programming effort while allowing customization through configuration parameters rather than code changes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple customer-support channels are provided, then service versatility is improved, but integration complexity and difficulty of maintaining coherent user experience increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple customer-support channels (voice, chat, email, social media) into a single unified widget interface. The widget consolidates these diverse channels into one coherent user experience, managing all interactions through a unified architecture that automatically routes requests to appropriate support agents regardless of the original channel.
Solution Approach 2:
The widget acts as an intermediary layer between users and multiple support channels. It provides a unified interface that mediates all user interactions, automatically routing requests to the appropriate backend system (voice system, chat system, email system) while maintaining consistent user experience and tracking across all channels.
3Ease of operation
If real-time availability checking is implemented, then user experience quality is improved, but system complexity and processing overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements real-time feedback loops where the widget continuously checks agent availability across all support channels and dynamically adjusts the presented options to users. The system monitors availability status and provides immediate feedback to users about which support channels are currently accessible, enabling informed user choices without manual intervention.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for providing customer-support services to a user of a website through a web widget. When the user accesses a web page containing the web widget, a call is automatically made from the web widget to a customer-support system. In response to the call, the system obtains status information from the customer-support system indicating whether customer-support agents are available to take telephone phone calls. If the status information indicates customer-support agents are available to take telephone calls, the web widget provides a call-related interface to the user, wherein the call-related interface is configured to facilitate a telephone call with a customer-support agent. If the status information indicates customer-support agents are not available to take telephone calls, the web widget provides a non-call-related interface to the user, wherein the non-call-related interface is configured to facilitate an alternative channel of customer support that does not involve a telephone call.