Syntellect Lets Parts Buyers Serve Themselves Via the Telephone Using Speech Recognition
PHOENIX, Ariz.--April 22, 2002--Syntellect Inc. , a global leader in speech-enabled customer, employee and supply chain self-service software solutions and hosted services, today announced that JC Whitney has awarded Syntellect a three-year contract to design, deploy and host a Vista Interactive Media Response (IMR) solution. The new solution will complement the company's current methods of providing order status and taking catalog requests through their call center and Web site, thereby enabling JC Whitney to improve customer service and reduce operating costs while providing millions of customers with easy access to "everything automotive." The Vista IMR solution, which will be hosted at Syntellect's hosted services center in suburban Atlanta, will securely give prospective customers using a telephone the ability to order catalogs and check order status."JC Whitney has enjoyed great success over the past 87 years selling our products through catalogs. Several years ago we introduced JCWhitney.com, offering these same products online," said Mike Woltering, vice president of Operations for JC Whitney. "Our customers have responded very positively to online service options, and we expect this new speech-recognition system will give our customers additional convenience and alternative service options, while we reduce our operating costs."
Over the past few years, call centers have been adding additional customer contact channels -- such as Web sites, e-mail and text chat -- with varying degrees of success. In a May 2001 study, industry analyst Gartner Group measured the average cost per contact and reported dramatic savings for self-service channels versus agent-assisted channels. In that report the average cost per contact for Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems was $0.45 compared to $5.50 for agent-assisted calls.
"Many calls from our customers are of a routine nature and don't really need detailed agent assistance," said Ladona Hiell, director of Customer Relations for JC Whitney. "The new system will enable many customers to serve themselves, thus freeing up time for agents to assist customers who need help to complete more complicated transactions, or inquire about the specifics of a certain part or manufacturer. We really like the new name and address capture capability using speech recognition. Our callers can phone us and request that a catalog be mailed to them without the assistance of an agent. This system will significantly reduce expenses and allow our agents to better serve our callers."
Syntellect has the unique ability to deploy the open, flexible, client/server Vista IMR software platform in a hosted services environment, at a customer's premise, or a combination of both. Syntellect's 5,000 port inbound and outbound telephony infrastructure -- located in a telecom network point of presence (POP) facility -- provides a reliable, secure, readily available network with assured capacity. Syntellect offers a full suite of interactive media response solutions for new and existing Vista IMR clients. Service bureau solutions include call overflow, credit card processing, and direct-to-consumer applications such as lead capture, dealer locator and survey completion. Outsourced solutions include backup and hot site disaster recovery and the ability to fully outsource an interactive media response solution.
"We're pleased that JC Whitney's first telephone-based customer self-service offering will use our Vista IMR solution," said Jim Scharpf, vice president of Sales for Syntellect. "The customer has signed a long-term contract with Syntellect for us to host their application in our service center, and they have the option to take it on premise and manage the application themselves at the end of the contract, after the investment has paid for itself. They liked the ability to pay for the solution on a monthly basis, primarily from their operating cost savings. JC Whitney and many other customers clearly value the flexibility of being able to deploy our solution on their premises, within Syntellect's hosted services facility, or a combination of both. It's a significant reason customers buy from Syntellect," Scharpf added.
About Syntellect Inc.
Founded in 1984, Syntellect has sold more than 6,000 interactive voice response systems in 55 countries. Vista, our fourth-generation voice processing software platform, is the only open standards, Windows NT/Java and VoiceXML platform available from a major supplier. Our products improve total enterprise responsiveness with speech recognition that allows customers, employees, suppliers and investors real-time access to business information, self-service applications and online transactions wherever they reside via phone, fax, e-mail or the Web. Designed to be deployed on our customers' premises, within Syntellect's hosted service facility, or a combination of both, our technology and systems integration expertise help the enterprise take advantage of speech recognition solutions that increase customer satisfaction, deliver incremental revenue, reduce costs, and enhance employee productivity. For solutions that talk, talk to Syntellect. Call us in the US at 1.800.788.9733, or in the UK +44 (0) 1628 897500, or visit us on the Web at www.syntellect.com.
About JC Whitney
More than 80 years since Israel Warshawsky began recycling used auto parts, the Warshawsky/JC Whitney Company has grown to be the largest direct marketer of auto parts and accessories. Through a growing family of catalogs, http://www.jcwhitney.com and a new outlet store, millions of customers have easy access to "everything automotive." Call us at 1-800-529-4486 to order a catalog or place an order.
This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, technological or market changes that affect the use of telecommunications or interactive media response technology, dependence on maintaining and improving current products and services and developing new products and services, the loss of licenses for technology embedded in our products, the loss of key personnel and the inability to attract additional skilled personnel, and other additional cautionary factors discussed in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.