11 Sept 2011
Expert System and Assist, the leading professional services provider specializing in technology innovation for improving and managing sales, today announced the development of an innovative SMS based customer service solution. Vodafone Italy is the first major company to adopt this solution, utilizing it to create its customer care channel “190 SMS.” Through 190 SMS, Vodafone provides customers with an innovative, more efficient form of interaction, and improves their access to services through a natural, convenient interface that allows customers to send a free SMS with the same ease and natural language they would use with a friend. For example:
I want to configure my Nokia 5220 to send MMS.
I’m going on holiday in Croatia. How much will I pay to make calls?
Assist looked to Expert System to provide the semantic self-help functionality of Cogito Answers to support customer service. When a user sends an SMS to 190, Cogito Answers interprets and categorizes the content of the request and quickly retrieves the relevant answer from the knowledge base.
“The service has been very positively received by our customers,” said Manlio Costantini, Director of Customer Operations and Online Services at Vodafone Italy. “Since our start in April, we are already handling more than half a million SMS requests each month. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of our multi-channel competence center, which is based on shared values, skills and strategies with partners, and innovation that drives the industry.”
Fradiani Franco, CEO of Assist Spa, added that “The 190 SMS solution that we have achieved with Expert System and are developing with Vodafone Italy is a very concrete example of our innovative approach to business services. The value we bring to our customers is not only based on good operating performance but also on the combination of innovative ideas and technological solutions that will make them readily available.”
“We are seeing an increasing focus and interest in the potential of semantic technology to provide a high level of value for customer care and customer service challenges,” said Stefano Spaggiari, CEO Expert System. “SMS offers the most convenient and reliable method of communication at a distance, and customers appreciate being able to use this medium to get the answers and information they need at any time. Especially when they can count on superior, immediate and efficient service.”
