Success/Value Stories

When Toshiba America Information Systems (TAIS), a $4 billion manufacturer of business and information-oriented products, established its InTouch Center, the goal was simple: to provide world class customer service before, during, and after the sale.

The company considered the InTouch Center a critical element in moving closer to its customers; it expected to gain a competitive advantage by delivering superior service.

It was critical for the company to integrate the centers. In the past, customer contacts were managed through multiple third-party relationships established by separate marketing, sales, and technical services organizations within Toshiba. Multiple support centers and processes resulted in inefficiencies such as inconsistent service, rework between organizations, the inability to share information across groups, and a lack of customer contact information.

Toshiba engaged Centrobe, the leader in Enterprise Customer Management, to develop and operate every phase of its InTouch Center. This meant staffing and operating the center on a 7 X 24 basis, supporting inbound and outbound calling, tracking calls, fulfilling requests for literature, analyzing performance, and reporting results. Centrobe procured, deployed, and continues to manage all call center hardware, software, and Local Area Networks.

The InTouch Center opened in Irvine, Calif., in April, 1996 to handle all customer assistance, inside sales, retail support, and product support (assisting users of Toshiba notebook and desktop products) for the company’s sales and after-market groups. The center proved so successful that Toshiba opened a second center in Knoxville, Tenn., in December, 1997. Calls are automatically routed to the appropriate center and customer data is collected at all points of contact. The data then flows to a central customer database.

Toshiba found, however, that it gained additional benefits beyond increased customer satisfaction. In establishing the InTouch Center, Toshiba developed a customer database that contains information from sales, product support, and retail interactions. The company has leveraged that information to develop targeted marketing programs, correct costly product flaws, and increase sales. For example, by improving lead tracking and follow-up and making outbound calls to customers, the Center generates up to $2 million in additional revenues each month.

To effectively serve Toshiba customers, Centrobe applied the ECM methodology to reengineer the call handling process and establish four support groups as follows:

• Customer Service Process
• Retail Support
• Inside Sales Support
• Product Support

The InTouch Center dramatically achieved its objectives as follows:

Increased Sales and Support

• One time sales promotion for the inside sales team generated nearly $10 million in revenues.
• Ongoing monthly sales greater than $1 million via the inside sales customer acquisition line.
• Reduced hold time for product support line by 75% from February 1997 to February 1998.
• Reduced call blockage for product support line by 80% from February 1997 to February 1998.

Increased Productivity

• Average talk times per call on product support line fell by over 50% from February 1997 to February 1998.
• Calls handled by IVR expanded to 37% of total calls as compared to 0% only 12 months previously.

Increased Client Satisfaction

• 1997 Client Referencability Index (CRI) = 6.0) on a scale of 7.0.

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