WO2001095229A1

WO2001095229A1 - Methods and apparatuses for providing remote customer support

Info

Publication number: WO2001095229A1
Application number: PCT/US2001/004650
Authority: WO
Inventors: Russell S. Rive
Original assignee: Everdream Corp
Current assignee: Dell Marketing LP
Priority date: 2000-06-02
Filing date: 2001-02-13
Publication date: 2001-12-13
Anticipated expiration: 2002-12-02
Also published as: AU2001236980A1

Abstract

Remote customer support includes storing contact information of a remote customer and associating the contact information (315) with a support request service (310) which is accessible through the remote customer's digital processing system such that communication between a support organization (306) and the remote customer (302) can be established using the contact information and without requiring further input of information by the remote customer.

Description

METHODS AND APPARATUSES FOR PROVIDING REMOTE CUSTOMER

SUPPORT

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to customer support, and more specifically to customer support provided remotely in response to a request from a customer.

Background Information

Companies which provide services and/or products to customers are often faced with the dilemma of providing adequate customer support. If a company fails to provide adequate customer support, then its customers are likely to voice their displeasure and possibly end their business relationship with the company.

Currently, many companies that conduct business over the Internet fail to provide adequate customer support. While such companies generally do offer some form of customer support, typically in the form of an e-mail address to which questions and complaints can be sent, a response to the customer's question or complaint can often take several days or longer. In some instances, a response is never given. Even when a response is finally received by the customer, the delay in receiving the response and the fact that an e-mail response lacks a "human touch" contribute to the customer's feeling of being treated poorly by a company. Some companies that conduct business over the Internet attempt to provide more personal customer support by offering a customer support phone number. However, encountering a busy signal or being put on hold can frustrate a customer as much as waiting to receive an e- mail response from a company's customer support representative. Furthermore, dialing a customer support phone number to speak to a representative every time a problem occurs can be tedious. The above described problems are experienced by not only individual home consumers but also small businesses that do not have the resources to maintain their own technical support group. If a small business experiences a problem with a computer, for example, and the company which sold the computer to the small business cannot or does not provide prompt customer support, then the small business may not be able to operate for an extended period of time.

Providing prompt, responsive customer support can help a customer solve pressing problems more quickly and foster better relations between a company and its customers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides methods and apparatuses for providing remote customer support. In one embodiment of the present invention, a method of communication between a support organization and a remote party includes storing, on a digital processing system of the remote party, contact information of the remote party and associating the contact information with a support request service accessible through the remote party's digital processing system such that communication between the support organization and the remote party can be established using the contact information.

Additional features and benefits of the present invention will become apparent upon review of the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

, , Various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with, reference to the following drawings. The present invention is illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the accompanying figures.

Figure 1 A illustrates generally the interaction between a subscriber of a support organization and the support organization in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. Figure 1 B is a block diagram of one embodiment of an operating environment suitable for practicing the present invention.

Figure 1C is a block diagram of one embodiment of a computer system suitable for use in the operating environment of Figure 1 B.

Figure 2 illustrates one embodiment of a support application on a customer's digital processing system, where the support application may be used to access a support request service in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

Figure 3A is a diagram of one example of the interaction among a customer, a communication system and a support organization when the customer desires to establish communication with the support organization.

Figure 3B is a diagram of another example of the interaction among a customer, a communication system and a support organization when the customer desires to establish communication with the support organization.

Figure 4 is a flowchart showing one embodiment of a customer support process in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

Figure 5 is a flowchart showing another embodiment of a customer support process in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description provides embodiments of the present invention. However, it will be appreciated that other embodiments of the present invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon examination of this description. Thus, the present description and accompanying drawings are for purposes of illustration and are not to be used to construe the invention in a restrictive manner.

Figure 1 A provides a broad overview of the interaction between a system 100 of a customer/subscriber of a support organization's products and services, the World Wide Web (WWW) 104, and a system 106 of the support organization in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. A system 100, such as a personal computer or personal digital assistant, of the customer is used to initiate contact with the World Wide Web, which is navigated using a web browser on the system 100 of the customer. Contact will likely be made through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) 102. The customer may execute on system 100 a support application provided by the support organization. In one embodiment of the present invention, the support application is associated with a support request service that establishes communication between the support organization and the customer when the customer requests support via the support application. In another embodiment, system 106 of the support organization includes servers which can store contact information (e.g. telephone number, e-mail address, physical address) provided by the customer.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the support organization's system 106 is capable of providing support to the customer by accessing and controlling the customer's system 100 through WWW 104. System 100 includes various support applications and is provided to the customer by the support organization as part of the products and services offered by the support organization. The support applications on system 100 facilitate communication between the customer and the support organization by, for example, identifying the customer to the support organization. The relationship between the user and the support organization is described in greater detail in U.S. Patent Application No. 09/418,697, now U.S. Patent No. , filed on October 15, 1999, titled "Method and Apparatus for

Configuring a Hard Disk and for Providing Support for a Computer System" by Russell Rive, which is incorporated by reference herein.

The following description of Figure 1 B provides an overview of computer hardware and other operating components suitable for implementing the present invention, but it is appreciated that the applicable environments are not limited to what is shown in Figure 1 B. Figure 1 B shows several computer systems 101 coupled together through a network 103, such as a LAN or the Internet. The term "Internet" as used herein refers to a network of networks which uses certain protocols, such as the TCP/IP protocol, and possibly other protocols such as the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) for hypertext markup language (HTML) documents that make up the World Wide Web. The physical connections of the Internet and the protocols and communication procedures of the Internet are well known to those of skill in the art. Access to the Internet 103 is typically provided by ISPs, shown as 105 and 107. Users on client systems, such as client computer systems 121 , 125, 135 and 137 obtain access to the Internet 103 through ISPs 105 and 107. Access to the Internet 103 allows users of client computer systems 121 , 125, 135 and 137 to exchange information, receive and send e-mails, and view documents, such as documents prepared in the HTML format. These documents are often provided by web servers, such as web server 109 which is considered to be "on" the Internet 103. Often these web servers are provided by ISPs, although a computer system can be set up and connected to the Internet without that system being as ISP as is well known in the art.

Web server 109 is typically at least one computer system which operates as a server computer system and is configured to operate with the protocols of the World Wide Web and is coupled to the Internet 103. Optionally, web server 109 can be part of an ISP which provides access to the Internet 103 for client systems. Web server 109 is shown coupled to a server computer system 111 which itself is coupled to web content 113, which can be considered a form of a media database. It is appreciated that while two computer systems 109 and 111 are shown in Figure 1 B, web server 109 and server computer system 111 can be one computer system having different software components providing the web server functionality and the server functionality provided by server computer system 111 which is described further below.

With the appropriate web browsing software, client computer systems 121 , 125, 135 and 137 can each view HTML pages provided by web server 109. ISP 105 provides Internet connectivity to client computer system 121 through a modem or network interface 123 which can be considered part of client computer system 121. Client computer system 121 can be a personal computer system, a personal digital assistant, a network computer, a Web TV system, an Internet radio receiver, or other such computer system. Similarly, ISP 107 provides Internet connectivity for client computer systems 125, 135 and 137, although as shown in Figure 1 B the connections are not the same for these three computer systems. Client computer system 125 is coupled through a modem interface 127 while client computer systems 135 and 137 are part of a LAN. While Figure 1 B shows interfaces 123 and 127 generically as "modem," it is appreciated that each of these interfaces can be an analog modem, ISDN modem, cable modem, satellite transmission interface (e.g. "Direct PC"), or other interfaces for coupling a computer system to other computer systems. Client computer systems 135 and 137 are coupled to a LAN bus 133 through network interfaces 139 and 141 , which can be Ethernet network or other network interfaces. LAN bus 133 is also coupled to a gateway computer system 131 which can provide firewall and other Internet related services for the LAN. Gateway computer system 131 is coupled to ISP 107 to provide Internet connectivity to client computer systems 135 and 137. Gateway computer system 131 can be a conventional server computer system. Also, web server 109 can be a conventional server computer system.

Figure 1C shows one example of a conventional computer system that can be used as a client computer system, a server computer system or a web server system. It is appreciated that such a computer system can be used to perform many of the functions of an ISP. Computer system 142 interfaces to external systems through the modem or network interface 143. It is appreciated that modem or network interface 143 can be considered part of computer system 142. Interface 143 can be an analog modem, ISDN modem, cable modem, token ring interface, satellite transmission interface (e.g. "Direct PC"), or other interfaces for coupling a computer system to other computer systems. Computer system 142 includes a processor 145, which can be a conventional microprocessor such as an Intel Pentium microprocessor or Motorola Power PC microprocessor. Memory 149 is coupled to processor 145 by a bus 147. Memory 149 can be dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and can also include static random access memory (SRAM). Bus 147 couples processor 145 to memory 149 and also to mass memory 155 and to display controller 151 and to an input/output (I/O) controller 157. Display controller 151 controls in the conventional manner a display on a display device 153 which can be a cathode ray tube (CRT) or liquid crystal display (LCD). Input/output devices 159 can include a keyboard, disk drives, printers, a scanner, a mouse or other cursor control device, and other input and output devices. Display controller 151 and I/O controller 157 can be implemented with conventional well known technology. A digital image input device 161 can be a digital camera which is coupled to I/O controller 157 to allow images from the digital camera to be input into computer system 142. Mass memory 155 is typically a magnetic hard disk, an optical disk, or another form of storage for large amounts of data. Some of this data is often written by a direct memory access process into memory 149 during execution of software in computer system 142.

It is appreciated that computer system 142 is one example of many possible computer systems which have different architectures. For example, personal computers based on an Intel microprocessor often have multiple buses, one of which can be considered a peripheral bus. Network computers are another type of computer system that can be used with the present invention. Network computers do not usually include a hard disk or other mass storage, and the executable programs are loaded from a network connection into memory 149 for execution by processor 145. A Web TV system, which is known in the art, is also considered to be a computer system in accordance with the present invention, but it may lack some of the features shown in Figure 1 C, such as certain input or output devices. A typical computer system will usually include at least a processor, memory and a bus coupling the memory to the processor.

It is also appreciated that computer system 142 is controlled by operating system software which includes a file management system, such as a disk operating system. One example of an operating system software with its associated file management system software is the operating system known as Windows '98 from Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Washington, and its associated file management system, including Windows Explorer. The file management system is typically stored in mass memory 155 and causes processor 145 to execute the various operations required by the operating system to input and output data and to store data in memory, including storing files on mass memory 155.

The hardware and operating environment in conjunction with which embodiments of the present invention may be practiced has been described. It is appreciated that the present invention can be practiced with other computer system configurations, including hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like. The present invention can also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network.

Figure 2 illustrates a digital processing system 200, such as a personal computer system, of a customer of a support organization. A display device 210 of system 200 has a viewing screen 212. A toolbar 214 is visible on viewing screen 212 and includes a "Help" button 216. In one embodiment of the present invention, toolbar 214 is provided to the customer as part of system 200 and may be actively displayed on screen 212 according to the customer's preferences. Button 216 may be "pressed" or selected using an input device (e.g. mouse, keyboard, etc.) connected to system 200. Pressing button 216 causes a corresponding Help window 218 to appear on screen 212. Window 218 may feature a number of graphical representations (e.g. icons) which may be selected by the customer to access support functions. Support request icon 220 allows the customer to initiate a communication session with the support organization by pressing icon 220.

In one embodiment of the present invention, pressing icon 220 causes a contact information window (not shown) to appear on screen 212. The contact information window includes fields in which the customer is required to input information such as the customer's name, address and telephone number. After such information is submitted, it may be stored in a file (e.g. a "cookie") on system 200 and/or on a system of the support organization such that the information does not have to be entered every time icon 220 is pressed. The file may be any type of file from which information is retrievable by an application executed on a digital processing system. The customer's telephone number is then transmitted to a support request service, such as PhoneMe Ltd. of Devizes, Wiltshire County, England, so that telephone communication may be established between the customer and the support organization. It should be noted that the support request service may be part of the support organization.

In another embodiment, the contact information is submitted by the customer as part of a registration process that must be completed by the customer when the customer first uses system 200. Typically, icon 220 is not be selectable until the customer has submitted the requested contact information. After such information is submitted, it may be stored in a file as previously described. Thus, every time icon 220 is selected by the customer, the customer's telephone number is transmitted to a support request service so that telephone communication may be established between the customer and the support organization without requiring the customer to submit any further information.

Accordingly, a single press of an icon or other graphical representation on a customer's digital processing system may establish communication between the customer and the support organization which is servicing the customer.

Figure 3A is a diagram showing, generally, one embodiment of the interaction among a customer 302, a communication system 304 and a support organization 306. In operation 310, customer 302 selects a support request icon on the customer's computer system. In operation 315, at least some of the customer's contact information, such as the customer's telephone number, is automatically transmitted to communication system 304 from the customer's computer system in response to the customer's selection of the support request icon. It is appreciated that the customer's contact information may be submitted by customer 302 at a prior time or when the support request icon is selected and then stored in a file on the customer's computer system for later retrieval. Communication system 304 then opens communication channels to customer 302 and support organization 306 in operations 320 and 325, respectively, by placing separate telephone calls to customer 302 and support organization 306. Operations 320 and 325 may occur substantially concurrently, or operation 325 may occur just before operation 320 such that customer 302 is not forced to wait to speak to support organization 306. The communication channels are linked together by communication system 304 in operation 330 such that customer 302 and support organization 306 can communicate with each other by telephone. Thus, customer 302 need only select a support request icon to speak to support organization 306.

It is appreciated that communication system 304 may be any communication device and/or service or collection of communication devices and/or services which are capable of placing separate telephone calls and connecting the separate telephone calls to allow the respective parties to speak to one another.

Figure 3B is a diagram showing, generally, another embodiment of the interaction among customer 302, communication system 304 and support organization 306. In operation 350, customer 302 selects a support request icon on the customer's computer system. In operation 355, the customer's identification data (e.g. network address, name, customer number, etc.) is automatically transmitted to support organization 306 from the customer's computer system in response to the customer's selection of the support request icon. It is appreciated that the customer's identification data and contact information may be submitted by customer 302 at a prior time or when the support request icon is selected and then stored in a file on both the customer's computer system and the organization's computer system for later retrieval.

In operation 360, support organization 306 uses the customer's identification data to retrieve the customer's contact information. For example, each customer's unique identification data may be associated with each customer's contact information to allow support organization 306 to search a database using the identification data received in operation 355 and retrieve the correct contact information. In operation 360, at least some of the customer's contact information, such as the customer's telephone number, is transmitted to communication system 304 from the organization's computer system.

Communication system 304 then opens communication channels to customer 302 and support organization 306 in operations 370 and 375, respectively, by placing separate telephone calls to customer 302 and support organization 306. Operations 370 and 375 may occur substantially concurrently, or operation 375 may occur just before operation 370 such that customer 302 is not forced to wait to speak to support organization 306. The communication channels are linked together by communication system 304 in operation 380 such that customer 302 and support organization 306 can communicate with each other by telephone. Thus, customer 302 need only select a support request icon to speak to support organization 306.

Although communication system 304 and support organization 306 are shown as separate from each other, it is appreciated that communication system 304 may be included as part of support organization 306. Thus, all information may be sent to one location and a telephone call may be made automatically by support organization 306 directly to customer 302 upon detecting the customer's activation of a support request icon.

Figure 4 is a flowchart showing one embodiment of a customer support process according to the present invention. In operation 410, a subscriber of a support organization is prompted to provide contact information (e.g. name, address, telephone number, etc.) to the subscriber's digital processing system. In operation 420, the contact information is stored on the subscriber's digital processing system. For example, the contact information may be stored in an identification file (e.g. a "cookie") from which information is retrievable by an application executed on the subscriber's digital processing system. In operation 430, the contact information is associated with a support request service which is accessible through the subscriber's digital processing system. The support request service is capable of using the contact information to establish communication between the subscriber and the support organization. In operation 440, the contact information is accessed when the support request service is accessed by the subscriber to allow the support request service to use the contact information.

Figure 5 is a flowchart showing another embodiment of a customer support process according to the present invention. In operation 510, a customer of a support organization is registered on a computer system of the customer. The computer system is typically provided by the support organization to the customer as part of the services and products offered by the support organization. As part of the registration process, the customer submits a set of registration information (e.g. name, address, telephone number, etc.). In operation 520, the registration information is stored on the customer's computer system. For example, the registration information may be stored in an identification file (e.g. a "cookie") from which information is retrievable by an application executed on the subscriber's digital processing system. In operation 530, at least a portion of the registration information (e.g. telephone number) is associated with a support request graphic that is selectable on a display device of the customer's computer system. Such association allows a communication system to establish communication between the customer and the support organization when the support request graphic is selected, without requiring any further information from the customer. In operation 540, the associated portion of the registration information is accessed when the support request graphic is selected such that the communication system can use the associated portion of the registration information.

In the foregoing detailed description, the apparatus and method of the present invention have been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments. However, it will be evident that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the broader scope and spirit of the present invention. The present specification and figures are accordingly to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A method of communication between a support organization and a remote party, the method comprising: storing, on a first digital processing system of the remote party, contact information of the remote party; and associating said contact information with a support request service accessible through said first digital processing system such that communication between the support organization and the remote party can be established using said contact information.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising prompting the remote party to provide said contact information to said first digital processing system, said prompting performed before said storing.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said prompting is performed as part of a registration process between the support organization and the remote party.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein said storing comprises creating an identification file for the remote party on said first digital processing system.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising accessing said contact information from said identification file when said support request service is accessed.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising detecting accessing by the remote party of said support request service and, responsive thereto, automatically, communicating said contact information to the support organization to enable the support organization to establish a subsequent communication with the remote party.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein said contact information comprises a telephone number of the remote party.

8. The method of claim 4 wherein said contact information comprises a network address of the remote party.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein said subsequent communication is established between the support organization and the remote party without the remote party being prompted to enter said contact information when said support request service is accessed to initiate said subsequent communication.

10. A method of providing customer support from a support organization to a customer of the support organization, the method comprising: registering the customer on a first computer system of the customer; storing a set of registration information on said first computer system; and associating at least a portion of said registration information with a support request graphic selectable on a display device of said first computer system, wherein communication is established between the support organization and the customer when said support request graphic is selected, said communication being established without requiring further input of information by the customer into said first computer system.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising automatically communicating said at least a portion of said registration information to a communication system when said support request graphic is selected, said communication system establishing said communication between the support organization and the customer.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein said support request graphic is not selectable until said storing is performed.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein said registering comprises prompting the customer to submit said set of registration information to said first computer system.

14. The method of claim 10 wherein when said support request graphic is selected, the customer is not prompted to provide any information.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein said at least a portion of said registration information comprises a telephone number of the customer, and wherein said communication system establishes a telephone call between the support organization and the customer.

16. The method of claim 11 wherein said at least a portion of said registration information comprises a network address of said first computer system of the customer, and wherein said communication system establishes a network session between the support organization and the customer.

17. The method of claim 10 wherein said storing comprises creating an identification file for the customer on said first computer system.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising accessing said at least a portion of said registration information from said identification file when said support request graphic is selected.

19. A machine readable medium containing executable program instructions which when executed on a digital processing system of a subscriber of a support organization cause the digital processing system to perform a method comprising: prompting the subscriber to submit a set of contact information to the support organization, said contact information including a telephone number of the subscriber; storing said set of contact information; and associating said telephone number with a support request icon selectable on a display device of the digital processing system such that communication is established between the support organization and the subscriber using said telephone number when said support request icon is selected without requiring further input of information by the subscriber.

20. The machine readable medium of claim 19 wherein said storing comprises transmitting said set of contact information to a digital processing system of the support organization, and wherein said set of contact information is stored on said digital processing system of the support organization.