Small Retailer Turns to Avaya IP Office to Meet Big Business Customer Service Demands of Cyber Monday
BASKING RIDGE, NJ--(Marketwire - November 24, 2008) - This holiday season, the ability to deliver great customer service could be the key factor in determining which online retailers grow their sales and succeed in a tough economic environment.
A retailer that is well prepared for this holiday season is New York City-based Eyes, Lips, Face (e.l.f.) (www.eyeslipsface.com), a leading online cosmetics retailer and small-medium enterprise (SME) that relies on Avaya Internet protocol (IP) communications to help keep customers satisfied and sales rising all year round -- and during the holidays.
e.l.f. has grown its online business by letting consumers purchase high-quality cosmetics, including lipstick, eyeliner and blush, at a discount and in convenient and affordable packages. As the company continued to attract business -- growing significantly to attract hundreds of thousands of customers -- it faced customer service challenges due to its use of an outsourced call center based on the other side of the country. e.l.f. realized it would have to gain greater control over its contact center if it was going to have more efficient operations and satisfied customers.
Improvements took hold when e.l.f. implemented an Avaya IP Office software platform, which is an IP communications solution for small and medium enterprises. ICCS & Co., LLC (ICCS), an Avaya SMB Expert BusinessPartner that manages information technology for e.l.f., recognized the challenges at hand and recommended and implemented Avaya IP Office for the online retailer, which enabled e.l.f. to bring its contact center operations in-house. The first improvement was speedier service, as customer inquiries got routed swiftly to the right agents with minimal hold time. This enhanced customer satisfaction and increased sales by helping deliver faster answers to customer questions or sales and return inquiries with the professionalism expected of a first-class retailer.
"Our entire New York City office is just 30 people, with 20 serving as dedicated customer service agents," said Joe Shamah, president of e.l.f. "But even though we are a small enterprise, we have big business demands all year round, 24/7, and we approach our customer service in that manner."
Savings and efficiencies in e.l.f.'s customer operations also improved significantly, as it cut its expenses related to contact center outsourcing by 80 percent. Additionally, the reporting capabilities of Avaya IP Office allows e.l.f. to make the best decisions regarding its customer service resources. Reporting gives e.l.f. a better view of the quality of its agent interactions with customers, and allows them to more effectively assess which resources are required and where.
Ramping up for a hectic and unpredictable holiday season
e.l.f.'s focus on customer service grows more intense upon the arrival of Cyber Monday, the first Monday after Thanksgiving weekend that is regarded as the kickoff of the holiday shopping season for online retailers. While this year's holiday shopping season could be tougher than usual due to the economy, e.l.f.'s combination of low prices and high quality actually attracts greater customer attention to its Web store, necessitating a flexible operation that can be quickly modified to meet any holiday shopping scenario.
"Avaya IP Office gives us the best way to handle the rigorous and unpredictable communications workloads of this holiday season," adds Shamah. "For example, the system's 'hot desking' feature lets us have new agents log into existing communications set ups, so if we need to increase a shift from 8 hours a day to 16 hours, we can let one agent leave and another one come in using the same set. This keeps business flowing even as customer inquiries are peaking."
Routing customers to the right expert is particularly essential during the holiday shopping season. Avaya IP Office helps ensure that questions -- ranging from cosmetics advice and color choices to the status of orders -- get routed to the best available expert with minimum wait times. This can help boost return customer visits, improve sales, and even reduce losses from product returns, since agents are more readily available to provide instructions, tips or alternatives for products being considered for purchase or return.
Another essential strategy that e.l.f. can now take advantage of is the ability to expand or contract agent resources based on the shifting demands of the holiday shopping activity. With Avaya IP Office in house, e.l.f. has a flexible IP platform to add temporary customer care agents as required for the holiday season. These new agents can be set up quickly, and easily trained to handle customer inquiries, new promotions or other customer service aspects of e.l.f.'s holiday selling season.
Avaya business partner ICCS will play a key role in defining e.l.f.'s customer service strategy for this year's holiday selling season.
"We trust ICCS with our Information Technology management, and the fact that they are an Avaya BusinessPartner made our decision to go with IP Office easy," said Shamah. "Along with our IT, ICCS manages our Avaya IP Office solution with great efficiency, enabling us to focus our full attention on our business, and give us peace of mind as we embark on the upcoming holiday season."
About Avaya
Avaya delivers Intelligent Communications solutions that help companies transform their businesses to achieve marketplace advantage. More than 1 million businesses worldwide, including more than 90 percent of the FORTUNE 500®, use Avaya solutions for IP Telephony, Unified Communications, Contact Centers and Communications-Enabled Business Processes. Avaya Global Services provides comprehensive service and support for companies, small to large.
For more information visit the Avaya Web site: http://www.avaya.com.
About ICCS
ICCS has been serving the small and mid size business community for more than 15 years and is proud to offer complete IT and telecom solutions to businesses in any industry. ICCS works with businesses to understand their individual needs and design a technology and communications program that best matches those requirements. ICCS strives to present the most cost-effective technology and telecom options for a business, and helps companies of all sizes grow by providing cutting-edge solution design, implementation, and award winning support.
For more information, visit the ICCS Web site: www.iccsllc.com or email: alan@iccsllc.com.
Media Relations:
Jonathan Varman
908 953 6432
jvarman@avaya.com
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Sunday, August 24, 2008
ICCS & Co., LLC Is Awarded "Avaya SMB Expert" for IP Office
ICCS & Co., LLC Achieves "Small and Medium Business Expert" Distinction from Avaya
For Immediate Release: 18-Aug-2008
NEW YORK - ICCS announced today that it has been designated as a "Small and Medium Business (SMB) Expert" by Avaya Inc., a leading global provider of business communications software, systems and services.
To achieve ranking as "SMB Expert," authorized resellers who are part of Avaya's BusinessPartner program must ensure their account executives and systems engineers demonstrate proficiency in core areas that include customer support, technology knowledge and expertise, sales revenues and marketing support. The program is the first such specialized ranking established by Avaya for North America authorized resellers in its BusinessPartner program who serve the SMB market. It includes training that focuses on IP telephony and Avaya solutions, sales and technical training on Avaya IP Office, Avaya's leading IP telephony solutions for small and medium businesses. IP Office is a secure, intelligent, and easy-to-use converged voice and data system designed especially for small and medium businesses. Avaya has sold more than 131,000 IP Office solutions to companies around the world.
ICCS sells Avaya communications systems, design and implementation services to businesses across the country with a focus on the New York and New Jersey Metro areas. ICCS specializes in solutions geared towards businesses with 10 to 500 employees.
"Small and medium size businesses benefit from Avaya's focus on convergence," said Isaac Braca, CEO, ICCS. "ICCS focuses on both IT and telecom solutions and has amassed much experience in IP networking technologies. Convergence allows us to combine the best of IT with the best of telephony and deliver cost effective solutions to our clients. Avaya is ahead of the curve when it comes to delivering advanced IP based communication systems and we are proud to be an Avaya BusinessPartner."
ICCS has consistently been recognized for excelling in sales in the New York region, which is a highly competitive market.
ICCS sponsors an Avaya Resource Center on its web site, which features resources to help educate small and medium businesses about convergence and the Avaya IP Office platform.
Visit the ICCS Avaya Resource Center at www.iccsllc.com/avaya.
"Smaller companies need crystal clear information on the capabilities of IP communications and the difference it can make to the way they operate their businesses, because whatever change they make can have a huge effect on their bottom line," said Trevor Gruenewald, vice president, North America sales channel for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs), Avaya. "Authorized resellers in the Avaya BusinessPartner program who achieve 'SMB Expert' status are sending a message to their clients that they have the professional and technical expertise that's honed for the smaller and medium firms. Because ICCS is now qualified as an 'SMB Expert,' they have increased credibility with their SMB clients, and it reaffirms ICCS's commitment to excellence in serving small and medium firms with the highest standards and with the communications solutions from Avaya specifically designed to meet SMB needs."
About AvayaAvaya delivers Intelligent Communications solutions that help companies transform their businesses to achieve marketplace advantage. More than 1 million businesses worldwide, including more than 90 percent of the FORTUNE 500®, use Avaya solutions for IP Telephony, Unified Communications, Contact Centers and Communications-Enabled Business Processes. Avaya Global Services provides comprehensive service and support for companies, small to large. For more information visit the Avaya Web site: http://www.avaya.com/.
About ICCSICCS has been serving the small and mid size business community for more than 15 years and is proud to offer complete IT and telecom solutions to businesses in any industry. ICCS works with businesses to understand their individual needs and design a communications program that best matches those requirements. ICCS strives to present the most cost-effective telecom options for a business, and helps companies of all sizes grow by providing cutting-edge solution design, implementation, and support.
# # #
For Immediate Release: 18-Aug-2008
NEW YORK - ICCS announced today that it has been designated as a "Small and Medium Business (SMB) Expert" by Avaya Inc., a leading global provider of business communications software, systems and services.
To achieve ranking as "SMB Expert," authorized resellers who are part of Avaya's BusinessPartner program must ensure their account executives and systems engineers demonstrate proficiency in core areas that include customer support, technology knowledge and expertise, sales revenues and marketing support. The program is the first such specialized ranking established by Avaya for North America authorized resellers in its BusinessPartner program who serve the SMB market. It includes training that focuses on IP telephony and Avaya solutions, sales and technical training on Avaya IP Office, Avaya's leading IP telephony solutions for small and medium businesses. IP Office is a secure, intelligent, and easy-to-use converged voice and data system designed especially for small and medium businesses. Avaya has sold more than 131,000 IP Office solutions to companies around the world.
ICCS sells Avaya communications systems, design and implementation services to businesses across the country with a focus on the New York and New Jersey Metro areas. ICCS specializes in solutions geared towards businesses with 10 to 500 employees.
"Small and medium size businesses benefit from Avaya's focus on convergence," said Isaac Braca, CEO, ICCS. "ICCS focuses on both IT and telecom solutions and has amassed much experience in IP networking technologies. Convergence allows us to combine the best of IT with the best of telephony and deliver cost effective solutions to our clients. Avaya is ahead of the curve when it comes to delivering advanced IP based communication systems and we are proud to be an Avaya BusinessPartner."
ICCS has consistently been recognized for excelling in sales in the New York region, which is a highly competitive market.
ICCS sponsors an Avaya Resource Center on its web site, which features resources to help educate small and medium businesses about convergence and the Avaya IP Office platform.
Visit the ICCS Avaya Resource Center at www.iccsllc.com/avaya.
"Smaller companies need crystal clear information on the capabilities of IP communications and the difference it can make to the way they operate their businesses, because whatever change they make can have a huge effect on their bottom line," said Trevor Gruenewald, vice president, North America sales channel for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs), Avaya. "Authorized resellers in the Avaya BusinessPartner program who achieve 'SMB Expert' status are sending a message to their clients that they have the professional and technical expertise that's honed for the smaller and medium firms. Because ICCS is now qualified as an 'SMB Expert,' they have increased credibility with their SMB clients, and it reaffirms ICCS's commitment to excellence in serving small and medium firms with the highest standards and with the communications solutions from Avaya specifically designed to meet SMB needs."
About AvayaAvaya delivers Intelligent Communications solutions that help companies transform their businesses to achieve marketplace advantage. More than 1 million businesses worldwide, including more than 90 percent of the FORTUNE 500®, use Avaya solutions for IP Telephony, Unified Communications, Contact Centers and Communications-Enabled Business Processes. Avaya Global Services provides comprehensive service and support for companies, small to large. For more information visit the Avaya Web site: http://www.avaya.com/.
About ICCSICCS has been serving the small and mid size business community for more than 15 years and is proud to offer complete IT and telecom solutions to businesses in any industry. ICCS works with businesses to understand their individual needs and design a communications program that best matches those requirements. ICCS strives to present the most cost-effective telecom options for a business, and helps companies of all sizes grow by providing cutting-edge solution design, implementation, and support.
# # #
Monday, July 7, 2008
Some of My Favorite Sites.
So here I go. Help me run with this.
These are sites I use every day. The tools and community that help myself and other Business Partners make customers success stories.
Feel free to contact myself or my firm at any time for assitance. I can be reached at braca@iccsllc.com any time.
Hope this helps...
Tek Tips - Avaya IP Office Forum
http://www.tek-tips.com/threadminder.cfm?pid=940
Avaya IP Office Knowledge Base
http://marketingtools.avaya.com/knowledgebase/
IP Office Info
http://www.ipofficeinfo.com
PBX Tech
http://www.pbxtech.info/pbx-ip_office/
These are sites I use every day. The tools and community that help myself and other Business Partners make customers success stories.
Feel free to contact myself or my firm at any time for assitance. I can be reached at braca@iccsllc.com any time.
Hope this helps...
Tek Tips - Avaya IP Office Forum
http://www.tek-tips.com/threadminder.cfm?pid=940
Avaya IP Office Knowledge Base
http://marketingtools.avaya.com/knowledgebase/
IP Office Info
http://www.ipofficeinfo.com
PBX Tech
http://www.pbxtech.info/pbx-ip_office/
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