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Dietz & Watson
A Call to Action!
Dietz & Watson employs iNspire to meet increased outbound call center activity
Anticipating growth in the Southwest and opening a distribution center in Greenville, South Carolina, Dietz & Watson needed to update their customer service order system. With a nationwide clientele of many well-known supermarkets and restaurants selling both their branded and private label gourmet deli products, Dietz & Watson, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based manufacturer, was expanding their sales and wanted their order system to be a reflection of the top-quality meats and cheeses they sell.
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Rich Piasecki, a member of Dietz & Watson's IT department, clearly saw the need for a more productive, organized, efficient outbound call order process. After extensive research, he narrowed it down to either a PC-based system, or iMessaging's System i-based iNspire Call Center Suite with the added capability of agent outbound dialing. He found iMessaging through Barb Neels at Machines & Media, a trusted consultant and IBM business partner. As an RPG programmer, and overseeing an IT group dedicated to the System i, Piasecki preferred iMessaging's product, as it would more easily integrate with their environment. As well, the iMessaging team was upfront regarding their solutions capabilities and took the time to understand Dietz & Watson’s requirements.
After making the decision to go with iMessaging, Piasecki and the iMessaging staff met to compose the programming plan. Piasecki was pleased with iMessaging’s ability to "completely understand the process as well as all the exceptions to the rules. That made the implementation and testing go very smoothly." iMessaging's project management and installation services were very helpful and, according to Dietz & Watson staff, the timetable that iMessaging laid out for the project was spot on. "iMessaging is the only vendor we've worked with that completed what they said they would, on time," states Piasecki. "We're not used to that type of promptness!"
"Because of iNspire, we are able to give our CSRs more responsibilities because they are much more efficient. In turn, the CSR’s efficiency allows us to grow our business and bring on more customers"
— Rich Piasecki, Dietz & Watson
Prior to the iNspire system, Dietz & Watson's CSRs relied on daily printouts from the system to determine the CSRs call list for the day. This way of contacting customers was problematic for a number of reasons. First, manually making the outgoing calls sometimes resulted in misdialed phone numbers, wasted time and additional phone costs. The CSRs had to make handwritten notes on whom they needed to call back, what the customer wanted to order, etc. They didn't have the capability of knowing what the customer previously ordered, nor did they have the ability to make suggestions on alternative products or to alert the customer of upcoming specials. Finally, orders had to be hand-entered into the computer, taking time and leaving room for keyboarding errors.
According to Linda Lewis, Dietz & Watson's Call Center Associate, the iNspire system allows the agents to use headsets rather than handsets, and all they need to do to dial a phone number is push a button on their computer screen. "Now, we just put our headset on and dial. No more misdials or redials and all our solutions are integrated with easy access." Today, all calls are prioritized so the CSRs simply follow the System i-generated screen and dial. If a customer isn't available and they leave a voicemail or if they prefer to be called back at a certain time, CSRs can indicate that in the system along with specific notes and they’ll be automatically prompted to call back at a convenient time. Lewis and her fellow CSRs then get a System i-based screen pop with all the applicable information needed when it is time to call back.
With iNspire’s Directed Dialer function, all CSRs have control over the priority screen. When a call is connected, a screen pops to a new order entry screen showing past orders, featured products, specials available, etc. Having this information at the agent's fingertips allows them to better service the customer and increase sales and upsells. Every call scheduled is serviced because the system tracks all complete and incomplete calls - there is no concern about a missed order. If a customer has called back and leaves a voicemail, CSRs are notified with an iNspire popup box to ensure that they receive the message in a timely fashion and return the calls promptly.
Currently, Dietz & Watson has 4 CSRs that each complete about 80 calls per day. Previously, these 4 CSRs completed a total of 53 calls per day. The increase is attributed to more efficient CSRs and more stores/chains serviced. Overall, the iNspire Call Center Suite with Directed Dialer has been a wonderful addition to the Dietz & Watson customer service center. Call center productivity can be monitored by management, and the CSR’s jobs are easier because they have everything they need at their fingertips. "Because of iNspire, we are able to give our CSRs more responsibilities because they are much more efficient. In turn, the CSR’s efficiency allows us to grow our business and bring on more customers," Piasecki enthuses.