Rich Tehrani : Communications and Technology Blog - Tehrani.com
Rich Tehrani
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Communications and Technology Blog - Tehrani.com

| Communications and Technology Blog - Latest news in IP communications, telecom, VoIP, call center & CRM space

Call Center

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Will Nimble 2.0 take Social CRM Mainstream?

February 14, 2012

Recently consumer products manufacturer P&G – one of the largest advertising spenders at over $9B announced it will cut its marketing headcount in-part because advertising on Facebook and Google is more efficient. The maker of Gillette and Pantene products is not alone; in-fact the business world is focusing heavily on social media including Google+ and Twitter.

But while it is understood by many web-savvy companies that social is important – how many of them are embracing social CRM? My informal analysis shows the numbers are very low meaning there could be huge room for growth.

That is of course if you don’t ascribe to the idea that it is important for companies to help shape the dialogue about themselves online. More importantly, you don’t believe that tying social media into CRM systems can boost sales and service levels and perhaps even increase productivity.

One person who believes in the power of social CRM is Nimble founder and CEO Jon Ferrara. Around 1991 or so he told me at a dinner that his new company contact management/CRM company Goldmine has lots of potential because, “There is no Lotus in the market.” Ironically, Goldmine did in fact become a major player in the space while Lotus faded from the scene.

Last year Nimble rolled out its initial cloud-based social CRM solution and there are now 30,000 users and 3,000 of them spend almost half their day on the platform.

Posted in Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cloud Computing, Conference, Facebook, Google, Marketing, Microsoft, Networking, SaaS, Technology, Twitter, Unified Communications
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Need a New Car? Win a Mustang at ITEXPO in Miami Next Week

January 27, 2012



I think I may have one of the best jobs in the world. I admit it is a bit ADHD-inducing as I get involved in lots of areas from new media to the latest technologies in the market as I run this major media company which is TMC. Not only do I get help influence tens of millions of people online I also get to host live events where I meet many of the readers who frequent my blog and TMCnet - the main web portal of TMC where I am CEO.

But the most exciting part of my job comes twice a year when I give away a car to an unsuspecting attendee at ITEXPO. Next week - Friday Feb 3rd at 1:45 pm at the Miami Beach Convention Center, I get to give the next car away and it will be a Ford Mustang.
Posted in 4G, 4GWE, AT&T, Amazon, Android, Apple, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cisco, Cloud Computing, Communications Developer, Conference, Conferencing, Consumer Electronics, E-Commerce, FCC, Fax, HD Voice, IP Communications, ITEXPO, M2M, MSP, Microsoft, Open Source, SIP, Skype, Speech Technologies, Super WiFi, TMC Team, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, Video, VoIP, Wireless

ITEXPO East 2012 Miami Schedule

January 25, 2012

One of the most frequent question I get regarding TMC’s ITEXPO which takes place next week in Miami – is with all that is going on – how do you make a decision as to which parts of the show to attend. Truth be told I believe the event and its collocated conferences and educational sessions rivals just about any other tech show in terms of education.

Some of the hot topics to be discussed include not only general communications and technology but 4G wireless, mobility, Asterisk, open source, business video, the channel, cloud computing and communications, HTML5, Mobile Latin America communications, M2M, technology patents, the MSP market, Super WiFi/white spaces and much more.

The following is a list of important details you will need to help navigate ITEXPO East 2012 Miami. I warn you – this is a subset of what is happening. To keep you posted on not only these items but other important events at the show please follow @itexpo on Twitter and turn on mobile notifications – it is pretty simple – just follow the menu below.

Posted in 4G, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, Call Center, Cisco, Cloud Computing, Communications Developer, FCC, Google, IP Communications, ITEXPO, M2M, SIP, SaaS, Skype, Speech Technologies, Super WiFi, Technology, Twitter, Video, VoIP, Wireless

Avaya's Top Communication Trends in 2012

December 16, 2011

Recently I had a chance to have an in-depth conversation with Avaya about the trends they see for 2012 in the communications space. In particular I spoke with George Humphrey a Director and Line of Business Owner at Avaya and Diane Royer, Senior Marketing Services Manager.

The trends below are at times augmented or enhanced with my thoughts.

1) Mobility raises the expectation of availability

Voice is morphing in the enterprise and becoming more consumer-driven and as a result everyone is connected at all times and moreover everyone wants immediate action. Consumers want to know right away if that widget on the website is compatible with European power or if the red color of the lamp online is closer to burgundy, beet or pomegranate.

Consumers are walking around with smartphones today that are the computing equivalent of supercomputers of a few decades back. This means we not only can do anything anywhere from a voice and data perspective, we will need to in order to maintain our customers and jobs.

Posted in 4G, AT&T, Amazon, Android, Apple, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cisco, Cloud Computing, Communications Developer, Conference, Consumer Electronics, FCC, Facebook, Financial, Gadget, Google, IP Communications, ITEXPO, Microsoft, SIP, Speech Technologies, Technology, Twitter, Unified Communications, Video, Virtual Worlds, VoIP, Wireless, iPad

With Rypple Acquisition Salesforce on Track to be Cloud-Based Oracle

December 16, 2011

In the early nineties I was and SQL programmer in a market dominated by companies like Oracle and Informix. At the time these database companies stuck to their core competency. Fast forward a few decades and Oracle sells software in virtually every space. Moreover they are a revenue generating machine as they have gobbled up so many companies; there are few other choices in the market.

Posted in CRM, Call Center, Cloud Computing, Google, Patent, Technology, Wireless

Will Rockit Redefine Social CRM?

November 18, 2011

What happens when you merge social CRM, location based marketing, mobile marketing, loyalty rewards and targeted social marketing? The answer is Rockit – a new company whose goal is to prove to the world that managing customers in the new multichannel, multimedia world is far from “rocket science” (get it?).

The company provides a loyalty-enabled platform allowing customers to sign up for offers in categories of interest or by company and these companies can use the platform to track customer loyalty, communicate and push out special offers and incentives.

Lest you get this concept confused with daily deal type solutions which give deep discounts, the idea here is the exact opposite… It is to create a VIP program which appeals to your best customers and to get more people to become VIPs.

 

Once a customer is connected to a company they are able to instantly communicate with the organization regarding anything. Let’s say they had a burnt pizza come to their table – they can immediately launch the mobile app and send a verbal complaint to the company. The company can see immediately that a very loyal customer just had a poor experience and can respond with an offer, apology or whatever they need to do to keep this customer happy.

Founder and CEO of Rockit, Roger Toennis explained the platform is like a closed-loop Yelp with multimedia. He also told me it's like a modern social PBX.

Posted in Apple, CRM, Call Center, Cloud Computing, Facebook, IP Communications, Technology, Unified Communications, Video, VoIP, Wireless
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Will Call Center Gamification Increase Productivity?

November 11, 2011



Recently I had a chance to speak with Oscar Giraldo and Ariel Cordiviola Palaia the CPO of Arcaris regarding his company’s new contact center performance management software named PLAYCALL which “gamifies” performance allowing agents to see how their performance ranks among others at the company. By utilizing KPIs set by the company, a worker can see their progress or lack thereof and can react accordingly. The company says its system will reduce turnover and it even has a widget which agents can look at to see progress.

Agents can also communicate with their supervisor and receive awards based on achievement.

Posted in CRM, Call Center, Social Networking, Technology
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Plantronics Headset Line Exudes UC Dominance

November 3, 2011

Recently I received a care package from Plantronics with a number of their headsets and other products and when I opened the box it served as a not so subtle reminder of just how dominant the company is. Back in 1982 when my company TMC (I am CEO) launched the first magazine in the call center space, Plantronics was one of the few companies in the market and almost 30 years later they have evolved into an organization delivering unified communications endpoints for virtually every segment of the market.

Blackwire C435

Case in point is the Blackwire C435, a small, lightweight corded stereo headset with microphone which comes with a travel pouch. The sound drivers are relatively large yet fit in the ear comfortably due to a clever design. Moreover they deliver crisp sound and the microphone extends to your mouth allowing you to be heard clearly.

Posted in 4G, AT&T, Apple, Broadband, Call Center, Cisco, Conference, Consumer Electronics, Gadget, IP Communications, SIP, Skype, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, VoIP, Wireless

TMC Covering Cloud, 4G and Open-Source This Week

October 24, 2011

Quite often at industry events I hear people say they can’t believe how many events TMC goes to each year and moreover,  they ask just how many conferences we cover each year. I haven’t done the math but it’s a lot. But since I was thinking about it, I figured I would share our schedule this week… To me the amount of money a company invests into the markets they serve is an important part of being successful. In other words, in order to keep our readers and viewers informed, we have to be able to cover all the important conferences in the market.

Posted in 4G, CRM, Call Center, Cloud Computing, M2M, Microsoft, Open Source, Technology, Unified Communications, VoIP
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Gary and Mary West: Improving Healthcare Through Disruption

October 19, 2011

For years, Americans have prospered like people in no other country on earth because our class-free society allowed virtually anyone with a good idea to launch a company, hire, prosper and keep the majority of the fruits of their labor. A competitive entrepreneurial culture further fostered an environment where successful businesspeople went from being entrepreneurs to serial entrepreneurs.

Even more impressive, so many of these successful businesspeople seem to reach a point in their career where they don’t feel satisfied helping society through their inventions and hiring, they want to focus on problems with society and fix them directly.

Such is the case with Gary and Mary West – two legends in the call center space as founders of West Corp. As you may know,in 1982 TMC launched the first magazine in the world in the call center space and at the time we called it Telemarketing (now Customer Interaction Solutions). Believe it or not, The term call center wasn't coined until the late eighties. And one of our areas of focus was on the outsourcing space – which at that time was virtually all done domestically in places like Iowa and Nebraska.

For decades, West Corp constantly placed high on lists of contact center outsourcing companies TMC ranked and currently employs around 35,000 people.

Posted in CRM, Call Center, Financial, Political, Technology
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