Archive for the ‘Product Support and Training’ Category
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010
We challenge ourselves continually to improve our internal processes so that we can enhance our customer service and support offering. One of our processes includes tracking our response time for support cases that are submitted to our Product and Technical Support Services Team. In January and February of this year, we opened approximately 1,000 support cases and more than 99 percent of those calls were for product configuration and implementation questions, new feature requests, and training and product upgrade queries. From the time the case was submitted, whether by voicemail, e-mail or via the web, the customer was contacted within 3 hours and most cases were resolved or closed within an hour. In addition, we’ve received 1,184 direct calls to our live Call Center. We think it’s important that our customers be able to talk with an actual person, rather than an automated system. Our 2010 statistics show those Call Center calls were answered, on average, in just under a minute, with 83 percent answered within 30 seconds.
We follow up on each closed support case with a survey sent directly to the customer, asking each customer to rank us on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being Excellent. Since the beginning of the year, 97 percent of our customers have given us a rating of 5 in regards to our response time. Ninety-seven percent of respondents gave our support technicians a ranking of 5 when it comes to technical knowledge and helpfulness.
In addition to ranking our service, many of our customers leave us messages or supporting comments that help us in evaluating our processes. Some of our customers just like to share how they feel about us. Holly Young, Event Sales Manager at Butte Creek Country Club, said, “Thank you! It’s especially nice to call the help desk and get a live person without having to wait or press a bunch of buttons on the phone!”
Thank you, Holly! It’s a pleasure serving you and all of our customers.
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010
We have some exciting things planned this year. Initiatives that are going to impact all areas of our organization and the way our customers do business. We’re focusing on customer relations and service, employee loyalty (because we happen to think our employees are some of the best out there!), and sharing more of our story with the industry.
Through this blog and other industry-related activities, you’ll be learning more about the people that make up our organization and the experience and skill they bring to the table. You’ll hear more about new services and industry partnerships that will enhance our product and service offering. And, finally, you read about the ways we’re making a difference to our customers, their guests and their bottom lines.
Keep an eye out over the next couple of weeks for a major announcement regarding our product training and support. We’re getting ready to launch a new program that is going to change the way our customers experience their ReServe Interactive software, as well as help them take their user skills to the next level.
At ReServe Interactive, change is a good thing. Especially when that change has a positive impact on the way we do business for our customers. We look forward to sharing our plans for 2010 with you, so keep tuning in!
Thursday, January 21st, 2010
According to the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, more than 343 million records with sensitive personal information have been involved in security breaches in the U.S. since January of 2005. And some statistics even claim that more than 55 percent of credit card fraud comes from the hospitality industry!* Wow. Those are some scary stats.
Today, when financial transactions are regularly conducted in an online environment, merchants can become easy targets for fraud. In many cases, it’s inadequate security on the business’s end that allows hackers to steal and use financial data from credit and debit card transactions and credit card processing systems.
With the prevalence of this type of activity, companies are scrambling to put the appropriate measures in place to protect their customers and themselves. Compliance with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS) helps to eliminate a merchant’s vulnerabilities and protect important consumer data. Those companies that fail to fulfill the PCI compliance requirements and put the proper levels of protection in place can face massive fines, increased credit card processing fees, the inability to accept payment cards at all, and ultimately, closure – all devastating consequences.
Many of our customers, from hotels to restaurants, and caterers to convention centers, routinely gather, process and store sensitive customer financial data. Whether it’s using a consumer’s credit card to secure a deposit for an event, book a reservation, or simply pay an invoice, our customers are responsible for making sure that the financial data their guests share remains secure.
As their business partner, we are committed to providing them with the tools they need to become, and remain, PCI compliant. We understand the risks and the long lasting effects of non-compliance and we are not willing to take any chances.
*The PCI Compliance Process for Hotels, American Hotel & Lodging Association
Monday, November 23rd, 2009
Since 1996, our customer service strategy has involved listening to our customers’ needs and desires to develop a software product that meets their short and long-term business goals.
As software developers, we could lock ourselves into our offices and focus on developing technologies with all of the ‘techie’ bells and whistles that we deem to be important or seem just plain fun to include. However, that would be a disservice to our customers. They have technology requirements that are specific to their roles, venues, markets and business processes. If we fail to acknowledge those needs and only build the software we want to build, then we fail our customers on many levels.
To ensure we are developing a useful software product, we combine our expertise with the customer input we continuously gather regarding all areas of our customers’ business. Through user groups, ongoing surveys, one-on-one conferences, training sessions and online contributions, we evaluate our customers’ needs and requests to enhance the software, and then incorporate that input to create new releases throughout year.
After listening to our customers for 13 years, we found early on that they needed a tool that was easy to implement and integrate into their existing processes and systems, easy for all levels of staff to train on, and easy to use. They wanted to be up and running as quickly as possible with little time taken away from their core business activities. In addition, they didn’t want to have to navigate through multiple screens and databases for the information they needed at a moment’s notice. They wanted to focus on their customers, not be focused on a computer screen trying to figure out how to locate customer data. They also wanted comprehensive reporting tools that gave them information with the click of a button rather than spending hours trying to figure out how to gather that data and pull it together into a digestible format.
Finally, users have told us over and over again that they want tools that improve, rather than detract from, their bottom line. They don’t want to invest in additional hardware, special services or pay expensive transaction fees. They want something they can easily access via the web or have installed directly onto hardware they already own.
Their detailed input has allowed us to create the software platform we have available today. But reaching that goal hasn’t stopped us from continuing to listen to our customers’ needs and develop our product accordingly. We understand that in a competitive marketplace our customers’ business needs are constantly changing. We’re committed to providing a tool that is constantly evolving to meet those ever-changing market demands to help ensure their business success.
Winston Churchill said “If we are together nothing is impossible. If we are divided all will fail.” Yes, we are a software provider, but more importantly, we are a partner and our customers’ success is paramount to our own.
Thursday, November 12th, 2009
Every day I take calls from prospective customers asking me questions about our software and the other services we offer. Lately, a lot of people want to know about ReServe Anywhere® and what makes a hosted solution different from a client server application like ReServe Desktop. Basically, it comes down to this – ReServe Desktop is installed via CD-Rom directly onto your existing PCs or network. ReServe Anywhere® is web-based and remotely accessed through a password-protected Internet connection. We host it on secure, centralized servers. ReServe Anywhere users can manage their business and access real-time company information from anywhere at any time. Having a high speed internet connection is the only requirement. We take care of upgrades, support, backups and a highly redundant environment.
People also want to know what makes us different from other hospitality management software systems out there. Well, from a software standpoint, our products let users manage their operations on an enterprise level. We have customers with two units and customers with 200 units. No matter what their size, our software lets them centrally manage and report on activity across all of their locations. We’re also built on an intuitive platform, which means that the software is designed to do the thinking for our customers. It’s designed to follow the logic they would use to book an event or capture a reservation. It was developed from the users’ perspective rather than from a software company’s perspective. We also use customer input to help us enhance our products’ functionality and benefits.
From a company standpoint, I’d like to think that our customer service stands above the rest. We still believe in a handshake and a voice at the other end of the line. Our goal has always been to make our customers’ lives easier, so providing them with hands-on training and live support is just as important as the features our software offers.
When people ask us what makes us different, we like to let our customers do the talking for us.
“Our experience thus far with ReServe, as far as timely support and response, has been nothing short of exemplary, right from sales through to planning and IT. Thank you from our team for making this implementation so painless!” Christie Penner from The Charcoal Group of Restaurants.
Wednesday, November 4th, 2009
One of the most satisfying parts of my job is training new ReServe users. There’s something about getting down in the trenches with our customers and showing them how our software works to immediately make an impact on their processes. Watching things click and experiencing that ‘ah ha’ moment is so much fun.
A long time ago, we agreed that our software was only going to be a worthwhile investment for our customers if they saw results right away. In order to do that, we needed to provide things like hands-on, customized training. As a result, sometimes we’ll travel to a customer’s facility; sometimes we’ll do web-based conferences; and sometimes we’ll do one-on-one training with individual employees. Whatever the training requirements, our goal is to make implementation as seamless as possible, as well as make using the product second nature to our customers.
This past summer, we completed the installation of ReServe Anywhere® at the Treasure Island Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. I was part of a team of ReServe personnel that traveled to Las Vegas to train the staff. Once there, everything just seemed to gel. Our team was on task, the Treasure Island users were excited and focused. Everything went smoothly and soon everyone was up and running.
There’s always electricity in the air during these on-site trainings. As a team, we’re ready to dive in and do whatever we can to get users up-to-speed. We know their time is valuable and, in many cases, their work continues to pile up while they’re attending training. We hope that once the training is complete, the time they’ve taken away from their daily tasks was worth it and the competencies they’ve gained with ReServe can be put to use immediately to get them back on track and make them more productive.
After the installation at Treasure Island was complete, Monica Dorsey, the Vice President of Food & Beverage, sent us a note that said, “Through customizing the software to installation and training the Reserve team was on property supporting the process from start to finish. This has been one of the most efficient business implementations I have experienced.”
The Treasure Island implementation was a fantastic experience for us. We’ve had similar experiences training customers from all segments of the hospitality industry. And, while training is but a portion of what we do, it’s a very satisfying, energizing part of our offering.
Wednesday, October 28th, 2009
Vince Lombardi once said “The achievements of an organization are the result of the combined effort of each individual.” This is especially true for us.
Since our inception, we have been fortunate to have dedicated, hard working employees who have gone above and beyond any job description to serve our customers and represent ReServe Interactive. Each individual has committed themselves to our mission of creating best-in-class technology solutions that significantly improve our customers’ everyday lives. The result of their commitment is 13 years of growth and success, as well as a willingness by our customers to regularly compliment our staff on their customer service and technical expertise.
For example, customers have sent us notes saying things like:
“Support staff are ALWAYS timely, helpful, and kind. ReServe has wonderful support services!”
“You guys have been so attentive and aware of our needs and I can’t thank you enough for your time, energy and patience!”
“I always get a great response with all my queries. Everyone has always been knowledgeable and courteous. I can’t speak highly enough about your team…”
Over and over again, our employees have proved to us that they are among the best of the best. From training to product support, development to sales, absolutely everyone in our organization is critical to our overall success.
So, just in case I don’t say it often enough, thank you to all ReServe Interactive employees for your time, dedication and integrity.
Tuesday, October 20th, 2009
As Chief Customer Relations Officer, it’s my responsibility to measure and manage our customers’ satisfaction from both a product and service perspective. We do this through a variety of channels including one-to-one conversations, customer user groups and monthly survey campaigns. We also distribute an automatic survey to customers upon resolution of every support case.
In September and early October, we surveyed on service and support experiences, focusing on our customers’ opinions regarding the knowledge and courteousness of our product support staff; the timeliness of the response they received from us; as well as how likely they were to recommend us to someone else.
We randomly selected 500 customers for this survey and received a very encouraging 10 percent response rate.
Out of a ranking structure of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest score we could receive, 98 percent of respondents found us very helpful and 95 percent found our staff extremely knowledgeable. 93 percent of our customers rated our responsiveness to their support inquiries extremely timely. Most importantly, out of the respondent pool, 92 percent of individuals said they would recommend us to one of their peers.
Respondents also had the opportunity to leave comments regarding their answers. With their input, we can continue to enhance our product and support services to ensure our customers are not only working with a good product, but with a company that responds to their needs and exceeds their expectations.
Customer surveys represent just one method of gathering information to build long-term relationships with our customers. Their input is a powerful driver for our organization and continues to impact how we expand our product and service offering.
