Research Report Shows Leading Companies Focus On Consistent Service Delivery Across Multiple Channels

With Increased Use of Support Tools Such as Chat and Web Portals, Organizations Investing in the Regularity of Information Across All Channels are Seeing Higher Resolution and Retention Rates

Indianapolis (July 27, 2010) –

Consona Corporation, a worldwide leader in providing customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software and services for companies of all sizes, today announced the availability of the latest research report published by Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company, titled Multi-Channel Service Delivery: Getting Customers the Service They Want, Where and When They Want It.

This complimentary paper, made available in part by underwriters Consona and Astute Solutions, found that leading service companies were not only looking to utilize channels other than the contact center as a means to capture customer requests and deliver service, but also invest resources in ensuring the consistency and efficacy of information and the overall experience available on all delivery channels.

“This report is a testament to the value of our Knowledge Driven Support Suite (KDS), and that is to create a single, holistic view of the customer via any service or support channel,” said Tom Millay, general manager of Consona’s CRM products. “Like many of our customers, those organizations investing in cross-channel service and support and intelligent search technology are seeing significant increases in customer satisfaction coupled with considerable cost savings throughout their support centers.”

While the contact center, fax, and e-mail have been the traditional channels available for customer service requests, channels such as live chat, customer-specific web portals, and others have seen increased support in the last three years. Looking ahead, organizations are actively looking to increase the availability of service information via live chat, social media platforms, messaging, and technical forums and discussion boards.

”The extended network of communication tools and platforms impacts the way customer service can be delivered. By no means is the phone the only way one can get in touch with a product manufacturer or servicing organization. As customers, whether in the form of consumers or businesses, we are afforded a variety of channels to capture service information, make service requests, share feedback and purchase additional products and services,” said Sumair Dutta, senior research analyst at Aberdeen. ”These channels also allow for better visibility into issues of customer sentiment and customer feedback, all of which can greatly impact customer service strategy.”

Aberdeen’s benchmarked-focused report indicated that while all firms are looking to improve time-to-repair and first-call resolution, leading firms focus on increasing access to customer- and service-specific information via knowledge across the organization. As such, these best-in-class firms exhibited the following:

* An 85 percent current performance in first-call resolution, in contrast to a 56 percent performance for all others.
* A 21 percent reduction in total support costs over the last 12 months, as opposed to a 1 percent reduction for all others.
* An 86 percent current performance in customer retention when compared to a 74 percent performance for all other organizations

To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?spid=30411417&cid=6389 .

For more information on Consona CRM products, visit: http://crm.consona.com .

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company
Aberdeen provides fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having queried more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen for insights that drive decisions.

As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen’s analytical and independent view of the “customer optimization” process of Harte-Hanks (Information – Opportunity – Insight – Engagement – Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit Aberdeen or call (617) 854-5200, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748.

About Consona Corporation
Consona Corporation is a worldwide leader in providing customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software and services for companies of all sizes. Consona is dedicated to becoming a valued business partner by helping each and every customer continuously improve business processes over time. Toward this mission, Consona invests in the people, processes, technology and tools needed to provide its customers with a unique combination of customer care; product fit; a broad range of consulting, IT and business services; and industry expertise. Consona serves more than 4,500 customers worldwide and across a variety of industries, including manufacturing, distribution, financial services, health care, high tech, and local government. Battery Ventures Thoma Bravo and NEA jointly own Consona. For further information, visit www.consona.com , e-mail infoATconsona.com, or call (888) 8 CONSONA.

Source: Consona

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