Non NFL - FBG Business - Joe Needs Help (1 Viewer)

[Joe Bryant]

Hey Guys,

Counting on the collective wisdom / experience of the Shark Pool.

One of the things I want to do this year for the Footballguys subscription is to offer the ability for people to order by phone. There are still people that are more comfortable giving their credit card info and ordering while talking to a real person on the phone.

I knowt there are businesses out there that do this. I just don't know who they are and the best way to go about doing this. Obviously, cost is a factor. But not as much as security and accuracy.

The people answering the phone will not have any football knowledge at all. So it's not like they need to be able to give advice or anything. They just need to be able to take the credit card info and enter them into our secure online system. It's really not much different than if the caller had entered the info himself.

Does anyone have insights here on the best way to do this? Please be as specific as possible.

I know this one is ripe for jokes but please keep this one serious. Thanks.

J

 

[Borat]

Why not just hire someone you trust to take care of this for you? I would think that'd be the cheapest way. It's essentially just a customer service/data entry gig from the sounds of it.

 

[AhrnCityPahnder]

Anyone who plays FF on teh innerwebz and doesn't trust giving their CC #? I'd imagine that's a very, very small overlap. But that's just my own guess. Wondering what you know/read/extrapolated that tells you different.

 

[redman]

Why not just hire someone you trust to take care of this for you? I would think that'd be the cheapest way. It's essentially just a customer service/data entry gig from the sounds of it.

I also can't imagine there being a very high volume of calls at any one time, but of course I've never run a web-based subscription business either. If you want it open 24 hours, or you've found that there are high peak times when many calls will be coming in at once, then maybe this won't work (or maybe you can hire the service only to cover these times).

 

[Davej626]

Wow. Nice form letter. Just say this same thing in the FFA. Imagine that. I would check the yellow pages under answering services or business services. One of them should be able to process CC numbers and the like.

 

[perry147]

Joe,

Maybe something like this.

http://www.pcmsi.com/

 

[Power Monster]

Check the myspace thread- hire the top 5 hotties.

Put a phone and a script in front of them.

Ask them to wear bikinis and put this on a web cam with your logo in the background.

You can thank me later….

 

[redman]

Check the myspace thread- hire the top 5 hotties.

Put a phone and a script in front of them.

Ask them to wear bikinis and put this on a web cam with your logo in the background.

You can thank me later….

And add access to the webcam shots as part of the subscriptions that your callers are signing up for . . . Cha-ching!

 

[Power Monster]

Yes!

 

[Dreamer]

I believe AmEx offers this service.

 

[Hoh]

Put this in the FFA for crying out loud. You think you own the place or something?

 

[Joe Bryant]

Why not just hire someone you trust to take care of this for you?  I would think that'd be the cheapest way.  It's essentially just a customer service/data entry gig from the sounds of it.

I also can't imagine there being a very high volume of calls at any one time, but of course I've never run a web-based subscription business either. If you want it open 24 hours, or you've found that there are high peak times when many calls will be coming in at once, then maybe this won't work (or maybe you can hire the service only to cover these times).

Thanks redman. That's part of the issue - I really dont' know what to plan for. We tried this ourselves a few years back and it was way more than one person could handle. During peak times, it would need at least 5-10 people working the phones. But it's a fairly small window of time when everyone buys. That's why I was looking for a company that could handle the overflow when needed. I'm guessing they have tons of people that are set up to handle whatever call comes in.J

 

[Bad_Mo]

Why don't you give away free 3-year memberships to all people who help out getting this thing resolved or who have posted in this thread?

That may expedite things.

 

[Jeff Pasquino]

Joe,

I know many that use this for business answering purposes.

http://www.patlive.com/

-Jeff

 

[Cleat Spike]

Hi Joe,

This may be worth a look? Sorry for the length but just trying to paint the picture for you......

The company I work for also owns Angel.com, which has on-demand call center and IVR (Interactive Voice Response) solutions that enable organizations of all sizes to quickly deploy powerful telephony applications.

Quick background:

More than 1,500 customers turn to Angel.com's patented Voice Site technology to power customer service, product ordering and marketing phone numbers. Using intelligent speech recognition, Angel.com can automate most phone-based interactions.

Believe me it's not the kind of automated computer sounding voice you hear from your bank talking back to you, it's very well done and actually sounds like a real person in real-time where you don't have to repeat what you said everytime. Also, I know some people hate giving their card numbers out to a live person too. What's stopping them from jotting it down and going on a spree a month later with your info? This will allow them to say their card number to a secure virtual person/database and make the purchase and tie it in with all your existing db's.

Audio Demo (The credit card/product ordering is near the end)

With their unique web-based solution and pay-as-you-go pricing schedule, no investment in hardware, software, or human resources is required.

The one product I thought would be perfect for this is their 'Order Line'.

Angel.com's Order Line solution lets your customers find and order products over the phone without using costly live agent time. Callers will be able to use your existing phone number to order products at any time of day or night, quickly and securely.

Highlights:

Solution can typically be deployed in 48 hours or less

Connects to your back-end inventory database

Integrates with your existing payment systems

Customizable with your branding and promotional messages

Minimal setup fees versus traditional IVR providers

Key Benefits:

Customer convenience

Providing an automated order line allows customers to quickly and easily order your products, at any time from any location. Because your order line can be connected to your back-end databases, callers can also hear information on product attributes and availability.

Lower costs, increase revenues

Using live agents to process orders over the phone is expensive. By automating purchases of callers that already know what they want to buy, you can reduce your need for live agents. An automated order line will also enable you to provide off-hours support.

Up sell opportunities

Your Order Line can easily be configured to include special promotional messages. It can also be integrated with your existing reporting tools, allowing you to collect market research data and return more relevant promotions to your callers.

If you're interested let me know and I can get you intouch with the right person here.

 

[Family Matters]

Hi Joe,

This may be worth a look? Sorry for the length but just trying to paint the picture for you......

The company I work for also owns Angel.com, which has on-demand call center and IVR (Interactive Voice Response) solutions that enable organizations of all sizes to quickly deploy powerful telephony applications.

Quick background:

More than 1,500 customers turn to Angel.com's patented Voice Site technology to power customer service, product ordering and marketing phone numbers. Using intelligent speech recognition, Angel.com can automate most phone-based interactions.

Believe me it's not the kind of automated computer sounding voice you hear from your bank talking back to you, it's very well done and actually sounds like a real person in real-time where you don't have to repeat what you said everytime. Also, I know some people hate giving their card numbers out to a live person too. What's stopping them from jotting it down and going on a spree a month later with your info? This will allow them to say their card number to a secure virtual person/database and make the purchase and tie it in with all your existing db's.

Audio Demo (The credit card/product ordering is near the end)

With their unique web-based solution and pay-as-you-go pricing schedule, no investment in hardware, software, or human resources is required.

The one product I thought would be perfect for this is their 'Order Line'.

Angel.com's Order Line solution lets your customers find and order products over the phone without using costly live agent time. Callers will be able to use your existing phone number to order products at any time of day or night, quickly and securely.

Highlights:

Solution can typically be deployed in 48 hours or less

Connects to your back-end inventory database

Integrates with your existing payment systems

Customizable with your branding and promotional messages

Minimal setup fees versus traditional IVR providers

Key Benefits:

Customer convenience

Providing an automated order line allows customers to quickly and easily order your products, at any time from any location. Because your order line can be connected to your back-end databases, callers can also hear information on product attributes and availability.

Lower costs, increase revenues

Using live agents to process orders over the phone is expensive. By automating purchases of callers that already know what they want to buy, you can reduce your need for live agents. An automated order line will also enable you to provide off-hours support.

Up sell opportunities

Your Order Line can easily be configured to include special promotional messages. It can also be integrated with your existing reporting tools, allowing you to collect market research data and return more relevant promotions to your callers.

If you're interested let me know and I can get you intouch with the right person here.

Joe,I've run/managed call centers before and outsourcing is probably the only way to go on this. The above post is one possible solution. The services are out there for sure. And these companies have already established the upfront costs and technology to meet your needs. It should be pretty seemless. Set up a 1-800 number and point it to them and away you go.

Good luck!

 

[DonnyT33]

Hey Guys,

Counting on the collective wisdom / experience of the Shark Pool.

One of the things I want to do this year for the Footballguys subscription is to offer the ability for people to order by phone. There are still people that are more comfortable giving their credit card info and ordering while talking to a real person on the phone.

I knowt there are businesses out there that do this. I just don't know who they are and the best way to go about doing this. Obviously, cost is a factor. But not as much as security and accuracy.

The people answering the phone will not have any football knowledge at all. So it's not like they need to be able to give advice or anything. They just need to be able to take the credit card info and enter them into our secure online system. It's really not much different than if the caller had entered the info himself.

Does anyone have insights here on the best way to do this? Please be as specific as possible.

I know this one is ripe for jokes but please keep this one serious. Thanks.

J

I am all for you doing something like this Joe and it should be easily done. I would imagine you just have to find out how much per subscription it may cost you or how much a service would charge. But again I am all for you doing this and really hope it happens. Since you went to Pal pal I have not been able to process my subscription yet because they wont take my CC debit card. I also think you might find pay pal to not be the best service for doing this for you, they just have too many quirks in their system. Like my situation because I am having a problem with them (pay pal) I now cant use my credit card in question with any Pay Pal processor but can with anyone else..Please change and or get your own phone subscription takers. It as simple as setting anyone up with a credit card processing machine and putting them to work.Donny

 

[Cecil Lammey]

Maybe this?

Intelligent Office

 

[Bri]

some FF websites out there have a CC machine at home(just goes thru phone line) and they process the phone orders that way.

Outsourcing sounds best but I wonder how much $ t costs for their services as your subscription is relatively cheap so you don't wanna give them 50% of it or however much

 

[Bankerguy]

Hi Joe,

This may be worth a look?  Sorry for the length but just trying to paint the picture for you......

The company I work for also owns Angel.com, which has on-demand call center and IVR (Interactive Voice Response) solutions that enable organizations of all sizes to quickly deploy powerful telephony applications. 

Quick background:

More than 1,500 customers turn to Angel.com's patented Voice Site technology to power customer service, product ordering and marketing phone numbers. Using intelligent speech recognition, Angel.com can automate most phone-based interactions. 

Believe me it's not the kind of automated computer sounding voice you hear from your bank talking back to you, it's very well done and actually sounds like a real person in real-time where you don't have to repeat what you said everytime.  Also, I know some people hate giving their card numbers out to a live person too.  What's stopping them from jotting it down and going on a spree a month later with your info?  This will allow them to say their card number to a secure virtual person/database and make the purchase and tie it in with all your existing db's.

Audio Demo (The credit card/product ordering is near the end)

With their unique web-based solution and pay-as-you-go pricing schedule, no investment in hardware, software, or human resources is required. 

The one product I thought would be perfect for this is their 'Order Line'. 

Angel.com's Order Line solution lets your customers find and order products over the phone without using costly live agent time.  Callers will be able to use your existing phone number to order products at any time of day or night, quickly and securely. 

Highlights:

  Solution can typically be deployed in 48 hours or less

  Connects to your back-end inventory database

  Integrates with your existing payment systems

  Customizable with your branding and promotional messages

  Minimal setup fees versus traditional IVR providers

Key Benefits:

Customer convenience

Providing an automated order line allows customers to quickly and easily order your products, at any time from any location. Because your order line can be connected to your back-end databases, callers can also hear information on product attributes and availability. 

Lower costs, increase revenues

Using live agents to process orders over the phone is expensive. By automating purchases of callers that already know what they want to buy, you can reduce your need for live agents. An automated order line will also enable you to provide off-hours support. 

Up sell opportunities

Your Order Line can easily be configured to include special promotional messages. It can also be integrated with your existing reporting tools, allowing you to collect market research data and return more relevant promotions to your callers. 

If you're interested let me know and I can get you intouch with the right person here.

Joe,I've run/managed call centers before and outsourcing is probably the only way to go on this. The above post is one possible solution. The services are out there for sure. And these companies have already established the upfront costs and technology to meet your needs. It should be pretty seemless. Set up a 1-800 number and point it to them and away you go.

Good luck!

Joe,I am a Call Centre Sales Manager for one of Canada's largest banks. The above poster is absolutely correct. You are looking for "3rd party" call centers. The other option is to open one yourself, it's not that hard. However, for the cost, you will want to research the 3rd party centers.

I would suggest you start your search outside of the US. I would start with Canada you will save an immediate 10-15% just on the exchange savings. After I write this, I will check out some of my contacts. I'll edit the thread.

The other option is India. It is a booming industry there and comes at a very low cost. The only problems may be the initial setup. This is usually for larger companies who have more complex needs (Multi channel/queue set ups).

I honestly think Canada is your best bet. I'll start looking...now.

 

[Family Matters]

Maybe this?

Intelligent Office

They can filfill it seems and that is one option. I see other options have been mentioned also. It may come down to whether or not it can be done cost effectively for Joe.

 

[Neo]

Doesn't asking for help belong in the Assistant Coach forum?