CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER BASED ON TAGS

• US 20090261157A1
• Filed: 04/22/2008
• Published: 10/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Philonenko, Laurent Felix, Sitaram, Muralidhar K., Kumar, Sanjeev
• Application Number:
  US12/107,375
• Publication Number:
  US 20090261157A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

In one embodiment, a processor is operable to transmit a customer request based on a content tag. The content tag is associated with content. The content tag is at least one of a character, a word, a term, a name, a symbol, or combinations thereof. The content tag and the content are stored in a memory. The processor is operable to receive agent availability information of customer agents. The agent availability information includes availability information for multiple communication channels. In one example, the agent availability information received may include availability information of qualified customer agents, where qualified customer agents are associated with an agent tag, and the content tag is mapped to the agent tag.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a memory wherein content and a content tag are stored in the memory, the content tag is associated with the content, and the content tag is at least one of a character, a word, a term, a name, a symbol, or combinations thereof; and

a processor in connection with the memory operable to;

transmit a customer request based on the content tag; and

receive agent availability information of a plurality of customer agents, wherein the customer agents are able to receive customer requests based the content tag and the agent availability information includes availability information for a plurality of communication channels.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the processor is further operable to display the content tag as a link and to transmit the customer request in response to selection of the link.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the processor is further operable to display the availability information for the communication channels and to transmit a communication channel identifier in the customer request in response to a selection of one of the communication channels.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the processor is further operable to display a color indicative of an estimated time of availability on each of the communication channels, and the estimated time of availability on each of the communications channels is included in the agent availability information.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a portion of the content is an element of a web page, and the content tag is associated with the element of the web page.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the processor is further operable to associate other content tags with different portions of the content at the direction of a user, the other content tags stored in the memory.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the agent availability information includes aggregate availability information and agent-specific availability information.

8. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the link is displayed in an application other than a web browser.

9. Logic encoded in one or more tangible media for execution and when executed operable to:

receive a customer request from a customer system, the customer request including a content tag associated with content, the content tag is at least one of a character a word, a term, a name, a symbol, or combinations thereof;

determine a requested communication channel based on the customer request; and

determine a plurality of customer agents available to receive the customer request based on the requested communication channel and the content tag.

10. A method comprising:

receiving a customer request, the customer request including a content tag, wherein the content tag is associated with content and the content tag is at least one of a character, a word, a term, a name, a symbol, or combinations thereof;

determining a requested communication channel based on the customer request; and

determining at least one customer agent available to receive the customer request based on the requested communication channel and the content tag.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein determining the at least one customer agent is based on agent availability information, the agent availability information includes availability information for each of a plurality of communication channels, and the requested communication channel is included in the communication channels.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving a plurality of agent-specific availability information indicative of when each of a plurality of customer agents will be available to receive customer requests on the requested communication channel; and

determining the at least one customer agent availability based on the plurality of agent-specific availability information, the requested communication channel, and the content tag.

13. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

transmitting the customer request to an available customer agent included in the at least one customer agent.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein a user initiates the customer request, the requested communication channel is instant message, and transmitting the customer request includes initiating an instant message session between the available customer agent and the user.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein a user initiated the customer request, the requested communication channel is telephone, and transmitting the customer request includes using a voice gateway to dial a first phone number of the available customer agent and a second phone number of the user.

16. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

transmitting an agreement request to a customer agent interface identified with one of the at least one customer agent;

receiving an agreement from the customer agent interface in response to the agreement request; and

transmitting the customer request to the one of the at least one customer agent in response to receipt of the agreement.

17. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving a first agent information of one of the at least one customer agent, wherein the one of the at least one customer agent is external to a company and the customer request is from a customer of the company; and

receiving a second agent information of another one of the at least one customer agent, wherein the another one of the at least one customer agent is internal to the company.

18. The method of claim 10 wherein determining the requested communication channel is based on a channel identifier included in the customer request.

19. The method of claim 10 wherein determining the at least one customer agent includes mapping the content tag to an agent tag and limiting the at least one customer agent to registered customer agents associated with the agent tag.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising:

receiving a content tag to agent tag mapping from an administrator interface, wherein mapping the content tag to the agent tag includes using the content tag to agent tag mapping.