Customer relationship management for customer service requests

• US 7,646,861 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2008
• Issued: 01/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cesario, James C. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong; Harry S
• Application Number:
  US12/181,975
• Publication Number:
  US 20080304649A1
• Time in Patent Office: 532 Days
• Field of Search: 379/201.01, 379/201.12, 379/207.02, 379/221.08, 379/265.01, 379/265.02, 379/265.11, 379/265.13
• US Class Current: 379/201.12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0281 Customer communication at a business location, e.g. providing product or service information, consulting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0282 Rating or review of business operators or products
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0045 involving hybrid, i.e. a mixture of public and private, or multi-vendor systems

Abstract

Information is shared between an agent and a user. Information for a communications service is provided to the user. Information for a related service that relates to the communications service is retrieved. The related service is described to the user. The related service is activated for the user when the agent confirms that the related service has been described to the user.

Claims

1. A method of sharing information over a communication network between an agent using a computer terminal and a user, comprising:

providing information over the communication network for a communications service to the user by the agent using the computer terminal;

retrieving information associated with a related service that relates to the communications service, by the computer terminal from a computer server;

describing the related service to the user while the computer terminal is being used, and

activating the communications service provided by a communication system for the user when the agent confirms via the computer terminal that the related service has been described to the user.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the computer terminal automatically instructing the agent to describe the related service to the user and prompting the agent to provide an indication via the computer terminal that the related service has been described to the user.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising activating the related service for the user by using the computer terminal.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the describing comprises providing an audio description to the user over the communication network.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the describing comprises providing a visual description to the user over the communication network.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the describing comprises providing an audio-visual description to the user over the communication network.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the describing comprises converting text to speech using a voice synthesizer.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising checking whether the user acknowledged receipt of the description of the related service over the communication network.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising re-describing the related service to the user when the user has not acknowledged receipt of the description of the related service over the communication network.

10. The method according to claim 8, further comprising re-describing the related service to the user until the user acknowledges receipt of the description of the related service over the communication network.

11. A tangible computer readable storage medium that stores computer executable instructions for sharing information over a communication network between an agent, using a computer terminal, and a user, comprising:

a providing code segment that provides information over the communication network for a communications service to the user;

a retrieving code segment that retrieves information associated with a related service that relates to the communications service, by the computer terminal from a computer server;

a describing code segment that describes the related service to the user over the communication network, and

an activating code segment that activates the communications service provided by a communication system for the user when the agent confirms via the computer terminal that the related service has been described to the user.

12. The medium according to claim 11, further comprising an instructing code segment that causes the computer terminal to automatically instruct the agent to describe the related service to the user and to prompt the agent to provide an indication via the computer terminal that the related service has been described to the user.

13. The medium according to claim 11, further comprising a second activating code segment that activates the related service for the user by using the computer terminal.

14. The medium according to claim 11, further comprising a checking code segment that checks whether the user acknowledged receipt of the description of the related service over the communication network.

15. The medium according to claim 11, further comprising a second describing code segment that re-describes the related service to the user when the user has not acknowledged receipt of the description of the related service over the communication network.

16. The medium according to claim 11, further comprising a second describing code segment that re-describes the related service to the user until the user acknowledges receipt of the description of the related service over the communication network.

17. The medium according to claim 11, wherein the describing comprises providing an audio-visual description to the user over the communication network.

18. A telecommunication system for sharing information between an agent using a computer terminal and a user, comprising:

at least one computer terminal configured to provide information for a communications service to the user over a communication network, retrieve information from a computer server associated with a related service to the user that relates to the communications service, automatically instruct the agent to describe the related service to the user, and activate the communications service provided by a communication system for the user when the agent confirms via the computer terminal that the related service has been described to the user.

19. The system according to claim 18, the system further comprising a computer terminal interface configured to prompt the agent for an indication that the related service has been described to the user.

20. The system according to claim 18, wherein the communications service is not activated if the agent does not confirm via the computer terminal that the related service has been described to the user.