Customer service management system
First Claim
1. A user support system comprising:
- a host system;
a selection oriented knowledge base executing on the host system, the selection oriented knowledge base configured as a user-navigable directed graph comprising a plurality of nodes wherein each node is configured to provide information for display on a web page, and wherein for at least some of the nodes, the web page displays, in association with the information, a user-selectable option to establish a communication session with a live representative;
a navigational archive executing on the host system, the navigational archive configured to log paths through the selection oriented knowledge base traversed by users navigating the selection oriented knowledge base, and in association with the logged paths and nodes within the paths, to log user-selections of options to establish a communication session with a live representative;
a help requests predictor executing on the host system, the help requests predictor configured to;
for each node of a first plurality of nodes within the selection oriented knowledge base, count a number of active users that are browsing the node, andfor each node of a second plurality of nodes within the selection oriented knowledge base;
determine, based upon the logged paths and selections in the navigational archive, at least one probability that a user selects an option at the node to establish a communication session with a live representative, andprovide a predicted demand for service agents at the node based on the at least one probability that a user selects an option at the node to establish a communication session with a live representative and based on at least one of the counts of numbers of active users; and
a service agents scheduler executing on the host system, the service agents scheduler configured to use the predicted demand provided by the help requests predictor for the second plurality of nodes to allocate live service agents to handle user communication sessions for the second plurality of nodes.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The customer is given the option to access customer service through the Internet. A web site provides several convenient alternatives for scheduling a voice session with a customer service agent instead of waiting on the phone. Users are encouraged to search a Selection-Oriented-Knowledge-Base (SOKB) that helps the user'"'"'s thinking process by displaying a sequence of intuitively recognizable multimedia menu selections that eventually lead to what the user has in mind and provide appropriate answers. The SOKB is based upon a Selection-On-Vertex network that provides the infrastructure to expand the level of knowledge of the SOKB by automatically capturing knowledge gained through experience. Customer service agents are seamlessly integrated into the SOKB by a NEED HELP request button that the user can click if difficulties are encountered during the search. A Help Requests Predictor enables customer service agents to respond within seconds to NEED HELP requests initiated by users.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. A user support system comprising:
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a host system; a selection oriented knowledge base executing on the host system, the selection oriented knowledge base configured as a user-navigable directed graph comprising a plurality of nodes wherein each node is configured to provide information for display on a web page, and wherein for at least some of the nodes, the web page displays, in association with the information, a user-selectable option to establish a communication session with a live representative; a navigational archive executing on the host system, the navigational archive configured to log paths through the selection oriented knowledge base traversed by users navigating the selection oriented knowledge base, and in association with the logged paths and nodes within the paths, to log user-selections of options to establish a communication session with a live representative; a help requests predictor executing on the host system, the help requests predictor configured to; for each node of a first plurality of nodes within the selection oriented knowledge base, count a number of active users that are browsing the node, and for each node of a second plurality of nodes within the selection oriented knowledge base; determine, based upon the logged paths and selections in the navigational archive, at least one probability that a user selects an option at the node to establish a communication session with a live representative, and provide a predicted demand for service agents at the node based on the at least one probability that a user selects an option at the node to establish a communication session with a live representative and based on at least one of the counts of numbers of active users; and a service agents scheduler executing on the host system, the service agents scheduler configured to use the predicted demand provided by the help requests predictor for the second plurality of nodes to allocate live service agents to handle user communication sessions for the second plurality of nodes. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method for providing user support, the method comprising:
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providing a host system; operating a selection oriented knowledge base on the host system, the selection oriented knowledge base configured as a user-navigable directed graph comprising a plurality of nodes wherein each node is configured to provide information for display on a web page, and wherein for at least some of the nodes, the web page displays, in association with the information, a user-selectable option to establish a communication session with a live representative; logging paths through the selection oriented knowledge base traversed by users navigating the selection oriented knowledge base; logging, in association with the logged paths and nodes within the paths, user-selections of options to establish a communication session with a live representative; for each node of a first plurality of nodes within the selection oriented knowledge base, counting a number of active users that are browsing the node; for each node of a second plurality of nodes within the selection oriented knowledge base; determining, based upon the logged paths and selections in the navigational archive, at least one probability that a user selects an option at the node to establish a communication session with a live representative, and providing a predicted demand for service agents at the node based on the at least one probability that a user selects an option at the node to establish a communication session with a live representative and based on at least one of the counts of numbers of active users; and using the predicted demand for service agents for the second plurality of nodes to allocate live service agents to handle user communication sessions for the second plurality of nodes. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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Specification