Establishing a social connection with a business during a conversation

• US 9,674,363 B1
• Filed: 11/24/2015
• Issued: 06/06/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Klemm, Reinhard, Skiba, David
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, QUYNH H
• Application Number:
  US14/951,196
• Publication Number:
  US 20170149972A1
• Time in Patent Office: 560 Days
• Field of Search: 37926509, 379 9301, 709226
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/655 Combination of telephone service and social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5191 interacting with the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5235 Dependent on call type or called number [DNIS]

Abstract

Associating callers of a contact center with their social media identity may provide mutual benefits to the caller and contact center. For example, a business operating a contact center can receive information about their current and potential customers and customers can receive additional information, incentives, or other perks by allowing access to their social media profile. When a caller initially calls a contact center, they are prompted, and possibly incentivized, to provide a social media identity. The social media identity may or may not have an affinity with an organization on the social media website. If not, the caller is provided with the opportunity to establish the affinity. If the caller does establish the affinity, the call may be identified as having a positive sentiment or negative sentiment if the caller does not do so. The call, or future calls, with the caller may then be processed accordingly.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a communication interface to a network;

a processor to;

access a call from a caller from the network;

prompt the caller to provide a social media identity of the caller on a social media website;

upon receiving the social media identity of the caller, determine whether an affinity exists between the social media identity and an entity associated with the contact center, whereby the affinity exists upon determining that a profile, on the social media website, of the social media identity comprises a relationship with the entity associated with the contact center;

upon determining that the affinity exists, selecting a first interaction with the caller in accordance with the affinity;

upon determining that no current affinity exists between the social media identity and the entity associated with the contact center, selecting a second interaction with the caller in accordance with the absence of the affinity, wherein the second interaction differs from the first interaction; and

conducting the selected one of the first interaction or the second interaction with the caller.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein, the processor, upon determining that no current affinity exists between the social media identity and an entity associated with the contact center, prompts the caller to establish an affinity.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the processor prompts the caller to establish the affinity by sending an affinity request to the social media identity.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the processor prompts the caller to establish the affinity by accepting the affinity request.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the processor, upon determining that the affinity has been established, identifies the call as having a positive sentiment.

6. The system of claim 2, wherein the prompt to create the affinity comprises a prompt to the caller to create the affinity via an authenticated device, wherein the social media identity is authorized via the authenticated device to utilize account-holder functions of the social media website.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein the processor selects the social media website from a plurality of social media websites.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor:

upon first determining that the affinity does not exist, prompts the caller to establish the affinity;

monitors the social media website for the affinity; and

upon a second determining that the affinity does not exist within a first timeframe, re-prompts the caller to establish the affinity.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the processor, upon a third determining that the affinity does not exist within a second timeframe, processes the caller as failing to establish the affinity.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the call associated with the caller is associated with a negative sentiment.

11. A method, comprising:

accessing a call from a caller on a network;

prompting the caller to provide a social media identity of the caller on a social media website;

upon receiving the social media identity of the caller, determining whether an affinity exists between the social media identity and an entity associated with the contact center, whereby the affinity exists upon determining that a profile, on the social media website, of the social media identity comprises a relationship with the entity associated with the contact center;

upon determining that the affinity exists, selecting a first interaction with the caller in accordance with the affinity;

upon determining that no current affinity exists between the social media identity and the entity associated with the contact center, selecting a second interaction with the caller in accordance with the absence of the affinity, wherein the second interaction differs from the first interaction; and

conducting the selected one of the first interaction or the second interaction with the caller.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising, upon failing to determine the affinity exists between the social media identity and an entity associated with the contact center, prompting the caller to establish the affinity.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of prompting the caller to establish the affinity, further comprises, sending an affinity request to the social media identity.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising prompting the caller to establish the affinity by accepting the affinity request.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of prompting the caller to establish the affinity occurs prior to the caller speaking with the agent selected to address a reason for the call.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of prompting the caller to establish the affinity occurs after the caller has spoken with the agent selected to address a reason for the call.

17. A system, comprising:

a communication interface to a network;

a processor to;

access a call from a caller from the network;

prompt the caller to authenticate a social media identity of the caller on a social media website;

upon receiving the authentication of the social media identity of the caller, determine whether an affinity exists between the social media identity and an entity associated with the contact center, whereby the affinity exists upon determining that a profile, on the social media website, of the social media identity comprises a relationship with the entity associated with the contact center;

upon determining that the affinity exists, selecting a first interaction with the caller in accordance with the affinity;

upon determining that no current affinity exists between the social media identity and the entity associated with the contact center, selecting a second interaction with the caller in accordance with the absence of the affinity, wherein the second interaction differs from the first interaction; and

conducting the selected one of the first interaction or the second interaction with the caller.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the processor prompts the caller to authenticate the social media identity prior to the caller speaking with an agent selected to address a reason for the call.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the processor prompts the caller to authenticate the social media identity after the caller has spoken with an agent selected to address a reason for the call.

20. The system of claim 17, further comprising, upon not receiving the authentication of the social media identity of the caller within a previously determined timeframe, associating the call with a negative sentiment.