A VAR’s Perspective:

Response Point as a Business Driver

Dave Bainum, PMP

Principal Consultant, RiteTech LLC

www.ritetech.net

Welcome!

Introductions

“Why RP Telecommunications? WIFM?”

RP Overview / What’s unique

RP Telephony: Make it your gold mine!

Game-Changing Possibilities

Helpful Niches, Tips N’ Tricks

Customer Experiences

Futures & More

Q&A, Resources, Glossary2

Introductions

RiteTech = IT Consultancy; Herndon, VAIT Consulting; SMB IT Infrastructure

Web / SQL development; IT Project Mgmt.

Two telephone companies in my “past lives” (cellular, wireline, voice response app’s)

Multiple IT roles in past

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…now … Principal IT Consultant by day …

… “Wartime HOA President” by night…

“Why RP Tele-communications? WIFM?”

Communications is the key part of “Tele-_”

GOAL: Efficiently, reliably enable comm’s to their optimal destination or outcome. Usually that’s more important than the underlying technology used (e.g. cellular, POTS, VoIP)

A reliable, well-planned, properly-customized phone system is critical to business

Productivity, Reliability, Satisfaction, & client/ partner revenues are greatly enhanced when a full RP solution is properly delivered

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RP Overview

On-Site IP PBX SystemVariety of hardware available

VoIP, Analog/POTS, Cordless

Gateways, Expansion Modules

Rich software experience

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What’s Unique about Response Point

Shows extremely well “live”

Outstanding value, many aspects “P-n-P”

System is owned/on-site; not leased/off-site

Rich software experience; easy to use

Independent, yet works well w/ othersMultiple hardware and service providers

Uses POTS, VoIP, or a mixture of the two

Can be largely pre-configured/tested off-site

Very simple “bare-metal-recovery” process

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RP Telephony can be a pot of gold!

Assessment, Architecture, PlanningNetwork & Wiring “Health Check”’s

Partnering opportunity

Coordinating move-in to new spaceISP, cabling, coordination of utilities, service ports

InfrastructurePoE Switches, Backup Power Units (UPS’s)

Firewalls, Paging / Paging Speakers, MOH*

AccessoriesHeadsets (are great add-on’s), cordless, Zune*

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RP Telephony can be a pot of gold!

ServicesVoIP, T1, Bundled Services

Residuals & Commissions (!)

Conferencing, FAX, eFAX

MOH recording, greeting scripting

Training, Customization, Consulting

Custom Applications and ReportingCRM, Call Analytics, TEM

Productivity EnhancementsVM Transcription, “Prescriptions/Cust.Serv.Line” …

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“Game-Changing” Possibilities

Voicemail-to-Email with VM TranscriptionInherent limitation of VM – sequential access

VM transcripts can be e-mailed or SMS’ed

“Triage” incoming transcribed VM’s visually, even on a Windows Mobile or Blackberry (eg. during meetings, at a stop light, …)

Also means VM content can now be “searched”, indexed, archived (e.g. in Outlook)

Other applications possible: e.g. Dr.’s Office “Prescriptions Line”,“Customer Service” box

Another: Caller-ID based “v-SPAM filtering”9

Helpful Niches, Trends, & Triggers

Temporary / Portable ApplicationsDisaster Recovery / Mobile staging areas

Political campaigns? Polling, Census…

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Sublet Space

Moves, office-space changes, new offices

Staffing size changes

Existing systems coming off of lease

Tips n’ Tricks / “Dave-ism’s”

Assessing site conditions, understanding requirements/existing services, are critical

Old Habits die hard; be prepared (BLF, KSE)

Beware the “Dark Side of VoIP”Dave’s “VoIP-o-Cratic Oath”

Don’t assume VoIPstability; ASK, TEST

Set expectations… then “Patience isBillable”

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QoS-LessVoIP

Free thePackets!

Free thePackets!

Customer Experience: Ameriprise

Ameriprise Franchise / Northern Virginia

Financial Advisors

Most IT handled by corporate

Phone details left to local offices

5-6 separate Vonage boxes deployed

Tied these easily into RP (VoIP-o-Cratic Oath applies; why fix what “ain’t broken”?)

Wiring health-check; PoE switch; UPS

Install performed during ext. pwr. outage

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Customer Experience: Interfolio

Downtown Washington, DC

High Cust. Service Call Volume

Young, busy, tech-saavy Mac Shop

Main focus: Web ASP; provide a critical service for Universities

Wanted reliable, simple, “set-it and-forget-it” phone solution w/ ability for VoIP in the future

Started w/ RiteTech’s RP demonstration; (RP exhibited at the DC Convention Center)

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Interfolio: How we Sold & Installed RP…

Compared RP head-to-head with Asterisk / Linux-based system – RP Won!

Primarily for ease-of-use, client software

Did wiring “health check”; UPS, PoE switch; client requested extra wiring

Pre-configured, tested, labeled most of the RP system off-site in advance

Assisted w/ Mac Virtualization strategy (our prior experience with VM’s helped)

Entire on-site work, cut-over/training: 2 days14

Interfolio: What it grew into…

Additions of more expensive RP phones, cordless, and Plantronics headsets

VM transcription serviceConsidering tie-in to their ticketing system

Quintum for legacy FAX, postage machine

Trying out VoIP on a pilot basis (carefully)

RiteTech positioned as “trusted advisor” for infrastructure , VoIP/ISP, IT project mgmt.

Company certain to grow in the future

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Customer Experience: E.T.C.

Driven by office move; loved the RP system

Heartbroken to learn: “locked in” to lease…

Ironically, probably paid as much to move the old PBX as buying RP would have cost

… “I guess I’ll still have to pay $300 every time I want our PBX’s clock reset correctly”

Lessons Learned:RP can be a great introduction & first impression to a new client, even if the RP sale fails to close

Ask about existing equip. lease details early on

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Futures & More

CRM integration and customization

Call Analytics

TEM / Telecomm. Expense Optimization

“All things are possible in software”

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Q&A, Resources

www.ritetech.net

www.aastralinkrp.com

www.microsoft.com/responsepoint

www.telephonation.com

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Glossary

WIFM = “What’s In it For Me?”

TEM = Telecommunications Expense Mgmt.

CRM = Customer Relationship Mgmt. (software)

MOH = Music On Hold; BLF = BusyLampField

KSE = KeySystemEmulation; VoIP=VoiceOverIP

QoS = Quality of Service; VM = Voice Mail

POTS = PlainOldTelephoneService (analog line)

P-n-P = “Plug n’ Play”; SMS = ShortMsg.Service

ASP = Application Service Provider (hosted app.) 19