Even with the evolution of electronic processing for sending money, many customers feel more comfortable paying bills the old-fashioned way: with a check mailed in an envelope.
Until recently, mail order companies intent on providing the best customer service had to respond the old-fashioned way, too, assigning employees to handle each envelope and its contents. That means order turn-around is longer than it should be, more shipments are split because of back orders, error rates are unacceptable, and seasonal workers must be added during high-volume months.
In other words, old-fashioned operations compromise customer service and lose money compared to the competition.
What’s the solution?
ECM helps manage mail flow
An enterprise content management (ECM) system:
- Opens mail
- Categorizes contents
- Verifies customer addresses
- Spots potential bad payments
- Deposits checks
- Simplifies fulfillment
Businesses that put in place a system by CPT Intelligent Technologies have enjoyed savings that paid for the installation within months while increasing customer satisfaction and streamlining operations.
A well-planned ECM system will open incoming mail, extract forms and checks and scan them for information. The system is programmed to identify which fields to capture so that orders, questions or other service points can be directed on the correct path. It recognizes handwritten statements, adds data about new customers and confirms new orders against address and similar information in a database of current customers. Checks are validated for payment and displayed for operators to confirm accuracy of amount and mailing address before they are deposited electronically.
Communication with the warehouse increases efficiency in restocking so back orders, split shipments and order returns all are reduced. When a customer does call with a question, service representatives can retrieve the order history on a computer screen to resolve issues.
An ECM system that CPT installed for one customer is projected to save $1.5 million over five years, and the system paid for itself in less than seven months. It reduced human touchpoints by virtually 100 percent and increased order turnaround by 60 percent.
If you are ready to discuss an ECM for your operation, contact CPT at (908) 284-0900 or Info@cptinfo.com
