storm®:
The communications integration platform
The Problem
Organisations of all kinds face pressures to reduce costs while delivering improved service to increasingly demanding customers. Communication is at the heart of this dilemma, because the way an organisation communicates defines the quality and efficiency of the customer experience it offers.
The wide variety of devices which people use to communicate puts a new kind of strain on businesses and public services. The modern consumer regularly interacts using SMS, email, web, mobile internet, chat and social media as well as via traditional channels such as voice and fax. This means that organisations are expected to offer consistently high-quality services across all of these channels.
Consumers must be given the choice to communicate in the way that suits them. This can only be cost-effectively achieved by rationalising all of these diverse communications channels on to a unified platform, manageable in real-time through intuitive interfaces.
The Solution
storm is a cloud-based, multi-channel communications platform, enabling converged management of all channels and devices through a secure web-based portal. storm uses flexible integration methods (such as Web Services) to overlay existing communications infrastructure, enhancing instead of replacing legacy systems and avoiding unnecessary expenditure. This means that storm solutions are adapted for IT synergy, prolonging the useful life of prior investments.
This enables the implementation of services such as burst management, which uses the massive capacity of storm to buffer contact centres from sudden increases in contact volume. By integrating with existing CRM systems or workforce databases, storm can be used to personalise communications on a mass scale—customer buying histories can be used to target promotions for maximum effect. Detailed real-time and historical reports can also be generated using data both from storm and from external systems, enabling users to assess and optimise service levels.
Cloud
As storm is a cloud-based platform, all core hardware and software already exists in the network and is provided as a service. Solutions can be rapidly deployed without the need for lengthy setup processes, and customers only pay for what they use, avoiding the need to make large capital investments in equipment that may never be used to capacity. Each organisation is provided with a secure partition on the platform, and the flexibility of storm enables additional services to be bolted on to adapt to changing requirements.
storm is highly scalable, with capacity automatically increasing to match any demand—users never run out of the critical communications power they require, even at peak times. Upgrades to hardware and applications are regularly implemented and immediately become available to customers, ensuring that the leading-edge functionality provided by storm always remains ahead of the curve. storm represents a strategic resource for your business which keeps on delivering value.
Architecture
storm platforms are directly embedded within tier 1 carrier networks around the world, creating a unique delivery model with extensive geographic coverage. This helps to consolidate your supply chain, because the decisions which govern how communication is delivered throughout your organisation are made in the network, rather than on disparate pieces of equipment spread around your estate. Users can manage every channel under one roof, with services spanning sites globally.
The platform is built to offer 99.999% availability, with multi-site redundancy and resilient hardware layers to ensure that if any constituent element of the system or even an entire site goes offline, service continues uninterrupted. storm is owned and operated by Content Guru, an organisation with ISO27001 and level 1 Payment Card Industry (PCI) accreditations, meaning it maintains the highest standards for security. This helps guarantee reliable, secure, 24/7/365 access to these advanced technologies from any location.
How it Works
To find out how storm works, please download our solution summary.