BT Group has chosen Endeca’s information access platform as its new information access standard.
Endeca is widely respected for its guided navigation functionality that dynamically groups the results of a search, enabling the user to refine their selection by descending through categories. For example, on an e-commerce site, fridges could be grouped into price band and economy rating.
It appears that, initially, the deployment of the information access platform (IAP) will be on an application by application basis within the respective business units. However, there is a long-term vision for a single search and information access ability across BT. Although Endeca would not confirm specific applications, early examples are anticipated to be those divisions that are public facing, for example on BT.com.
BT is looking for return on investment from the use of IAP in four areas:
1. Greater direct revenues from its e-commerce websites, through increases to average order sizes as customers are contextually displayed all the options available to them.
2. Increases in indirect revenues because of improved customer satisfaction and ‘user experience.’
3. A reduction in the level of customer complaints, and thus the costs of dealing with those complaints.
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4. Cost reductions at its call centers because customers will be getting more of their information from the lower-cost web channels.
This is a good win for privately-held Endeca, which, in this instance, is replacing two sets of search and discovery technologies from UK-based Autonomy Corporation. IAP is already used by organizations as diverse as ABN Amro, Boeing, Comet, The Guardian, Hyatt, IBM, John Deere, Nike, Tesco, and Walmart.com.
There are two messages from BT’s selection of Endeca for information access. The first is the recognition that positive management of the information channels to its customers, partners, and staff can have revenue effects. The second message is that the standardization of technologies and functionality should reduce the core costs of the organization.
Source: OpinionWire by Butler Group (www.butlergroup.com)
