UPS Extends Speech Technology to Same-Day Pickup Service
MAHWAH, N.J., May 3 /PRNewswire/ -- UPS, which pioneered the use of voice recognition technology for package tracking, has expanded its application of the science to improve telephone service for urgent same-day pickup requests.
Shaving nearly two minutes from the average pickup request, the UPS Automated Pickup System enables a regular or repeat customer to order a package pickup for next-day delivery simply by saying his or her phone number when prompted. A quick search of the UPS data base provides the system with the caller's pickup address and closing time, which is stated in a computer-generated voice for verification. When the address is verified, and pickup time and number of packages are established, the system confirms the pickup and instructs the caller to use his or her phone number and the date for any follow-up inquiries. The entire call takes as little as 90 seconds.
New UPS customers still will have to order through a phone representative, who will immediately come on the line if the customer's phone number is not in the UPS data base. Phone representatives also are available by pressing ''O'' at any time during the call.
The UPS Automated Pickup System is the latest of several phone services UPS is implementing that use natural language voice recognition technology and immediate access to its customer data base to provide faster and more personalized responses to customer inquiries.
Later this year, a new timesaving service will be implemented. Customers will be able to switch from the Automated Pickup or Tracking systems to a phone representative without having to repeat their initial request or any information already stated. All of that dialogue will be immediately transcribed into text and appear on the phone representative's computer screen.
''For an automated phone system to be beneficial, customers must view the experience -- not just the information provided -- as a service,'' said Douglas Fields, UPS Vice President of Customer Development Applications and Telecommunications. ''Voice recognition and other information transport technologies, when managed properly, can make phone automation a resource customers welcome to get fast, thorough service.''
UPS has been experimenting with and using voice recognition technology for more than 20 years. The company first introduced natural language voice recognition technology into its phone centers in 1997 with the UPS Automated Tracking System, which enables customers to get quick responses to tracking requests, while freeing phone representatives for more complex inquiries.
The UPS Automated Tracking System is capable of handling nearly 1,000 requests simultaneously and processes about 110,000 requests daily. Peak usage during the 1998 holiday season reached 230,000 tracking calls in one day.
''Screen Pop'' on the Horizon
The new timesaving service coming later this year, known as ''Screen Pop,'' will eliminate the need for customers who switch to a phone representative to repeat any information they have already told to either the Automated Pickup or Tracking systems.
When a customer begins a request through the UPS Automated Pickup or Tracking system a phone representative assistance is required, the call is transferred to an phone representative. At that point, a text record of the call in progress -- including all information relayed by the customer -- automatically appears or ''pops'' on the phone representative's computer screen. This ''Screen Pop'' will provide faster call resolution by allowing the phone representative to quickly review the entire call and by eliminating the need for the customer to restate the request.
''Screen Pop'' is an upcoming feature of the UPS Customer Action and Response System (CAReS), a Windows-based application UPS developed to allow phone representatives to access customer call and account activity by interfacing with several UPS information systems.
Both the UPS Automated Pickup and Tracking systems are built on a suite of hardware and software products provided by Periphonics (www.peri.com) and Nuance Communications (www.nuance.com). UPS provides its same-day On Call Air Pickup(SM) service to 48 metropolitan areas throughout the United States for customers using Next Day Air® and other premium UPS delivery services. UPS On Call Air was introduced in 1989 when wireless technology was first used by UPS to communicate with its drivers.
United Parcel Service is the world's largest express carrier and package delivery company, offering an unmatched array of service options to more than 200 countries and territories. Based in Atlanta, UPS employs more than 330,000 people worldwide, delivers more than 3 billion packages and documents yearly and earned revenues of $24.8 billion in 1998. UPS has invested more than $10 billion in its extensive technology infrastructure, maintains one of the world's largest databases and has won two Computerworld Smithsonian awards for technology leadership and innovation. For more information, visit the UPS web site at www.ups.com.
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