Business-to-Business Internet Marketing, Fourth Edition - Lifecycle ...

Executing E-fulfillment 179
alized information to Web site visitors based on the information visitors
provide. For example, every time a prospect revisits a site, active agent
technology recognizes the visitor, calls up the visitor’s profile, and guides
the visitor to specific pages that would be of interest to him or her.
Ultimately, targeted content can be delivered to each visitor to a site
who is in the site’s database.
Using push technology means that the visitor does not even have to
be online at the time. Active agent technology also allows the marketer
to communicate with that person proactively and automatically, transmitting
relevant information to them as it becomes available.
Another form of instant online help is the comprehensive self-service
system. Primarily for customer use, this system essentially allows a
Web site visitor to resolve problems via a structured, intelligent online
process. This is discussed in more detail in Chapter 7.
One area of online help that is intriguing is Call Me technology. Here
is how it works: A visitor is navigating a Web site and comes across a
product that seems interesting. The prospect has some questions that he
or she wants to discuss with a salesperson immediately. The prospect
clicks on a Call Me button found on the Web site. A dialog box pops up
and requests the prospect’s phone number. Meanwhile, the technology is
alerting a salesperson and automatically calls the prospect.
When the salesperson engages the prospect on the phone, the technology
can go a step further in the sales assistance process. Now the
salesperson can take control of the prospect’s Web browser and actually
walk him or her through product information, or redirect the prospect
to other more appropriate Web pages. It is really functioning as a
virtual sales call. Obviously, the salesperson attempts to convert the
prospect to a customer at the close of the session.
As these Internet telephony products and services become more
available, usage will expand and extend into the area of online fulfillment.
Imagine a marketing future in which both prospects and customers
will largely be able to get all the assistance they require via the
Internet, self-directed when necessary, and enhanced by live sales support
as needed.
Moving to Web-based Information Dissemination
Even if you acknowledge the need to move your paper fulfillment to the
Web, how do you actually accomplish what could be a daunting, even
overwhelming task?