Case Study

Connecting to customers

Bangalore-based Himalaya Healthcare, one of the front runners in ayurvedic medicine, understood the need and significance of an integrated CRM solution and implemented Talisma's Customer Interaction Management Solution (CIMS). Sonal Shukla provides a sneak peek of the IT implementation.

Himalaya Drug Company is a major pharma player contributing to the Indian phyto-pharma-ceutical spectrum. The company deals with a huge consumer base on the back of various products it offers in the pharmaceutical, personal care and consumer categories. The company has always been tech-savvy, and implemented a cutting edge CIMS for direct communication needs, as an extension of their commitment to consumers. Overlooking consumer interaction is Talisma's forte, which is now an integral part of Himalaya Healthcare's work environment.

Need indeed

Subrata Dutta, Business Head, Consumer Product Division, Himalaya Drug Company

Given the sheer size and strength of their product portfolio, the company receives many queries from consumers, doctors and distributors through various communi-cation channels such as e-mail, phone and fax. In such a scenario, deployment of accumulated data posed an issue.

“More than hardcore direct online marketing and brand building, two-way consumer interaction was our primary requirement,” says Subrata Dutta, Business Head, Consumer Product Division of Himalaya Drug Company. He explains, “Himalaya has a very strong mass media communication programme using traditional channels of print and TV. But, the data generated was not getting converted into useful and actionable information.”

In addition, the company's customer service cell was unable to get an integrated view of all interactions with consumers. Managers were not able to streamline customer data and identify trends such as concerns of doctors and information sought by the consumers.

Himalaya was exploring ways of using e-mail to communicate proactively with consumers. The company was thus seeking CIMS software, which would satisfy the needs and enable them to streamline their consumer communication in terms of time and cost.

A perfect match

“The primary objective for implementing Talisma's CIMS software was to ensure maximum consumer satis-faction and build effective linkages with them,” reveals Dutta. The new age consumer proactively seeks information on products and associated benefits. In competitive market, it is necessary for companies to respond to their queries and concerns in a timely manner.

Talisma's Service and Marketing modules met Himalaya's requirements. The CIMS software was implemented in three systematic stages-identifying Himalaya's requirements, configuring the Talisma solution and finally extensive user acceptance testing.

“To develop better relationships with consumers, it is crucial to focus on delivering great consumer experience consistently,” enlightens Girish Krish-namurthy, MD, Talisma, India. This can be best achieved by being committed to learn consumers' unique needs during each interaction, assimilating that knowledge and giving the best possible solution to a consumer inquiry at any given time. “Keeping this in mind we have focused our implementations for Himalaya as well,” states Krishnamurthy. The CIMS solution offered by Talisma combined e-mail, fax and phone calls into one coherent whole, thereby creating a variety of consumer touch points and a 360 degree view of the consumer.

The technology, being web-based and internet centric, was appropriately positioned for a company such as Himalaya.

The Talisma side story

Himalaya's Customer Service Representatives (CSR) got a better understanding of consumer needs as Talisma's CIMS was able to route all calls through CSRs via company's telephone system.

As a result, once an agent received a call, Talisma helped in the classification of the caller. This categorisation enabled the CSR to access the consumer's entire interaction history, which in turn equipped him to give a more informed response.

Finally, based on indicated follow-up actions, CIMS also tracked unresolved queries, reminding the CSR and the manager as reply deadlines approached. Most of the times, e-mails require responses from product specialists such as in-house researchers. The CSR can now forward such e-mails to the concerned specialist and keep track of replies sent by that manager. Lastly, Himalaya's marketing team could segment the customer database on a variety of parameters, with the CISM software, in order to formulate targeted campaigns.

Surmounting the speed breakers

Himalaya's customer service team was required to understand the functionalities of the software thoroughly, as well as be able to use it effectively. Along with the theoretical knowledge and practical training on CIMS, they also needed to gain an in-depth knowledge of Himalaya and its product portfolio.

“Since the team was extremely excited about getting started with the customer interaction program, training had to be educational, interactive and fun. The entire hardware installation, product training and software training were simultaneously co-ordinated, resulting in the Customer Service Cell going on-line within a month,” informs Dutta.

Amassing benefits

After the implementation, Himalaya had many opportunities to up-sell and cross-sell through marketing campaigns by assisting CSRs to understand consumers better. This software solution also enabled managers to identify trends in customer queries and complaints, thereby allowing them to stay in touch with the evolving needs of the market.

The software solution helped Himalaya to view the entire history of consumer queries from different segments of consumers, and enabled real-time responses. This increased consumer satisfaction levels and enhanced their interaction with Himalaya, which is essential.

According to Dutta, the Talisma CIMS opened a gateway to direct consumer interaction. A one-to-one relationship with the consumer along with a deeper understanding of consumer behaviour, needs and levels of satisfaction was created. Further, consumer data was converted into useful and actionable information. Lastly, Himalaya was able to transform its customer contact programme by adapting its database to a dynamic two-way communi-cation programme with consumers, distributors and doctors.

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