Many companies utilize computer-telephony integration to achieve additional benefits that stem from the cross-referencing customer databases with telephone data and responses to interactive voice recognition software. In some cases, however, the customer information is stored offsite. Salesforce.com is a software as a service suite of applications that collect and organize customer information, focusing on customer relationship management. When this information is collected off-site, it can be difficult to implement CTI. Fortunately, Salesforce.com provides software known as the CTI Toolkit; through it, companies can develop an integration package that allows customer information to be freely accessed by the client computer network, delivering it along with telephony information to the agent’s computer screen.
There are other benefits beyond basic screen pop, however, when utilizing salesforce cti integration.
When an application developed from the CTI toolkit is present and configured on a client machine, it acts as an intermediary, receiving the call information from the telephony system and passing it along to Salesforce.com to perform the appropriate cross-referencing. Then, the information is fed back down to the computer for screen pop information. In addition, it makes it possible to make calls directly from Salesforce.com. By simply clicking on a number within Salesforce.com, the local application can pass that information along to the telephony system, creating a local phone connection.
In addition, when placing a call, whether from the Salesforce.com application or not, if the local application is running, the call will be automatically logged, along with any notes taken, within the Salesforce.com database. This means that less time is spent manually pulling up records on Salesforce.com.
Since the website is connected via the local application, many phone controls are passed along to the website as well. This means that while utilizing the website, it is not necessary to switch to another application to perform simple call passes, place a call on hold, or conferencing in multiple people.
In order to use these functionalities, the application, which Salesforce.com calls the CTI Adapter, must be installed on each computer who needs it. Salesforce.com does not develop these programs themselves, offering either the CTI Toolkit for a company’s own use (they do not recommend it) or using a program developed by one of their third-party partners. The programs are listed in the online database AppExchange.
CTI capability is only available in the Enterprise Edition or higher of the Salesforce.com packages. A few select vendors also have software available for the Professional Edition. Refer to the AppExchange for more information.