The Challenge: A Disconnect in Part Identification
As one of the country’s largest suppliers of repair parts for home products, Encompass is dedicated to providing a top-notch customer experience. Historically, when customers needed help identifying a model number or specific part, the support process relied entirely on verbal descriptions over a phone call.
This method often resulted in:
- Confusion and Frustration: Customers and agents struggled to communicate complex visual details accurately.
- Inaccurate Identification: Verbal descriptions sometimes led to incorrect part identification.
- Inefficiency: The back-and-forth communication required more time per interaction and often necessitated follow-up calls or repeat attempts to identify the correct part.
Encompass needed a solution to bridge the visual gap between their agents and the physical products in the customer’s home.
The Solution: Seamless, App-Free Video Support
Encompass selected Blitzz Concierge—an app-free mobile video platform—to integrate visual support into its customer service workflow.
Key features utilized by Encompass:
- App-Free Access: An Encompass agent simply sends a link via SMS text message to the customer. When the customer clicks the link, the agent instantly gains a secure, real-time view through the customer’s smartphone camera, eliminating the need for cumbersome third-party app downloads (like Zoom or Teams).
- Augmented Reality (AR) Collaboration: Both the agent and the customer can use the AR feature to draw, highlight, and annotate on the live video stream in real-time, pointing out model numbers, serial tags, and specific components.
- Instant Visual Identification: Agents can immediately identify model numbers and visually confirm replacement parts, eliminating the guesswork associated with audio-only communication.
The Results: Increased Efficiency and Customer Satisfaction
By leveraging Blitzz Concierge, Encompass transformed its part identification process, leading to measurable improvements in efficiency and customer satisfaction:
Less Guesswork
Live video provides clear, visual evidence, ensuring customers are no longer left to guess whether they are properly identifying parts or where a model number is located.
Fewer Callbacks
Encompass is now able to identify the specific parts needed during the first customer interaction, reducing the need for follow-up calls and increasing first-call resolution rates.
Faster Delivery
The immediate visual identification removes the time-consuming back-and-forth communication, allowing Encompass to process orders for replacement parts faster and ship them out sooner.
Key Success Metrics
| Metric | Before Blitzz | After Blitzz (Impact) | Value Proposition |
| First-Call Resolution (FCR) Rate | Lower FCR due to communication failures | Increased FCR | Agents can identify and confirm parts visually on the initial call, avoiding follow-up contact. |
| Operational Costs | Higher costs due to unnecessary returns and shipping errors | Reduced | Visual confirmation drastically reduces part identification errors, cutting down on costly shipping of incorrect parts and subsequent returns. |
| Average Handling Time (AHT) | Longer calls due to slow, verbal troubleshooting | Reduced | Real-time video and AR annotation allow for faster, more efficient collaboration and diagnosis. |
| Customer Experience (CX) | Frustrated customers due to confusion and delays | Improved | Customers receive fast, accurate identification, leading to quicker order processing and delivery. |
Conclusion
By adopting Blitzz Concierge, Encompass Supply Chain Solutions successfully transitioned from frustrating, audio-based support to a seamless, visual service experience. The app-free video platform empowered agents to achieve instant, accurate part identification, thereby fulfilling their mission to provide customers with the specific parts they need, exactly when they need them.
Blitzz has proven to be an invaluable strategic tool for Encompass, driving greater operational efficiency by reducing callbacks, accelerating order fulfillment, and strengthening their reputation for excellent customer care. The solution ensures smooth business operations and solidifies Encompass’s position as a leader in reliable supply chain services for appliance and consumer electronics parts.