All posts tagged support

HTML5 - What is it and what does it mean to me? Apps not required?

by Mary Cook on December 9, 2011 in Industry News, Mary Cook, Mobile/Telcom, Varolii News with 2 Comments

Even if you're a Web novice, you may already have heard the term “HTML5” by now. You can almost feel the buzz amongst designers and web users!

Google, Apple, Facebook and others have been constantly in the mix -- and they're all pulling their socks up to maximize the benefits of this exciting new platform.

Even if you're not a web designer, you may get the feeling that HTML5 will be the next big thing when it comes to meeting the demands of the modern Web.

Should you care as an internet user (or a designer for that matter)? Yes!

HTML5 – what is the big deal?

The big deal is that pretty soon, you’ll find it everywhere on the web!

pic one1 HTML5 What is it and what does it mean to me? Apps not required?You know that with HTML4, websites usually have to depend on Flash or Silverlight plugins to show and play a video file (you may have observed this in video sharing sites like YouTube).

The DISADVANTAGE comes in the smart phones, iPads and iPhones.

Take Apple as an example. They had to drop support for HTML4 plugins to optimize the battery power of their phones. The lack of HTML4 support made much of the rich media (like video content), plainly inaccessible through these phones.

With HTML5, web designers can directly embed media with simple HTML tags like “<video>” and “<audio>” – thereby eliminating the need for plugins.

Facebook and HTML5 – How do they mix?Facebook1 HTML5 What is it and what does it mean to me? Apps not required?

Facebook has also launched its HTML resource center in an attempt to help designers build, test and deploy web applications.

As you may know, Facebook has an excellent platform on mobile; it's evident that it is pushing ahead to encourage designers to create applications with HTML5 on mobile phones.

Facebook is predominantly using HTML5 in its specific mobile products, as this makes the access to other various interrelated devices much simpler.

Amazon Adds HTML5 to Updated Kindle E-Book Format

kindle HTML5 What is it and what does it mean to me? Apps not required?With the launch of the fire tablet, Amazon has also sprung up a new book format that provides crafty designers with an opportunity to access a variety of updated features, including HTML5.  In August, Amazon also released its Kindle Cloud Reader which is an HTML5-based reading application.

Along with that, Amazon’s KF8 is a new HTML5 kindle book which is designed to enable publishers to create picture books, graphic novels and comics – all done thanks to the HTML5-rich formatting capabilities and elements of design.

Brightcove and HTML5HTNL5 HTML5 What is it and what does it mean to me? Apps not required?

Brightcove, a leading worldwide provider of cloud content services, has also announced their rousing new features that come with their video cloud online- platform smart players.

These smart players help beat a lot of discrepancies and inconsistencies when it comes to HTML playback. Moreover, the integration with the HTML5 also enables reliable reproduction with both the analytics and integration with the third party services -- take ad serving solutions for example.

The Bottom Line

future HTML5 What is it and what does it mean to me? Apps not required?The bottom line is -- as a web user and designer, you would be benefiting a lot from HTML5 without even realizing it. Popular web browsers like Safari, Chrome and Firefox all have support for at least some elements of HTML5.

Through Chrome or Safari, you can check out some of the experimental versions of YouTube that makes use of HTML5’s video features.

Google reader and Gmail also have embraced some parts of the standard. Additionally, any site which is listed as being “iPad ready” is sure to be opting for considerable use of HTML5. Take examples of the New York Times, CNN and CBS.

Yes, Flash may not be going anytime soon of course, as it is still extensively used and supported. The flash games which we have a definite affection for are still impossible to recreate from HTML.

So when you hear the term “HTML5”, more than anything, it refers to the future of the World Wide Web.

In Conclusion – What does this mean to me?

HTML5 essentially brings application capabilities to browser capability and the web experience, so the big news is that HTML5 could render mobile apps obsolete. No more downloading and parking app icons on your mobile device. You get that functionality through a browser experience. So what it means is that the communication between businesses and their customers could change radically. But you need someone who understands what this means for the patient experience in healthcare, or the consumer in finance, or the passenger in airlines (and all sorts of other customers and companies). Furthermore you will need to understand how to get the most out of your customer experience communication strategy - which means you may need a trusted vendor advisor…with knowledge and experience…like…like…Varolii!

So – Call us. 800-206-2979. Or email me, tweet me, respond to my blog, or send me a smoke signal.

References Used

What's New in HTML-5?

Amazon's new e-book format brings HTML5 support to your Kindle library

Facebook launches HTML5 Resource Center

The Present and Future of HTML5 Video Experiences

Interactive Communications and the CRM Puzzle: The Last Mile of CRM

by Kael Kelly on October 10, 2011 in Call Centers, CRM, Kael Kelly, Mobile/Telcom with No comments
last_mile

In the 1990s and 2000s, as broadband networks proliferated, telecommunications service providers struggled with what the industry coined as “the last mile problem.” High bandwidth networks crisscrossed the country, yet mostly narrowband copper wire ran from the Telco central office to the customer’s home. The last mile problem was how to get the customer access to these new, bold, high-speed networks. For the consumer, the situation was like gazing through a store window and seeing the perfect gifts, yet the store was never open.

With customer relationship management (CRM), companies spend billions of dollars each year in CRM software, contact center infrastructure, websites, analytics, and customer service representatives to support customers. They also invest heavily in systems to capture, store and analyze customer data for support and selling activities. Yet, when it comes to customer service, too much of the burden is placed on customers to engage with the companies they do business with. They have to find the information they need, get support, and determine the appropriate course of action. In that sense, CRM has a “last mile” problem, too—how to get relevant, timely information to customers so they engage with the company to solve problems and build tight relationships.

To effectively manage their business relationships, customers must comb through information and support from websites, streams of email and postal mail, inbound contact centers, and retail centers. These customer communication tools are expensive for businesses and often don’t provide an easy way for customers to take action. That is, companies don’t have a way to fully leverage on the information and systems they have where it really matters: communicating with customers in a timely way via their preferred medium. Instead, organizations put the burden of managing the relationship on the customer.

The name of the game in this decade is customer engagement. Companies have to solve this “last mile” problem with smart, effective customer interaction. The great thing about our company is the power of Varolii Interact gives businesses the ability to better engage customers through multi-channel interactions. Not messages, not “blasts,” not spam, not information overload. Rather, highly personalized communications that inform customers and let them take action, including connecting them to an expert or support staff to engage at a different level.

Medical Therapy Should Include Treatment Adherence

by Mary Cook on July 19, 2011 in Healthcare, Mary Cook with 2 Comments

Being ill is hard. In order for a patient to feel better, he or she must follow the treatment suggested by his or her physician. This willingness to cooperate ensures that the patient is healthier, experiences a higher quality of life, has greater symptomatic relief, and requires less interventional care from unscheduled ER visits and nursing assistance.

What Does Effective Adherence Management Involve?
Effective adherence management involves educating and engaging the patient. By making them an active participant in the therapy process, physicians can help their patients improve their health as well as clinical outcomes. Although this may appear to be an easy task, it is not due to the sheer number of patients requiring care.

Sadly, it is difficult for healthcare providers to administer effective adherence management because they are either:

a) forced to scale back to efficiently deal with current workloads

b) hire additional care support specialists to meet needs, or

c) find a more effective way to generate reports than surveys administered by care support specialists or sent through the mail.

How Does It Benefit Organizations?
Improved and demonstrable patient adherence ensures better care and lower medical cost. Unnecessary hospitalizations, ER visits, nursing home admissions, and excess consumption of interventional treatments become fewer and less expensive.  This is good news for both patient and physician.

Enrollment and Maintenance, an Effective Approach
Engaging plan participants involves three steps. This is an effective way to promote compliance. Here they are:

  1. Awareness of programs - Patients should know that wellness and disease management programs exist. Without this knowledge, they are not able to take part of treatments.
  2. Enrollment of patients and members - Patients or members can be enrolled quickly and without the hassle of long forms or impatient call center employees.  This opens up the arena for questioning. Patients are at ease and can obtain the information that they are looking for.
  3. Ongoing engagement - Once the patient or member is engaged and adherent, the physician will want to keep them this way. They will want to continue to take an interest in their health and the maintenance of it.

Why Patients Fail to Take Their Prescribed Medications
Although it can be a variety of factors, here are a few of the reasons why patients state they do not take their prescribed medications:

patients medication1 Medical Therapy Should Include Treatment Adherence

  • Forgetfulness (30 percent)
  • Other priorities (16 percent)
  • Decision to omit doses (11 percent)
  • Lack of information (9 percent)
  • Emotional factors (7 percent)
  • No reason (27 percent)

Based on these answers, the four common areas to improve adherence include patient education, revised dosing schedules, increased hours when the clinic is open along with shorter waiting times, and improved communications between physicians and patients.

Three Secondary but Crucial Criteria
Three secondary but crucial criteria include:

  • Multi-lingual capabilities - Being able to effectively communication in a number of different languages is beneficial.
  • Multi-channel capabilities - Different channels such as cell phones, emails, and text messages improve communication because it appeals to other people.
  • Decisioning capabilities - Intervention strategy can be catered to the patient's needs as well as actual patient response data.

Treatment adherence results when patients and physicians feel comfortable in one another's presence. This allows them to forge a relationship that is built on trust. Once diagnosed with an illness, patients should be given the information that they need to maintain a healthier and happier lifestyle. Part of this education should include a lesson about how important treatments are and how adherence can improve the quality of their lives.

Varolii automates the patient outreach process, using any communication device, and personalizes messages that allow the patient to respond and take action. Our personalized messages to patients and members help efficiently monitor progress and manage care, effectively triage for intervention, and optimize care support resources. Keep in mind that the primary focus of all these efforts towards automating the engagement process are driving towards the goal of healthier patients, superior clinical outcomes, improved economic outcomes and better HEDIS scores. If you would like to learn more about of progressive engagement products, please visit our healthcare solutions.

You can also read the full whitepaper about Communications Therapy Improving Treatment Adherence.