Call Center Payment Processing

First Alert improves customer service and payments with Salesforce and Chargent

First Alert

First Alert is America’s most trusted and recognized safety brand. Headquartered in Illinois, First Alert is part of Jarden Corporation and manufactures a diverse product line of smoke alarms, carbon monoxide alarms, fire extinguishers, safes, security cameras, and other safety products. The company was founded in 1967 and employs over 3000 people.

Chad Meyer
Chad Meyer

CEO, Internet Creations

Disconnected Call Centers and Data Systems

First Alert’s call centers manage approximately 150,000 support cases each year for pre-sales support, product troubleshooting, and parts replacement. Their call centers were dispersed in multiple locations, and agents were burdened by the different systems they were required to use.

  • Information and support functions were spread across 5 different systems
  • Customer look up and registration was highly time consuming
  • Call center agents didn’t have access to inventory data
  • Card payments required login to banking website which often timed out
  • Agents often chose to forgo payments to expedite customer support
How First Alert Accelerates Service with Salesforce & Chargent

First Alert Goals

First Alert engaged with Internet Creations, a Salesforce Implementation partner, to improve a very inefficient system for their customer support call centers. First Alert required a system that created a faster and smoother experience for agents and customers.

  • Create a more efficient work flow for call center staff
  • Integrate payments and other information from multiple sources into a Salesforce-based solution
  • Improve call support times with faster access and transactions
  • Eliminate losses associated with agents choosing not to process payments for replacement parts

Outcomes

  • Ticketing system, product documentation, knowledge base, payments, and ERP consolidated with a combination of Salesforce and Chargent
  • Improved customer service through reliable access to information and tools
    • Agents given discretionary control over shipping options and costs
    • Payment adjustments and refunds simplified
  • Fast customer lookup times with complete visibility into history
  • Simplified payment workflow which starts with Orders button in Salesforce
  • Pricing built into the system for more accurate payments
  • Payment process re-uses existing customer data to simplify process
  • A successful payment automatically triggers process to ship item
  • Chargent supported First Alert’s existing payment gateway
  • Established an accountable, auditable process for customer service agent coaching