07/ 28/ 2005
Good customer service is crucial to success in business. There's nothing high-tech about helping customers get exactly what they need from your business. But technology can make the process easier and more efficient. Like the rest of the business world, customer service has been transformed by technology.
The finalists in the Dell/NFIB Small Business Excellence in Customer Experience Award understand that coupling the latest innovations with good, old-fashioned people skills can help you and your employees deliver top-notch service.
Altivation Software
Chico, Calif.
Michael Reale, President and CEO
When a nonprofit blood bank anywhere in the nation holds a drive, Altivation Software provides the technology to organize the event, collect information and even project how much blood will be collected. The software moved these collection centers from a traditional pen-and-paper system to one that uses top-notch technology to stay organized and efficient.
On being a small-business owner: "Being a small-business owner allows me to be on the frontline and think strategically at the same time," Reale says. "Working in a small-business environment allows us to stay closely connected to our customers to properly meet their needs."
On technology: "We introduce technology to organizations that have traditionally done everything by hand. We also use technology to sell and support our software. A company the size of ours couldn't exist without the introduction of new technology like affordable computers and the Internet."
