SoundBite Communications to Transform the Contact Center with Agent Portal

SoundBite Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: SDBT) today introduced Agent Portal, a contact center productivity tool that will be initially available in October 2008 on the SoundBite Intelligent Communications platform.  Agent Portal is the agent interface to the SoundBite platform.  It reduces hold time and increases agent productivity by delivering a screen pop on the agent desk top with the contact’s account information.

With Agent Portal, agents simply need a phone and a connection to the internet. Individual agents log into the SoundBite web-interface and indicate their current availability, schedule breaks and log out at the end of the day.  When a call is sent to the agent a screen pop simultaneously appears on the agent desktop providing real-time account information such as name and account number, contact information, hold time, call duration and other unique data based on the type of application.  For example, a collection application may include additional fields for amount past due, minimum balance due, or last payment date.

Agent Portal complements SoundBite’s Hold Queue and FastConnect features which can eliminate the ring time and hold time associated with dialing an agent, resulting in increased agent productivity, more right-party conversations, and a positive customer experience.  The Agent Portal capability strengthens SoundBite’s Contact Center Control Panel by providing contact center managers with greater visibility into campaign activity and individual agent performance.  Managers can register and schedule agents and also view the status of individual agents, including real-time information on the current contact if the agent is busy.

“Agent Portal is the latest feature in a suite of agent productivity tools recently made available on the SoundBite Intelligent Communications platform,” said Mark Friedman, Chief Marketing Officer at SoundBite.  “While Agent Portal addresses the needs of collection agencies and the collection departments of enterprise organizations, it was designed to provide agents with real-time account information that may be critical for many types of customer interactions.  The benefits of Agent Portal will appeal to any organization that wants to cost-effectively improve contact center operations and customer experience.”

About SoundBite Communications
SoundBite Communications provides on-demand, integrated multi-channel communications solutions that enable clients to achieve superior business results.  Building on its foundation as a leading provider of automated voice messaging services, SoundBite offers integrated voice, text and email messaging solutions that help clients deliver the right message, to the right customer, using the right channel, at the right time.  Organizations in industries such as collections, financial services, retail, telecom and media, and utilities rely on the SoundBite Intelligent Communications Platform to send over a billion messages annually for collections, customer care, and sales and marketing applications.  For more information, visit http://www.SoundBite.com.