Demonstrating its leadership as an innovative online corporate travel provider which anticipates the needs of business travelers, Orbitz for Business (www.orbitzforbusiness.com) today announced it will soon begin testing live instant message customer support. Testing will start for some customers near the end of 2009, with the plan of making the service available on a subscription basis for all corporate clients by the spring of 2010.
The new Live Chat service will identify Orbitz for Business travel planners and customers who appear they might benefit from assistance while searching for or booking a travel product, and invite them to “live chat.” A select group of specially trained Orbitz Worldwide teleservice experts will provide support through the new instant message service. Additionally, customers will be able to request a live chat session, reducing the need, in many cases, of speaking to an agent over the telephone.
"The new Orbitz for Business live chat subscription service will save business travelers time and improve the overall booking process by anticipating problems and proactively providing the expert advice needed to complete a booking,” said Frank Petito, President, Orbitz for Business. "Similar to our on-site agent model, Orbitz for Business’ new live chat adds another premium service and innovative feature that corporate customers can integrate into their managed travel programs.”
Examples of criteria that could prompt a customer to experience the Live Chat service include:
•Customer’s session times are longer than normal
•Customer’s credit card is not immediately validated and processed
•Customer is booking a complex itinerary
“As we continue our focus on helping our corporate customers become more efficient, we believe this new service will improve overall customer satisfaction by giving them a quicker and easier way to reach customer service agents without ever having to pick up the telephone,” added Petito.
Orbitz' heritage of innovation includes its mobile access service and the OrbitzTLC Alert System. OrbitzTLC Alerts continue to update customers on flight departure and arrival delays, gate changes and cancelled flights. The alerts notify Orbitz customers and can also contact a preset list of up to six friends, family and business colleagues via email, phone calls and text messages to wireless devices. Cost saving tools, introduced by Orbitz for Business in recent years, include the introduction and availability of merchant hotel inventory, as well as expense management controls and reporting tools that provide customers real-time views of their companies travel costs.
Orbitz for Business Live Chat is being deployed in partnership with LivePerson, Inc. The technology is currently in use for Orbitz Worldwide’s consumer brands, including Orbitz.com (www.orbitz.com).
About Orbitz for Business
Orbitz for Business (http://www.orbitzforbusiness.com) is the corporate travel brand of Orbitz Worldwide. Orbitz for Business serves over 2,000 corporate customers and more than a million business travelers. Launched in 2002, Orbitz for Business offers a complete portfolio of travel products and services that help customers plan, search and book business travel. Orbitz for Business leverages the Orbitz Worldwide technology platform, customized for corporate travelers. In addition to its leading technology, Orbitz for Business delivers full service, cost effective travel management solutions including 24x7 customer support; reporting and policy management tools; and comprehensive choice in travel inventory.
About Orbitz Worldwide
Orbitz Worldwide (NYSE: OWW) is a leading global online travel company that uses innovative technology to enable leisure and business travelers to research, plan and book a broad range of travel products. Orbitz Worldwide owns a portfolio of consumer brands that includes Orbitz (www.orbitz.com), CheapTickets (www.cheaptickets.com), ebookers (www.ebookers.com), HotelClub (www.hotelclub.com), RatesToGo (www.ratestogo.com), the Away Network (www.away.com), and corporate travel brand Orbitz for Business (www.orbitzforbusiness.com). For more information on partnership opportunities with Orbitz Worldwide, visit http://corp.orbitz.com.
About LivePerson
LivePerson (NASDAQ: LPSN) is a provider of online engagement solutions that facilitate real-time assistance and expert advice. Connecting businesses and experts with consumers seeking help on the Web, LivePerson's hosted software platform creates more relevant, compelling and personalized online experiences. Every month, LivePerson's intelligent platform helps millions of people succeed online; more than 8,000 companies, including EarthLink, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Qwest and Verizon, rely on LivePerson to maximize the impact of the online channel. LivePerson is headquartered in New York City.