“A "ticket" describes an exchange between a client and an organization that may encompass one or many messages. Tickets can be formally opened or closed as a way to track which exchanges are resolved and which are not. Tickets can be assigned to particular agents within an organization based on software rules. Besides providing a consistent line of communication between client and organization, tickets produce a "paper trail" that managers can audit or oversee.”

Weiss describes VisNetic MailFlow as “just such a system” before expounding on its particular benefits to small and medium sized businesses. “Because MailFlow is not an email server itself, it is designed to retrieve messages from any standard POP3 server, which an organization can host internally or rely on an ISP. Likewise, MailFlow sends outgoing mail through any standard SMTP relay which, again, may be hosted internally or rely on an ISP. This lightweight design is especially friendly to small organizations that may not have the resources to manage their own mail server but want the benefits of an email response management system.”

“Delivering affordable, intuitive email management software to small and medium sized organizations was precisely our intent with VisNetic MailFlow,” said Mike Deerfield, CEO of Deerfield.com. “However, we designed VisNetic MailFlow to work with MS SQL Server, isolating the data store external to MailFlow. This allows the product to scale to both small and enterprise organizations,” explained Deerfield. “Consequently, our install-base for VisNetic MailFlow includes small companies like ShopNatural Cooperative as well as Johns Hopkins and The Boston Globe.”

In addition to its design, Weiss calls attention to a number of VisNetic MailFlow’s email handling features:

• “Ticketboxes can be configured with auto-response messages that MailFlow calls "standard responses." These responses provide customers an immediate confirmation of receipt, and reassuring instructions of what will happen next (or where they can turn for more help).”
  
  
• “A thorough search facility supports finding tickets by flow criteria, date, and message content.”
  
  
• “For organization managers, MailFlow offers a complete set of reporting tools. You can quickly generate data on ticket activity, how many tickets are open vs. closed, average response times from agents to clients, busiest activity periods, and more.”

Ken Anderson of Lowrance Electronics, Inc., manufacturer of SONAR and Global Positioning System (GPS) mapping instruments and VisNetic MailFlow customer, echoes Weiss’ appreciation of these features. Before implementation of VisNetic MailFlow, Lowrance executives did not have the ability to monitor sales inquiry volume or the level of customer service its staff provided in response to customer inquiries received via email. “Within hours of deploying VisNetic MailFlow, supervisors had enough information to adjust agent assignments, matching expertise to customer inquiries and balancing workload, and begin compiling a library of responses to more efficiently handle common inquiries,” said Anderson.

“VisNetic MailFlow gave us the stats we needed and was the ‘best bang for the buck’,” continued Anderson. “We saw cost-savings before close of business the first day.”

Pricing and Availability

VisNetic MailFlow is a one-time, license-based software solution available for evaluation and purchase from Deerfield.com or any authorized Deerfield.com Reseller. Pricing is based on number of agents and is scaled to fit the financial needs of any organization, starting at $540.00 USD for a 3-User license.

About Deerfield.com:

Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Gaylord, Michigan, Deerfield.com® is an International provider of Internet software and services designed to meet the connectivity, security and messaging needs of small-to-medium sized businesses and organizations. Deerfield.com publishes a leading suite of Internet products distributed via ESD (Electronic Software Distribution) globally through both direct and multi-tiered distribution channels.