Verification, Refined

By Tara Seals

Much the same way as the novel came into being with the rise of the leisure class, third-party verification (TPV) is reaping the benefits of having room to grow. With few recent regulatory changes and a relatively stable array of vendors in the market, TPV is focusing on refining itself in the automated and online channels.

While some services are regulated and verification is mandated for them by the FCC, other services are not. Even so, many companies in the latter category are implementing TPV as a form of quality control and dispute resolution, to make sure what representatives sold was agreed to.

The attention needs to be on quality and not just doing it on the cheap, says Morgan Fagerman, CEO at The Verification Co. Live agent is the tried and true way to verify orders, because you dont want to get in trouble with regulatory bodies. But automated verification is becoming more and more common as more companies want verification for their businesses.

Automated verification can be performed via an IVR, a speechenabled IVR or a hybrid process that includes a call-back from a live agent. What were seeing is a lot of stabilization in terms of providers its not the influx of new providers we saw a couple of years ago, says David Brinkman, CEO at verification provider 3PV. And so now we see automation quality thats equivalent across the board, so companies are mainly looking for tighter integration.

3PVs XML product, 3PV Direct, provides automation at the order entry point, communicating the customer order directly to 3PV systems. The systems take the customers order and generate an appropriate response, auditing the order that is sent on with the customer input. 3PV also can integrate with customer CRM systems and create customized, directly delivered reports via e-bonding and so on. Were really working to decrease customer downtime and help with order accuracy, says Brinkman. If a customer orders two or three products, one often goes missing because of service rep typos or just human error. We can virtually eliminate that. Brinkman says about 25 percent of 3PVs businesses use automation now, and it expects that to reach about 50 percent within 12 months.

Larry Leikin, general manager of VoiceLog, a division of BSG Clearing Solutions, says the need to run a 24/7 business has sparked a greater embrace of automation, which increasingly comes with support requirements. You need the systems and the people to run this, he says. Its an essential business, TPV, and you cant be down for even five minutes. So beyond basic verification, providers are looking for all kinds of support tools, and are requiring improved reporting capabilities. Weve developed instant e-mail notifications and created a Web reporting dashboard to fill out the offering.

On the online side, electronic letters of authorization for service (eLOAs) have been around for some time, but that too is becoming more refined. VoiceLog, for instance, provides customers with electronic welcome kits. As more and more commerce migrates to the Web, eLOAs are an increasing requirement, says Leikin. Enhancing the basics adds value and makes good business sense for the service provider.

VoiceLog isnt alone. Our AssureSign product is a natural progression of online verification, says 3PVs Brinkman. Providers send the document that needs to be signed, along with contact information for the customer, to the dedicated, secure AssureSign Electronic Signature Web site. 3PV then sends the customer an email with a link that takes him or her to the document, and provides directions about how to sign the document using the mouse. After clicking the preview button to view the signed document, the customer can either clear and re-sign, or go ahead and click submit. 3PV then adds both a serial number and watermark to the signature and encrypts all three elements together with the document for electronic storage. Both the service provider and the customer then have access to an electronic copy of the signed document.

TPV is really a very simple service, with simple requirements like clean orders, easy retrieval and secure storage, says Fagerman. Because we have a stable market, its also becoming very mature and sophisticated.