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The online travel industry is very competitive. In fact, the Web's ability to make travel arrangements easy and reliable has already put thousands of travel agents out of business. But the appropriate knowledge management tools are needed to keep any online travel site afloat. Maybe it's the one thing that differentiates it from their brick and mortar counterpart.

KANA is a proven leader of combining customer service with product success, according to this case study. This was a clear advantage for Priceline. The company was able to take advantage of KANA's superior solution with multi-channels to ensure customer satisfaction. Because online travel sites have updated prices and offerings at the blink of an eye, it was important for KANA to help Priceline dominate with the best deals and customer service.

In order to make this happen, Priceline was given a dexterous contact center that can react quickly and effectively so online consumers get the best deal possible, no matter the selected channel of communication. KANA's knowledge management solution gives Priceline complete control of their customer service process. This allows the online company to nurture their brand and take care of every customer.

A knowledge management solution works by focusing on the customer's journey within the contact center, the Priceline website and the entire social community. Making the proper adjustments allows the company to reduce their handling time and increase in resolution rates.

The end result is that KANA has made the data work for Priceline, says Ron Rose, CIO of the online travel company. Several features, such as the automated e-mail response and self-service functionality, have truly created a more intelligent format to allow for better customer service. And productivity means more business and more business means more profit. KANA was able to use the knowledge management tools and customize them for agents, managers and customers.

Agents, for example, were given a way to connect to Priceline's internal systems like billing and reservation applications. This puts every piece of information on their screen as they need it. Customers then are able to take advantage of the self-service solutions. With an updated knowledge management service, customers can now access the latest travel prices and information very easily without the need to call Priceline. They can receive top-notch customer service without actually talking to anyone.

At the end of the day, KANA was able to meet Priceline's challenge of meeting the increasing volume of inquiries. The online travel industry is a revolving door that continues to grow. Priceline has been there since the beginning. They needed a knowledge management tool that could handle their outdated contact center and implement a way to offer a self-service option as well as a way to learn from their data and make adjustments.

Now, Priceline managers have the ability to leverage case information and data to improve businesses practices. This lifts a huge burden off the IT staff and has improved efficiency despite being deployed in stages. Results were clear after each phase of the roll out and the return on investment has been an obvious one.

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