News Archive

Contact:
Marjie Bally
(909) 606-3665
mbally@alorica.com

Outsourcing Adds Services
by Dennis Eskow, Editoral Director

If you haven’t heard about eMachines, stand by. The Irvine, CA-based PC maker opened 2002 with massive investments in itself and customer care. The results should be visible just about now.

“If we can meet the service needs of our customers in an efficient and timely manner, we can improve customer loyalty and more effectively manage the eMachines brand,” says Wayne R. Inouye, President of the company.

The company, founded in 1998 as the manufacturer of a bare-bones computer designed strictly for Internet users, went private in December in a $121 million stock buyout. In January, it announced a multi-million dollar customer service outsourcing deal with Alorica. This will help shore up eMachines’ relationships with retailers Best Buy, Circuit City and Office Depot, as well as with customers who purchased PC’s directly over the Web.

“We’ve moved from simple telephone technical support to a full-blown fix and replace service,” says Bob Cote, VP of call center operations. Cote and a small staff of customer service managers work at the Irvine headquarters. The Alorica-run call center is in Magma, UT. By hiring Alorica last year, eMachines was working on keeping their low price machines at below $1200 while offering service that could rival some of the larger PC houses.

When the company made the decision to outsource support, the new partner had to be brought in carefully. “This is my business in which Alorica provides a key function. I monitor calls, set up daily goals and metrics and watch each day. We have a calibration session every week to make sure all parts of the business are working together,” says Cote.

Under the new program, eMachines purchasers get free tech support for up to one year and one year free parts and labor. Although the additional free support will add cost to the company operations, it is expected to pay for itself within the year based on a reduction of returned machines. Also, policies such as less-than-a-minute phone waits are designed to give the company a service reputation rivaling giants like Dell, a nearly impossible undertaking if they were providing service themselves.

Under the new system, eMachines is increasing its number of customer care staffers and providing a wider range of service options. This includes taking advantage of the new Microsoft XP Remote Assistance feature.

eMachines is banking on the new center to take it up to the next rung of marketing, where it can offer broadened services for home-based businesses. With Alorica in position, eMachines is redefining its unique selling proposition. “We had been selling on price.” Says Cote. “But now we are selling on service as well.”