Lithys 2018: Cisco Systems, Inc. - Support Savings Titan

Company: Cisco Systems, Inc.

Company background: Cisco has helped prove that amazing things can happen when you connect the unconnected. By creating long-lasting customer partnerships, Cisco works to provide solutions that fuel their success. In 1984, Len Bosack and wife Sandy Lerner, wanted to email each other from their offices at Stanford University, but the technology didn’t exist. This is how the multiprotocol router was born. Since then Cisco has shaped the future of the Internet by creating unprecedented value and opportunity for our customers, employees, investors and ecosystem partners and has become the worldwide leader in networking - transforming how people connect, communicate and collaborate.

Contact: Monica Lluis

Title: Global Community Manager Lead

Related URLs:  https://community.cisco.com
Lithy category: Support Savings Titan

1. Tell us how you are implementing digital technologies (e.g. community and/or social media management) for social care to meet your customer care business goals. Please highlight unique programs, technical upgrades and/or API usage to help reach these goals.

At Cisco, we recognize that creating the best digital experience for our customers enables them to find what they need, when they need it, and on their own terms. Self-service communities benefit customers because it's what they prefer, the company because it's cost effective, and employees because it reduces repeatable work. Everyone wins!

Cisco Community is a technical hub where millions of visitors, representing Cisco’s largest and most technically advanced audience worldwide, collaborate, co-create, share and learn. The community provides a place to find answers and get help on Cisco products, gives Cisco an opportunity to learn how to improve products and services, and offers a place for interactive events to help educate its customers. 

Highlights of the community:

 1. One-third of all customer issues are addressed through Cisco Community social interactions. Those interactions are recognized and rewarded through the Top Contributors Awards programs, including:

• Cisco Designated VIP program recognizes the top external individual contributors in Cisco's communities. VIPs provide 20% of all the discussion replies on the Community!
• Hall of Fame showcases elite contributors who have earned lifetime achievement recognition. Awardees have a badge placed next to their user name on the communities.
• Spotlight Awards recognizes significant contributors who designate leadership and commitment to their peers within their communities.
• Events Top Contributors program recognizes experts in the Cisco Community who host technical events.

 2. In addition, we have exclusive Marketing and Partner communities:

• Cisco’s Customer Connection Program: Exclusively for Cisco customers and partners to engage with product teams and share best practices around Cisco technologies in private community forums, discuss product roadmaps, participate in early adopter trials, attend monthly briefings, and more.
• Partners Community: A private forum for Cisco partners to learn, share, and collaborate with other partners and connect with Cisco experts.

 3. The community provides an opportunity to interact with experts through our Expert Events Program.  Cisco Community hosted 118 events in 6 different languages in FY18:

2. What changes in your customer care organization were implemented because of cost reductions based on your community and/or social media management for service platform?

When it comes to our technical community, listening to our users and leveraging their feedback to improve their experience is a critical aspect of improving our customer's satisfaction and loyalty. The same measures we have implemented to improve the member experience have also resulted in remarkable cost savings by creating, customizing and improving the Cisco Community.

In August 2017, we successfully migrated Cisco's Support Community onto the Lithium platform. This was a massive undertaking involving the efforts of well over 35 full-time employees and contractors.

In July 2018, we expanded to the Cisco Community by migrating 4 separate communities on two platforms into one community that is more efficient for our users. The migration to Lithium enabled us to merge Cisco’s Marketing, Partner and Development communities with our Support community.  Most important to our business goals, it enabled us to offer a “One Stop Shop” for our customers to get the help they need, when they need it – all in one place.

Through our migration efforts we were able to reduce costs. Those savings went back into the community to:

• Increase the number of custom enhancements including API development
• Customize home pages for the communities
• Improve search functionality through API integration with Cisco.com
• Create a cleaner UX interface
• Expand moderation team
• Centralize our support staff

Our efforts have been rewarded based on user feedback.

Here's a glance at our new, redesigned and re-branded Cisco Community. We’re proud of it!

Homepage

Community Page

3. What are your customer care and business results in quantifiable metrics? Include support savings metrics (e.g. cost savings, decreased response time, call deflection, reduced case escalations, and increased agent productivity).

Our community thrives on users engaging, supporting, and creating content that enables customers to find the information they’re looking for in the shortest amount of time.

In order to see the impact of our changes to Cisco Community, we consistently observe trends, set goals, and measure results. Since upgrading to Lithium and merging our Marketing, Partner and Development communities into our Support Community, membership and contributions have significantly increased.

After the initial migration to Lithium in July 2017, the community experienced substantial growth in self-service with increases in traffic, issues resolved, and faster responses from the community.

Engagement increased since migrating to Lithium

• Registrations grew even after user cleanup was completed on both platforms
• Contributions and accepted solutions increased
• Questions without replies decreased
• Hosted 118 events in 6 different languages in FY18; a 66% increase from FY17.
• Robust growth in Social Media channels in FY18

Here are examples of what our users have been telling us.