Focusing on smaller ISPs, Caleris offers affordable support with a small town flavor.

by Jeff Goldman [July 20, 2005]

Caleris, Inc. was founded in 1990 as Enterprise Corporation International, or ECI, to develop software and testing devices for the compact disc industry. According to Vaughn Christensen, the company's Corporate Accounts Manager, ECI began offering call center services when a prospective customer asked for outsourced tech support along with the software.

Caleris 3090 104th Street Des Moines, IA 50322 Voice: (800) 588-4082 solutions@caleris.com

ECI's first call center was set up in the Bay Area in 1995, but the company moved to Des Moines, Iowa soon after. "It's a lot more expensive to hire people in California," Christensen says. "It's also a lot easier to get people who will actually stick around, and care about people, in Des Moines."

A few years later, ECI began looking for a rural area in which to open a new tech support facility, and found the small town of Manning, Iowa, with a population of 1,500. "They were looking for a high tech company and we were looking for a small town, and it worked really well," Christensen says. "They've got fiber optics through the town, so they had the infrastructure that we needed."

ECI began providing outsourced technical support for ISPs in late 2000. "In Iowa, there are over 100 independent telephone companies, and most of them offer Internet service," Christensen says. "You have one or two people running a local telephone company, taking phone calls all weekend long for ISP tech support-so there was a very large demand, and we've had some success."

In 2004, ECI's helpdesk division was purchased by Rick Grewell and Sheldon Ohringer, and renamed Caleris. ECI's software division continues to operate as ECI Software.

Rapid growth
Since the acquisition, Caleris has expanded enormously, adding another call center in Jefferson, Iowa in early 2005 and increasing the company's client base by 50 percent within the first year. Caleris now serves over 30 ISPs, including dialup, DSL, wireless, and VoIP providers.

Grewell and Ohringer have also expanded the company's focus to include services like product fulfillment and outbound follow-up calls. Tom Hargens, the company's Director of Sales, says that for one ISP client, Caleris now follows up on every tech support call with an outbound call one or two hours later to make sure the customer is up and running.

All of the company's support techs go through an initial 90 day training program, as well as ongoing workshops on both technical issues and customer care. "Each quarter, two or three techs are assigned to lead the customer service training," Christensen says. "It's fun, because they get creative and everybody enjoys it."

Daily and weekly performance reports are provided to the ISP, as well as monthly summary and statistical reports. The ISP client also has web-based access to Caleris' Customer Relationship Management system at any time to monitor trouble tickets on an ongoing basis or to download reports.

Pricing can be structured per subscriber, per call, per minute, or per issue. "The costs of people, infrastructure, and facilities are a lot less in the Midwest, so we're able to keep our costs low and pass that along to the Internet service providers," Christensen says. "We allow small ISPs to offer 24/7 support like the bigger ISPs can."

Small town flavor
Caleris' new tag line is distinctive: Outsource to Iowa—Not India. "One of our strengths, and one of the things that we'll continue to focus on, is that when you call our tech support it's like calling down the street," Christensen says. "It's got a down home flavor, and people recognize that. You get that kind of feeling when you call: that they care. You don't feel the person just wants to get you off the phone."

Janell Hansen is General Manager of The Marne & Elk Horn Telephone Company, or METC, which was incorporated in 1903. The company's Internet Service Provider division, Marne Elk Horn Internet, has been working with ECI (and now Caleris) since February of 2001.

According to Hansen, one of the biggest selling points of Caleris' service was the company's proximity. "Manning is about 20 miles north of Elk Horn, where we're at, so I was familiar with the community," she says.

Sticking with a local provider, she says, has proved to be a great benefit. "I know there are some tech support places that are even outsourced outside of the country, but you answer the phone and they know immediately that's the case," Hansen says. "With these people, my customers have developed relationships with them. They'll say, 'Oh yeah, I got Bobby last time.' That means a lot."

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Related articles:
	[Dec. 27, 2002]	We Need Cheap Overnight Tech Support
	[Jan. 22, 2001]	When Your Help Desk is Distant
	[June 2, 2000]	Building an ISP Business Plan Part 4: Operating & Organizational Plans

Online resources:
	Outsourced Customer Support Directory
	Quick Reference Chart