uMonitor and Next IT Partner

Combined solutions reduce abandonment, improve customer experience

MEMPHIS, Tenn. & SPOKANE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--uMonitor, a provider of innovative customer/member acquisition and retention solutions to the financial sector and Next IT, a leader in the design and implementation of natural language, self-service technology for businesses and organizations, have announced a strategic partnership. The collaboration will combine uMonitor’s account opening and funding solution, uOpen & uFund^®, with Next IT’s Human Emulation Software™ to provide enhanced customer assistance and enable financial institutions to reduce the number of abandoned applications. One of the nation’s five largest credit unions is the first to benefit from this partnership.

“But by embedding ActiveAgent in the service workflow, registration completion goes up and costs go down. Our first deployment with the uMonitor platform last year gave us insight into this workflow process and together, we will provide greater value to our common clients.”

Next IT’s Human Emulation Software, ActiveAgent™, allows users to access a business’ online assets in a manner that is similar to conversing with a live customer service representative. The version developed specifically for the financial vertical guides online bank and credit union applicants through the application process with context-sensitive help.

“The percentage of abandoned online registrations is surprisingly high, as is the cost of following–up with them to reclaim lost business opportunities,” said Fred Brown, founder and CEO of Next IT. “But by embedding ActiveAgent in the service workflow, registration completion goes up and costs go down. Our first deployment with the uMonitor platform last year gave us insight into this workflow process and together, we will provide greater value to our common clients.”

uOpen & uFund is an online account opening and funding solution that enables financial institutions to streamline the workflow for on-boarding customers desiring either personal or business accounts. The solutions improve user experience, regulatory compliance, back office efficiency and customer satisfaction.

“Our customers have seen both new deposit accounts and retention levels grow by using our technology to leverage the online channel and we are continuously seeking greater improvements and strategic partnerships,” said Dinesh Sheth, CEO of uMonitor. “This partnership not only gives our clients’ customers a better online experience, but also provides improvement in support and training for back office staff, allowing them to achieve a higher success rate and lower cost of application processing. We look forward to more banks and credit unions taking advantage of this new offering.”

About uMonitor (www.umonitor.com)

uMonitor offers a wide range of online solutions specifically designed to help financial institutions provide the most up-to-date services. These highly configurable and customizable solutions enable financial institutions to increase profitability, generate revenue, improve regulatory compliance, improve employee productivity while reducing costs and delighting customers. uMonitor solutions include New Account Setup and Online Funding with Switch Kit, New Loan Application Processing, Funds Transfer Service, Bill Presentment and Payment Solutions, Premium Account Management Service, Advisor-Client Relationship Management, and other services. The company’s growth and success were recognized by its inclusion on the Inc. 5000 list in 2008 and 2009. For more information on uMonitor or its solutions, contact Gillian Smoot at [e-mail], call 901.757.1212 ext. 7115, or visit the company at www.umonitor.com.

About Next IT Corporation (www.NextIT.com)

Next IT is at the forefront of the design and implementation of natural language, self-service solutions for businesses and organizations. Next IT’s flagship product, ActiveAgent™, creates Virtual Experts that are redefining the communication between people and technology. ActiveAgent’s conversational interface accurately understands user intent to interpret every day questions and deliver the right answer regardless of the question, language or channel used. Customers such as Alaska Air (www.alaskaair.com), Aetna, AT&T, BECU (www.BECU.org), U.S. Army (www.goarmy.com), Continental Airlines (www.continental.com), Merrill Lynch, TD Ameritrade, and Shaw Communications (www.shaw.ca) have implemented ActiveAgent to improve the user experience with their existing knowledge, tools and applications to allow unstructured conversations across all customer touch points. For more information on Next IT, please contact Jennifer Snell at [e-mail] or visit www.NextIT.com.