APIs play a very important role in a billing system to ensure they are integrated with all critical components of a business. There are several upstream components and downstream components that interact with a billing system like CRM Lead Management or order management platform, the downstream platforms can be provisioning and activation system, financial management system taxation, or payment gateway platform, all of which have to connect to the billing system. A powerful API integration allows existing systems to talk to each other without the need to replace them to suit a particular brand or compatibility of one single system. So, if a business wants to use a particular CRM platform, they can integrate it with the billing system without having the need to replace the CRM system. APIs allow the customers to choose multiple application brands to coexist and yet deliver their offerings to the customer by integrating these with another within their eco-system. The integration needs to support both ways of communications – 3rd party apps talking to billing system and billing systems responding to application. The ability of a billing system to work with disparate systems to provide end-to-end experience for the customers is a measure of its efficiency, flexibility and suitability for a on demands UCaaS business.
Integrated Service Desk
With technology changing customer preferences, call centers or voice based support systems are being increasingly replaced by automated service desks that work for both the service provider and the customer to ensure smooth functioning of all systems. At one level, the order orchestration process requires certain activities in a certain order. With an integrated service desk, the provider could create tickets for different tasks, assign them to technicians, monitor progress and mark the task completed when it is done. A provider can prioritize tasks, refine them according to billable, installation charges and more. Technicians have a clear view of the work they are supposed to do, can escalate delays and mark their assignments closed when done. Most importantly, they can record their hours on specific jobs which can then be tracked for billing. At the customer level, the customer can use the system to request for services from the provider. For example, if he wants to add an extension, he can create a request on the service desk instead of calling a call center. They can track progress and be notified when the work is completed, all without spending any time or effort on calling. They can also use the system to clarify any billing related queries as all details are clearly recorded on the system.
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