Solutions and SmartScripts with Siebel PRM

You can help partners solve problems by creating solutions or Siebel Troubleshooting or Instruction SmartScripts. Solutions or SmartScripts can help partners solve:

• Customer problems. Partners can use solutions or SmartScripts rather than getting help from the brand owner to solve customer service requests.

• Partnership problems. Partners can use solutions or SmartScripts to solve their own problems, rather than using the Self-Service screen to enter service requests.

Solutions and SmartScripts are discussed in the following topics:

• "Scenario Using Solutions and SmartScripts to Help Partners"

• "Making Solutions Available to Partners"

• "Making Troubleshooting or Instruction SmartScripts Available to Partners"

Scenario Using Solutions and SmartScripts to Help Partners

The following is a scenario showing how a partner might use solutions and SmartScripts that you have set up.

One of your partners is planning to organize a seminar to educate executives about partner relationship management. The partner wants to know whether the brand owner agrees to refund the cost of this marketing event.

The partner navigates to the Solutions screen in the Siebel PRM Portal, browses the frequently asked questions (FAQs), and searches on keywords to find relevant solutions.

The partner finds an FAQ that says there is a SmartScript with a series of questions and answers that let you identify whether marketing events qualify for reimbursement.

The partner navigates to the Solutions screen in the Siebel PRM Portal and runs this SmartScript. It asks a series of questions about the type of event being organized, the partner company's partnership level, and other parameters that determine whether a marketing event qualifies for reimbursement.

The partner finds that the seminar qualifies for reimbursement. However, the partner still needs some help from the brand owner, such as marketing material and permission to use its logos. To get this help, the partner navigates to the Self-Service screen and logs a service request, as described in "About Managing Partners' Service Requests".

Making Solutions Available to Partners

Service solutions are answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs). You can create solutions that your customers, employees, or partners can use. You can associate a solution with related solutions and resolution documents, so users can navigate among these related documents. A service agent can associate a solution with a service request or a change request to make it available to the user who logged the request.

Solution records can be published internally, externally, or both:

• Solutions published internally are accessible to your employees.

• Solutions published externally are accessible to customers.

You publish solutions internally to make them available to partners, because Siebel PRM treats partner employees as your employees.

Use access control to make solutions accessible to a specific partner or partner community. Use the Catalog Administration screen to add the solution to a catalog that is associated with the partner community for which you want to make it visible.

Your partners access these solutions through the Solutions view of the Solutions screen in the Siebel PRM Portal. Partners can browse through the solutions or use a keyword search to find the solution they need. The Solutions view shows a flat list of solutions, which is useful for a keyword search.

Alternatively, solutions can be added to catalogs and be made available to users through the InfoCenter screen. Navigation of the InfoCenter is more straightforward.

For information on creating and administering service solutions, FAQs, and resolution documents, see the topics on solutions and service requests in Siebel Applications Administration Guide.

Making Troubleshooting or Instruction SmartScripts Available to Partners

A SmartScript is a set of branching questions and instructions. The answer to each question determines which question or instruction appears next.

Siebel SmartScripts are often used by call center agents who perform troubleshooting. The SmartScript tells them what question to ask the customer. Depending on the customer's answer, the SmartScript tells them the next question to ask. The scripted series of questions and answers helps the agent identify and solve the problem.

You can also create SmartScripts to help your customers, employees, or partners solve problems.

After you have created and tested the SmartScript, you select the Active check box to make it available.

For information about creating and administering SmartScripts, see Siebel SmartScript Administration Guide.

To make a Troubleshooting or Instruction SmartScript available to partners 

1. Navigate to the Administration - SmartScript screen, then the Scripts view.

2. Add a new record to the Scripts list, and enter the following:

   1. Select Troubleshooting or Instructions in the Type field.

   2. Click the Active check box.

3. Add the SmartScript to the Service Catalog in the desired category.

4. Make sure the partner is in the Access group for that category.

   The SmartScript is visible to the partner in the Solutions screen of the Siebel PRM Portal. The partner can filter to display only Troubleshooting or Instruction SmartScripts.