IICs have successfully employed Web portals for: Attracting new customers. The Web portal links operations with external sales channels, providing competitive pricing analyses and other information to give prospective customers incentives to buy. Retaining existing customers. IICs have had success increasing customer satisfaction by offering Web-based self-care functions, such as allowing customers to check and pay bills, order or modify services, explore product bundling and discounting options and subscribe to content services. These Web portal capabilities create "stickiness" that add value beyond the core service. Increasing customer intimacy. IICs often leverage customer data to personalize the Web front end and the customer's experience, at least giving the customer a perception of more personalized service. Whether the customer uses the Web portal, or calls a customer care agent using a similar interface, he should be greeted in a personal, knowledgeable fashion - not by entering his account number into an IVR only to have the agent ask for it again, for example. Services and accounts, based on the user's profile, should be readily accessible and should prompt offers for related services, upgrades and discount packages, e.g. up-selling and cross-selling. Chapter 5 - The Enterprise OSS Platform Reducing customer care costs. Self-care and features such as electronic bill presentment and payment help cut down the size of the staff necessary to fulfill customer orders and settle billing disputes. It reduces the IIC's reliance on mailing and processing paper bills, helps to lower materials costs and minimizes float. Reducing operational costs and increasing efficiency. The portal can link operations to trading partners and suppliers, automating processes, transactions and status communication. The portal can also be used to pre-qualify customers before expending costs on those who cannot be served. For example, the customer can learn from a Web portal whether or not cable modem service is available in his or he