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Introduction
The WWW as a Primary Source of Customer Support
Alexandra Bost, Webmaster
SAS Institute Inc., Cary NC USA
alex@unx.sas.com
Abstract: First released in October 1994, SAS Institute's World Wide Web (WWW) site
was one of the first corporate sites of its kind available on the Internet. The site quickly
became more than just a useful "message;" it became a significant source of user support.
Observing this trend, SAS has implemented a variety of user assistance methods: Online
Order Systems for SAS Documentation; Online Registration for all Training Courses; and a
Technical Support FAQ that contains over 1000 of the most frequently asked questions on
our Technical Support telephone lines. These resources are updated more quickly and
efficiently than their "paper "alternatives.
First released in October 1994, SAS Institute's World Wide Web (WWW) site was one of the first corporate
sites of its kind available on the Internet. The main objective of the SAS WWW has always been twofold:
first, to provide information about Software and Business Solutions provided by SAS Institute; second, to
provide Online Services and Resources to our world-wide customer base.
By the time the WWW site was a year old, it became apparent that our useful "corporate message" tool had
evolved into an effective means of consolidating service and support resources. While many visitors to the site
were reading the Sales and Marketing information on the first few pages, many more were visiting the
Technical Support, Publications, and Training pages.
Observing this trend in the need for User Support, we have implemented a variety of user assistance methods
in our Customer Services area of the web site: Online Order Systems for SAS Documentation; Online
Registration for all Training Courses; and a Technical Support FAQ that contains over 1000 of the most
frequently asked questions on our Technical Support phone lines. These resources are updated more often
than their "paper" alternatives. This paper will demonstrate how we use the WWW to support a variety a of
customer needs, more quickly and efficiently than traditional methods.
The SAS Institute Web site, now composed of nearly 20,000 pages of detailed information, averages nearly
1,500 visitors each business day. Of these visitors, almost 1100 are customers seeking information, resources,
and solutions to problems.
The Customer Services home page, available directly from the SAS WWW home page, provides a wide
spectrum of online resources. Three of the most popular are: An online Publications Catalog and ordering
system; Training Course Descriptions and Registration; The Online Technical Support FAQ.
The Online Publications Catalog
The Online Publications Catalog contains the same information available in our print version of the catalog;
however, with the addition of a searchable index and online order system, our customers are able to take