Industry and Business News

Engaging with and capturing customers is how businesses generate revenue. The process of getting customers on board is often costly, both in terms of the effort and money required to attract them. Retaining customers is often at least 70% cheaper than winning new ones. 

The difference between keeping and losing customers can be dependent on the quality of the communications exchanged during their journeys with us. So just how can we make sure our customer communications are working for us, and not against us?

Retail Industry leaders and suppliers at Retail Business Technology Expo (RBTE 2016) have been debating the future of the industry and exploring how to best tackle their most challenging issues including "How to translate the ‘Segment of One’ personalised web shopping experience into the physical world?"

Biometrics invisibly integrated in Omni-Channel retail experiences provide platforms for convenient and speedy personalised service with enhanced security. But is anyone listening?

Fraud can be stopped from entering the system with real-time recognition of users anytime, anywhere. This short article, originally published in the Sunday Telegraph, introduces the use of handwritten biometric signatures and their natural context of use with many types of documentation.

icon^UK contributed to and supports techUK's latest Financial Services White Paper, "Taking the Initiative: Leading with Technology in Financial Services", arguing that the F.S. industry's technological foundations are impeding the development of a fully digitised and modern financial services sector. Unless the issues are urgently addressed, London risks losing it's dominant position as European FS Leader and established players will be left with the unwanted business segments as innovators including 'non-banks' take the richest pickings. 

The paper argues that transformation is required at three distinct levels. First, financial institutions must transform core systems allowing for an agile response to shifting consumer demand and regulatory requirements. Second, incumbents must use data and analytics to enhance performance. Third, renewed emphasis on customer experience is needed to improve customer satisfaction. 

Budget 2015:
Time to get real about funding gaps and productivity potential

The UK Government over successive incumbents has often commited to paperless targets and efficiencies, yet then procrastinates when it comes to taking real action. Fortunately during the last few years we have seen signs of strong progress with dynamic approaches to identity management (e.g. online identity assurance via the GDS 'VERIFY' programme), biometric electronic signatures at the DWP and an openness to new procurement frameworks that encourage innovation. However there is still a long way to go in terms of awareness and action. Which is a shame because it's what the Government and the country need right now. Introducing state-of-the-art Document and Identity process effectiveness alone could eliminate the budget deficit over the next Parliament. This article gives an overview of the importance of the topic. 

BBC News Reports that "The government is investing in a digital revamp of the UK's job centres”: Electronic pads that recognise job seekers' signatures using biometric software will be installed at centres around the UK, along with PC workstations, free wi-fi and operated on the government's secure network.

US test case for the reach of cross-border legal enforcement in the cloud computing era brings enhanced concerns for the privacy and security of personal data belonging to UK and EU citizens. If concerns translate into spend, then UK or EU owned SaaS (Software as a Service) providers will flourish taking share from US vendors.

Read icon^UK director Chris Jones' thoughts on the new Whitepaper recently released by techUK on the future role of technology in the financial services sector.

The future of Customer Communications Management is being shaped by four unstoppable trends, envisioned by enlightened customers with assistance from Information Professionals and created by integrating the best software solutions with improved business processes. 

Why form icon^uk? I discovered that there is a largely hidden opportunity area that straddles areas that are mission-critical to service industries. These are a product of neglect of old issues and new, unstoppable trends. "Customer Communications Management" is now recognised by Gartner and gives us optimism for our clients in 2013 and beyond.  

Product and Company News

We are pleased to announce that Icon UK have signed a 5 year exclusive distribution contract with Xyzmo Software GmbH.

SIGNificant software by xyzmo wins the 2011 global Signature Verification Competition for Online Skilled Forgery Detection.

According to a study carried out by the IT consulting company IDC, the overwhelming majority of executive officers think that quick and easy access to information is a prerequisite for optimising decision-taking processes, while saving time, nerves and helping avoid duplication within a company.

Knowledge workers can spend huge amounts of time searching for content or manually integrating it into existing processes. With “COPiX”, icon now offers a market leading content integration solution to complement icon’s document creation and output management solutions.

London based company, Icon UK, and Stuttgart based icon Systemhaus GmbH, the major provider of Customer Communications Management (“CCM”) solutions in the German market, today announced the availability and support of their icon Suite based solutions to the UK market.