Mall91 Support System

Built in-house Odoo-based support system for efficient business process

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eCommerce

Industry

3 Experts

Team size

30 Days

Timeline

Mall91 Support System

eCommerce

Industry

3 Experts

Team size

30 Days

Timeline

About Mall 91 Support System

Mall91- India’s first video commerce (ecomm 2.0) SuperApp, built to onboard 100B Indians to ecommerce.
To facilitate the scaling requirement, we built an in-house support system leveraging the Odoo platform- an open-source ERP, offering a single solution for all business activities from integrating CRM to customer support tools. It has helped to improve our SLA for the Mall91 platform as we worked on iterations to deliver the required features and functionalities quickly.
Let’s see how we implemented Odoo and integrated it throughout our business operation of Mall91.

Mall91- India’s first video commerce (ecomm 2.0) SuperApp, built to onboard 100B Indians to ecommerce. To facilitate the scaling requirement, we built an in-house support system leveraging the Odoo platform- an open-source ERP, offering a single solution for all business activities from integrating CRM to customer support tools. It has helped to improve our SLA for the Mall91 platform as we worked on iterations to deliver the required features and functionalities quickly. We leveraged the Odoo platform to streamline business operations.

Tech stack

Implementation

We used the Odoo platform for the following modules of the Mall91 platform.

  • 1 Ticketing system
  • 2 Reporting dashboard
  • 3 Multi-channel Support
  • 4 Knowledge Base
  • 5 CRM Integration

Odoo's integrated Helpdesk module allows for efficient creation, tracking, and management of support tickets, ensuring timely resolution of customer inquiries.

Ticket management: Ability to create, track, and manage customer support tickets, and based on the outcome we plan the sprint
Module Usage: Odoo's Helpdesk module efficiently managed support tickets from creation to resolution, ensuring timely customer query resolution.
Prioritization and categorization: Prioritization and categorization of tickets based on urgency and type of issue. This strategic prioritization ensured that critical issues received immediate attention while allowing us to proactively address recurring issues, thereby enhancing overall service quality and customer satisfaction.
Non-standard procedures: as it was localized for Indian audiences we had to follow some non-standard patterns, like providing limited forms.

  • Ticketing system- Odoo's integrated Helpdesk module allows for efficient creation, tracking, and management of support tickets, ensuring timely resolution of customer inquiries.

Utilizing Odoo's reporting tools and analytics features, we monitored key support metrics such as response times and customer satisfaction scores, enabling data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement.

Monitoring support metrics: By closely monitoring factors such as response times, resolution rates, and customer satisfaction scores, we identified areas of strength and opportunities for improvement within our support operations. This data-driven approach enabled us to make informed decisions.
Reporting tools: helped us track the effectiveness of our support strategies, identify emerging trends, and pinpoint areas requiring further attention or enhancement. Also, with customizable reports, we tailored our analysis to specific business objectives, facilitating more focused and actionable insights.
Surveys and feedback forms: integrated surveys and feedback forms within the Odoo platform, we actively solicited input on various aspects of the support experience, including responsiveness, helpfulness, and overall satisfaction. This direct feedback provided valuable insights into customer preferences, pain points, and expectations, enabling us to fine-tune our approach and deliver a more personalized and impactful support experience.
Net Promoter Score (NPS) Tracking: As part of our commitment to measuring customer loyalty and advocacy, we implemented Net Promoter Score (NPS) tracking within the Odoo platform. This allowed us to gauge the likelihood of customers recommending our products or services to others, serving as a key indicator of overall satisfaction and loyalty.

  • Reporting dashboard- tracks support metrics like response times and customer satisfaction scores, helping us make better decisions and improve continuously.

With Odoo, we integrated various communication channels like email, live chat, phone, and social media, enabling them to provide consistent support across multiple channels.

Multi-channel communication: Integration with various communication channels such as email, live chat, phone, social media, and messaging apps. This multi-channel approach not only expanded our reach and accessibility but also ensured consistency and continuity in the support experience across diverse touch points, ultimately enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Conversation transfer: Seamless transfer of conversations across different channels while maintaining context to minimize disruptions and delays. Empowered our support team to deliver more efficient and effective solutions.

  • Multi-channel Support- With Odoo, we integrated various communication channels like email, live chat, phone, and social media, enabling them to provide consistent support across multiple channels.

With Odoo, we developed a comprehensive knowledge base feature, to create and maintain a repository of articles, FAQs, and tutorials, empowering the support team to find answers to frequently asked queries, immediately.

Comprehensive repository of resources: Comprehensive repository of articles, FAQs, troubleshooting guides, and tutorials.
Search functionality: allows teams to find answers to their queries. By leveraging powerful search algorithms and intuitive filtering options, we ensured that users could easily navigate through the vast repository of content and find the information they needed with minimal effort. This enhanced search experience accelerated problem resolution and decision-making.

  • Knowledge Base- With Odoo, we developed a comprehensive knowledge base feature, allowing the support team to find answers to frequently asked queries, immediately.

Odoo allows CRM and e-commerce platforms integration, streamlining data flow and enabling centralized customer data management for enhanced support operations.

CRM integration: Seamless integration with CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems for centralized customer data management. By synchronizing customer information across platforms and departments, we ensured a unified view of customer interactions and history, enabling our support team to deliver more informed and proactive assistance.
Third-party tool Integration: Integration with e-commerce platforms, helpdesk software, and other relevant tools. By seamlessly connecting these disparate systems and consolidating data streams, we streamlined processes, improved efficiency, and delivered more cohesive and integrated support experiences.
Jupiter notebook data analysis: We use Jupiter for quick reporting and data analysis.

  • RM Integration- Odoo allows CRM and e-commerce platforms integration, streamlining data flow and enabling centralized customer data management for enhanced support operations.

Challenges

In delivering a high-quality and highly available support system, ensuring quick delivery with seamless business operations was the challenge. Not from the user’s perspective, we faced internal challenges by dedicated teams that were important to attend and find potential solutions to track everything. From security to optimizing overall cost were our top challenges.

  • 01. Security
    Developing a support system using the Odoo platform may face security challenges due to the handling of sensitive customer data and communication. Vulnerabilities in the platform or inadequate security measures can lead to data breaches, compromising customer privacy and trust.
  • 02. Scalability
    As the support system grows and the volume of customer inquiries increases, scalability becomes a significant challenge. The system must be able to handle a larger workload without sacrificing performance or user experience. Inadequate scalability can result in system slowdowns, downtime, or even crashes during peak periods.
  • 03. Availability
    Ensuring the availability of the support system is crucial for maintaining uninterrupted customer service. Any downtime or service disruptions can lead to frustration among customers and negatively impact their perception of the business. Achieving high availability requires robust infrastructure, redundancy, and effective disaster recovery strategies.
  • 04. Increasing cost
    The cost was increasing to handle an increasing user base and CDN services, so we had to find a cost-efficient solution.

Solutions

  • 01. Solutions
    BAAP (behavior and anomaly processor): We built our own processor that detects any anomaly behavior at runtime to ensure security. We integrated AI/ML technology for spam detection/nudity detection.
    Implementing Robust Access Controls: Utilize role-based access controls and strong authentication mechanisms to restrict unauthorized access based on user roles and permissions.
    Regular Platform Updates and Patching: Stay proactive by applying updates and patches provided by Odoo to address known security vulnerabilities promptly, ensuring a secure system.
    Encryption of Sensitive Data: Secure sensitive data both at rest and in transit using encryption algorithms and TLS protocols to prevent unauthorized access and interception.
    Conducting Security Audits and Penetration Testing: Regularly audit the Odoo platform for security weaknesses and perform penetration testing to identify and address vulnerabilities effectively.
  • 02. Scalability Strategies
    Designing for Scalability: Utilize cloud-based infrastructure for a flexible support system that can handle varying user demands efficiently. Break down system components into smaller, independent services to enable easier scaling and resource allocation.
    Optimizing Database Queries: Improve system performance by optimizing database queries through techniques like indexing and query tuning. Introduce caching mechanisms to store frequently accessed data and minimize repetitive database queries.
    Monitoring System Metrics and Dynamic Resource Adjustment: Continuously monitor key system metrics to understand performance and resource usage. Implement auto-scaling mechanisms to dynamically adjust system resources based on workload patterns, ensuring optimal performance and resource utilization.
  • 03. Ensuring Availability
    Automated Monitoring: Incorporate redundant components and failover mechanisms to ensure backup resources are available and activated during downtime. Deploy monitoring tools to track system health, promptly detecting and alerting administrators of potential issues for rapid resolution.
    Deploying Across Multiple Geographic: Spread the system across diverse data centers to mitigate outages. Geographic distribution ensures continued accessibility, even during regional disruptions.
    Regular Testing of Disaster Recovery Procedures: Conduct routine tests to validate disaster recovery readiness. By ensuring regular testing, swiftly restore the system in case of catastrophic failure, minimizing downtime and preserving user experience.
    Node microservices: to ensure availability, we used microservices for (barcode create/ KYC/ queue) to ensure load tolerance.
  • 04. Optimized cost
    We created our own CND using Varnish to reduce the costs of third-party AWS CDN services. It helped us to cater to scaling the user base.
  • Improved security

    included behavior and anomaly detection, robust access controls, regular platform updates, encryption of sensitive data, and conducting security audits and penetration testing.

  • Scalability strategies

    Implementing scalability strategies including cloud-based infrastructure, optimized database queries, and dynamic resource adjustment for efficient handling of varying user demands.

  • Ensuring availability

    included automated monitoring, geographic deployment, regular testing of disaster recovery procedures, and utilization of node microservices for load tolerance.

  • Optimized cost

    We created our own CND using Varnish to reduce the costs of third-party AWS CDN services. It helped us to cater to scaling the user base.

Result

Leveraging the Odoo platform to develop an intuitive support system for the Mall91 eCommerce platform was the best decision ever. We witnessed the following improvements.

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48 hours

SLA reduced from 7 days to 48 hours

7 days

Development time reduced from 20 days to 7 days, resulting lesser cost

99.9%

Uptime, Improved product quality with lesser downtime

Result

48 hours

SLA reduced from 7 days to 48 hours

7 days

Development time reduced from 20 days to 7 days, resulting lesser cost

99.9%

Uptime, Improved product quality with lesser downtime

Get PDF