Salesforce.com Upgrades On-Demand ServiceSalesforce.com Upgrades On-Demand Service

Salesforce.com Inc. unveiled on Tuesday an upgraded support and services module for its suite of software that's sold as a Web service for managing sales and customer relationships.

In addition, the San Francisco application service provider also unveiled third-party applications that can be added to the new Salesforce Service and Support 2.0.

Among the new features in the upgrade is a redesigned user interface, called an Agent Console, that consolidates customer information on a single screen. That information includes case details, contract information, customer assets and orders.

In addition, the upgrade includes a self-learning engine that can recommend solutions to customer problems, based on previous interactions. There's also an integration toolkit for connecting the Service and Support module to call management technology from telephony vendors, such as Alcatel, Avaya, Cisco, Contactual, Echopass, Five 9, Nortel and Teamphone.

Salesforce is also offering a self-service portal for companies who want to direct customers to a site offering answers to frequently asked questions.

The third-party applications for Service and Support are being made available through AppExchange, a searchable directory of software that's made to plug into the Salesforce platform, which includes all of the company's customer relationship management and sales-force automation services. Among the capabilities of applications in AppExchange available for Service and Support are time tracking, return materials authorization, mobile workforce management and integrated chat.

Salesforce add-ons are available at no extra charge, but there may be an additional charge for third-party applications.

The upgrade of the Service and Support module is scheduled for release as part of the across-the-board upgrade of the Salesforce.com platform in the fourth quarter. The suite of services is sold for $65 a month, per user, for the professional edition, and $125 a month, per user, for the enterprise edition.