Client Results: Verint Systems

Enterprise Technology Practice case study

Overview

In May of 2007, Verint Systems, a market leader in analytic software-based solutions, completed the $1 billion acquisition of competitor Witness Systems, a leading provider of workforce optimization software and services. The deal created one of the 30 largest software companies in the United States and promised to change the way companies communicated with their customers.

Challenge

Verint traditionally focused on communicating with a core set of call center trade publications and influencers to reach a target audience of contact center managers. However, the high-profile nature of the acquisition would demand a broader communication strategy for Verint executives to answer the questions of business and investor communities.

Strategy and campaign

Merritt Group quickly initiated parallel media relations programs to promote the advantages of the acquisition among Verint’s customer base in the contact center community, while justifying the relevance of the deal to broader national business/financial audience.

Supporting materials, including messaging/positioning documentation and presentation, were developed for each target channel. Different spokespeople were trained independently as well.

Contact center: When approaching the contact center press and influencers, Merritt advised the client to set an overarching goal to inform and educate, while leveraging customer testimonials to highlight the potential of the new solution.
Business/financial: With the business press, Merritt:
- Up-leveled the messaging to highlight the size of the deal and demonstrate Verint as a global leader with financial strength, given its history and current market share.
- Explained the impact on the overall software/technology market and drove home messaging on how to successfully combine former competitors and market leaders in the software market.
- Developed a customer service angle by defining the problems in delivering a complete and optimal customer service experience, and by positioning Verint/Witness as the solution.

A secondary goal of the campaign was to demonstrate industry thought leadership. Merritt positioned Verint CEO Dan Bodner as an industry visionary and the leader of one of the largest software companies in the United States, with support from a strong executive team. Tactically, the Merritt Group/Verint PR team developed a thought leadership, bylined article to address the customer-centric message included in the acquisition announcement, and we placed the article in a key contact center trade publication.

The merger announcement was received favorably among the media and analyst community. Merritt Group secured over 25 targeted briefings, including trade/ business press and industry analysts. These briefings led to positive coverage and feedback from press and analysts including:

Bloomberg: “The acquisition of Witness creates a customer-service software company of unprecedented size and breadth of solutions,'' Bodner said today in a telephone interview.
SearchCRM: "The majority of the solutions are complementary -- essentially speech and data analytics and performance management from Verint, and e-learning, e-coaching and workforce management from the Witness side," said Mariann McDonagh, senior vice president of corporate marketing. "Ultimately, we'll really be able to deliver on the promise of this vision of the customer-centric enterprise."
Gartner: "It's consolidation around a much broader value proposition. So at the end of the day, the customers now get a much better solution that can better help them meet their business goals.”