Calico eSales Suite Enables Web-based Guided Selling; Next-Generation eSales Software Advances Future of eCommerce; Drives Revenue Growth and Customer Satisfaction


07:00 a.m. Jan 27, 1999 Eastern

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 27, 1999--Calico Technology, Inc., a leading provider of eCommerce software and services, today announced immediate availability of its newest version of Calico(R) eSales Suite(TM), the first Web-based, guided selling solution for business-to-business and business-to-consumer eCommerce environments.

By interactively guiding customers through a personalized buying process, the Calico eSales Suite helps corporations build stronger customer relationships that result in increased revenue and reduced sales costs, while tapping into the potential of the Internet as a powerful sales channel.

Calico eSales Suite Benefits

The Calico eSales Suite is the first Web-based, customer-driven, and enterprise-ready solution to provide Global 2000 corporations the ability to offer customers a guided buying experience that results in increased revenue, improved customer satisfaction, and lower cost of sales. First generation eCommerce solutions only provided online purchase capability for simple, off-the-shelf products.

The next-generation Calico eSales Suite is designed to go beyond simple online order taking by guiding customers through complex or considered purchase decisions.

The Calico eSales Suite thin client architecture is unique in its ability to scale up to the needs of high-volume eCommerce environments, and to span multiple sales channels. First-generation commerce technology only supported Web-based selling. The next-generation Calico eSales Suite delivers guided selling power over the Web, as well as through stand-alone kiosks, field sales personnel, resellers, and telesales environments.

Calico eSales Product Overview

The Calico eSales Suite includes an integrated family of applications to guide customers through the purchase process, including:

--   Calico(R) eSales Configurator(TM) -- permits customer
     requirements and product attributes to be automatically matched
     based on user profiles, insuring customers are guided to
     solutions that meet their needs.

--   Calico(R) eSales Catalog(TM) -- automatically delivers critical
     information, such as product datasheets, product reviews, and
     competitive notes, directly to customers during the buying
     process.

--   Calico(R) eSales Quote(TM) -- provides sales quotation to
     customers for selected products and stores quote for later
     retrieval or immediate entry into an order management system.

--   Calico(R) eSales Workbench(TM) -- creates and maintains business
     logic and data models about products and services that can be
     shared across multiple sales channels.

"Calico's eSales Suite revolutionizes the way corporations interact with their customers over the Web," said Matt DiMaria, vice president of marketing for Calico Technology, Inc. "eSales goes beyond the passive order taking process by providing dynamic applications that guide customers through the buying experience. This helps customers make better, more informed purchase decisions that lead to greater customer satisfaction and increased sales."

About Calico Technology, Inc.

Calico Technology, Inc., headquartered in San Jose, is a leading provider of eCommerce software and professional services that enable the interactive buying and selling of complex products and services. Calico's eSales Suite enables direct sales forces, telesales, distributors, and end users to analyze requirements, access marketing data, configure solutions, develop quotations, generate proposals, and place orders using the Internet, intranet, and laptop computers.

Calico eSales software and services allow customers to increase their competitive advantage at the point of sale, by expanding channels of distribution, reducing costs, boosting revenues, increasing customer satisfaction, and building brand. Calico can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.calicotech.com.

A sampling of Calico Technology's customers include, Cabletron Systems (NYSE:CS), Cisco Systems (Nasdaq:CSCO), Dell Computer Corporation (Nasdaq:DELL), Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE:EK) Gateway (Nasdaq:GTW), IFR Limited (Nasdaq:IFRS), JLG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:JLG), Motorola Inc. (NYSE:MOT), Nortel Networks (NYSE:NRT), Sunrise Medical (NYSE:SMD), Telxon (Nasdaq:TLXN), US West Inc. (NYSE:USW), and 3Com (Nasdaq:COMS). Calico's strategic partnerships include alliances with Clarify, Inc. (Nasdaq:CLFY), IBM (NYSE:IBM), Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT), Oracle (Nasdaq:ORCL), QAD Inc. (Nasdaq:QADI), Siebel Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:SEBL), and The Vantive Corporation (Nasdaq:VNTV).


Copyright 1999, Business Wire