8.     Why can’t a call center use Intershop by itself for processing transactions. How is your software different from the Intershop Admin module?

Intershop is an excellent transaction-processing engine, and comes with a full version of SyBase, which is an Enterprise level database. However to use the engine and the database for a call center, requires that the shopping paradigm change.

First, Most ecommerce sites use a shopping basket paradigm. But for a call center, it is more important that the call center agents place orders using an order form. Imagine if you will, someone calling in to place an order. Usually, they know what they want to order when they call in – often, they will have written the product numbers down from the web site or a catalog. The call agent needs to be able to quickly enter order numbers in a form that will process transactions instantly.

The Intershop Back Office is a great way to administer a store, but it is not a place that entry level call agents should have access to as they could potentially do lots of damage to a site. For example, even at the user level, it is possible to delete products and product classifications. We do not want call agents to have access to complete credit card numbers, reports, or means to damage the shopping system.

Intershop's use of cookies makes it impossible to function as call center software without with out the matador application. Intershop was designed for one person to place personal orders from his own computer. It was not designed for one person to take many other peoples orders on his computer.

Additionally, Intershop itself was not designed to process transactions, give refunds, or track packages. Matador does all of this.