Bucking a trend, an Arizona-based manufacturer of consumer electronic products has pulled its customer service and product support organization from its former ex-U.S. location back into a new web-enabled call center at its Scottsdale headquarters location. Our analysis showed we could run our own customer support for a roughly equivalent cost when compared to outsourcing it overseas, due largely to our operational efficiency and high quality product, but the service we can provide is superior, says Ed Brachocki, CEO of GoVideo.

Part of that is a beefed-up knowledge base it’s developed that presents customers seeking answers to product questions with the 10 most-frequently asked questions about the product on that product`s support page. Customers who don’t find the answer to their question there can type in a question in a window on that page, which then triggers an automated response from deeper in the knowledge base, currently equipped to handle thousands of questions. If customers still don’t get the answer they want, the option of e-mailing customer support also is available on the page.

The system is configured to alert customer service reps fielding those questions online about what responses the person sending the query has already received from the knowledgebase, information that helps speed the service rep’s reply. GoVideo’s call center staff, which handles both phone and e-mail queries, is able to answer most e-mails within hours, says new business development manger Jonathan King. The web site also offers product specification sheets, manuals and reference guides for viewing and downloading.

King adds that one reason the company finds it’s able to handle customer support from its home base is the carefully-conceived design of its DVD player and VCR products, which reduces questions from customers. The other reason is scale, which also produces fewer questions that the output of a much larger manufacturer would. We’re not a Sony or a Toshiba, says King. GoVideo has annual sales of about $200 million.