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Overcoming User Dissatisfaction and Disjointed Portal Web Sites

VMware’s previously existing customer portal faced challenges in terms of infrastructure and site usability. Bringing together legacy technology on different platforms was difficult. Additionally, regular customer satisfaction surveys and indicators from external VMware websites brought to light that users were dissatisfied with features of the existing portal interface and navigation. At times, customers had to navigate to different sites and log in multiple times. There was not always a single location for all the information they needed.

VMware selected Liferay, the leading open source enterprise portal in the market, as the foundation for a new customer portal. To address its technical challenges and meet customer expectations, VMware sought to achieve these strategic objectives:

• Consolidate legacy technology portals across different platforms.
• Increase flexibility and optimize time management with a modular, plug-and-play approach for adding new portals and integrating existing portals.
• Enable capturing and sharing of transactional data from each portal.
• Create a consistent look and feel across all portals that could help customers identify with the VMware brand.
• Facilitate cross-navigation across multiple portals.
• Enhance user experience with a single sign on.

The Cost-Effective Choice to Deliver Full Functionality and Customer Value

Many factors were evaluated when determining the best fit for VMware. Ultimately, VMware chose Liferay because it met their technical criteria while offering a more cost-effective solution. Liferay Portal supported the following key capabilities:

• Ability to aggregate different content sources.
• Deliver a consistent look and feel, flexible navigation and rich customization options.
• Allow for personalization and mobile viewing.
• Granular security with authorization capability.
• Completely built on standards.
• Complete support and tight integration to VMware vFabric® components.

Exceeding Customer Expectations with an Integrated, SSO Portal

The resulting solution, My VMware®, is an integrated, account-based site that lets users view and manage product license keys and support. With intuitive navigation that leads users step-by-step through important functions related to their VMware products and support, My VMware makes it easier to perform routine tasks.

My VMware supports 15 million users, 41,000 unique logins per weekday, and over 8,000 new accounts that are created daily. Users now have a unified view of products and associated contracts. They are able to complete tasks quickly through easier site navigation, manage information any way they want, and perform many other tasks through a single entry point.

The success of the portal has decreased support calls, especially related to licensing. In addition, customer satisfaction scores have improved due to enhanced usability, and efficiency has increased because customers can self-service downloads and evaluations.

“We experienced a significant drop in support calls and rise in customer satisfaction due to the new My VMware portal built on Liferay, “ said Eric Rong, VMware Domain Architect for Custom Applications. “Our customers now experience a consistent interface across all portals with cross navigation and access to multiple sites through a single account.”

Even with the prelaunch requirement that VMware understand the portal technology and specs, VMware’s go-live timeline was met. The Liferay solution supports VMware’s future developmental goals; the modular approach makes adding new portals easy.