How to choose a co-browsing vendor – in just 2 steps!

In the ever-evolving landscape of digital collaboration, co-browsing has emerged as a crucial tool for enhancing customer support, remote sales, and overall customer experience. If you find yourself in the market for co browse software but aren’t sure how to proceed with the selection process, this blog is for you. 

It will guide you through the creation of a Request for Proposal (RFP), ensuring that you address the most important points while selecting a co-browsing tool.

1. Define Your Objectives

Before diving into the details, it’s essential to clearly define your objectives. Ask yourself: Why do you need a co-browsing tool? Is it for support, sales, or CX? 

Having a clear understanding of your goals will help you tailor your RFP accordingly.

2. Identify Key Features

Different co-browsing tools offer a variety of features focusing on collaboration, security, customization, or integrations. So it’s crucial to identify the ones that align with your objectives. 

Common features include Universal co-browsing, video chat, masking, screen recording, white labeling, and compatibility with various web applications. Make a list of must-have features and functionalities to ensure that the selected vendor can meet your specific needs. 

Collaboration & UX 

While co-browsing is inherently collaborative compared to screen sharing, some co-browsing solutions enable more seamless collaboration than others. This is because some co-browsing technologies are superior to others, and enable a more interactive browsing experience. A co-browsing tool should be intuitive and user-friendly for both your team and customers.

If seamless collaboration & UX is critical for your organization, you should inquire about the following features – 

• Universal co-browsing – With Universal co-browsing, you can browse the entire web and not just your own website. Third party applications and iframes work seamlessly within the session, providing a superior user experience. With Universal co-browsing, everything works as is! No changes are required. 
• Document editing and sharing – Since co-browsing is web based, the ability to share an offline document and collaboratively edit it becomes important for certain use cases. Not all co-browsing vendors offer this possibility. 

Here are some examples of specific technical questions that you can include in your RFP regarding collaboration & UX – 

• Does the solution support universal co-browsing? We define universal co-browsing as the ability to experience the web inside a session with very minor or no limitations when compared with a regular browsing session outside of the session.
• Do third party websites and iframes work without breaking within the co-browsing session?
• Would third party content used within our web application work smoothly without requiring any extra development work?
• Does your solution support collaborative document editing?
• Does the solution provide a seamless browsing experience? Is there lag while browsing different pages?
• Does the service support multiple server regions across the globe or will all traffic be served from a single location. If so, where is the server located?

Security and Compliance

Security is a top priority when it comes to co-browsing, especially when dealing with sensitive customer information. In your RFP, inquire about the vendor’s security measures and compliance with industry regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA. A reliable co-browsing tool should prioritize the protection of both your and your customers’ data.

If security and compliance are key considerations for your organization, you should inquire about the following features –

• Masking –  Masking features are a must to protect PII information from being viewed by your agents. Surfly offers field and element masking features that hide sensitive information on the page from the agent’s view and ensure compliance with data protection laws. 
• Audit logs – Audit logs allow you to monitor and store the actions performed inside a session. Surfly’s audit log stores the entire interaction, including data such as participant metadata, web pages visited, and buttons clicked, all while still keeping masked data hidden. 
• Session recording – For compliance purposes, video recordings of online interactions may need to be stored at your organization. Ensure that the co-browsing tool offers this functionality. 

Here are some examples of specific technical questions that you can include in your RFP regarding security and compliance – 

• Is it possible to mask page elements? This must extend beyond visual masking and extend to, for example, the developer console and any logs produced. 
• Does the solution have functionalities that enable us to collect data about in-session actions without this data being stored at rest by the solution provider? If not, what data security measures have been taken to protect data?
• Is the content rendered on each individual user’s browser or is it rendered on a remote browser? If it is rendered remotely, what steps are taken to keep the data secure?
• Can the solution produce recordings of sessions? If so, can we store these recordings in our own cloud bucket? In which format would they be stored?
• Do hidden page elements remain hidden in the recordings?
• Is the solution compliant with ____? Which certifications can you provide?
• Can the solution be used to mask the identity of the participants in a session from the origin server?

Integration & Customization:

Consider the existing tools and systems in your tech stack. A seamless integration with your current infrastructure is crucial for a co-browsing tool to function effectively, and to reduce speed to market. In addition, if you need your tool to be white labeled or require a certain look and feel, you also need to inquire about the customization options available. 

Some features to look at are – 

• White labeling – With white labeling features, you can rebrand the solution completely to match your brand’s look and feel.  
• Plug and play integrations – Some co-browsing solutions offer plug and play integrations with popular CRM systems, ensuring a high speed to innovation and low development cost. Surfly, for instance, has plug and play integrations with top players like NICE or Salesforce, among others.
• Customization options – Can specific features be easily customized to modify the session experience depending on your specific use cases? Most co-browsing vendors provide session settings within their UI, but may not offer easy access to APIs for granular customization. 

Here are some examples of specific technical questions that you can include in your RFP regarding integration and customization – 

• Can we white label the solution to match our own branding, including the session URL?
• Does the platform UI support customization options? Are these options easy to toggle?
• Does the platform support any capabilities for granular customisation (e.g. Javascript API) that do not depend on the platform UI?
• Does the solution offer a REST API from which we can, for example, create and manage sessions, settings and users? P{lease attach any documentation.
• Can we embed Agent functionality into our existing platforms or is it necessary to use the web application you provide?
• Please detail your integration capabilities and compatibility with popular CRM systems, customer support platforms, and other relevant applications.

Conclusion

Crafting a comprehensive RFP for co-browsing vendors is a crucial step in selecting the right tool for your business. By defining your objectives, identifying key features, and asking the right technical questions, you’ll be well-equipped to make an informed decision. Remember, the success of your co-browsing implementation depends on selecting a vendor that aligns with your unique needs and objectives.