30% Fewer Web Inquiries: How Noritz Earned Top Support Ratings Two Years Running

Noritz Corporation

Manufacturing·1,001+ employees·Customer Support

30% Fewer Web Inquiries: How Noritz Earned Top Support Ratings Two Years Running

At a glance

• Web inquiries cut 30% through the inquiry form
• FAQ access via inquiry form doubled within 4 months
• Online repair booking rate increased 7 percentage points year-on-year
• Top three-star HDI-Japan rating in Contact Center and Web Support, 2 consecutive years

The Challenge

Noritz Corporation manufactures essential home infrastructure products like gas water heaters, radiant floor heating systems, and gas stoves, serving customers nationwide through five contact centers. During peak season (October through February), inquiry volume roughly doubles, placing enormous strain on contact center staff.

The Business Support Center Team 1, responsible for operations support and web systems, faced a fundamental challenge: their existing FAQ couldn't interpret the nuances behind customer searches. A query for "no hot water" could mean very different things, whether the tap wasn't producing hot water or the automatic bath-filling function wasn't working, and the resolution was different in each case. The previous FAQ tool lacked the ability to make that kind of nuanced interpretation of customer intent. With sparse analytics data, the team struggled to even identify the problems clearly.

Operating under the mission of "understanding customer needs and delivering value," the team set out to enable self-resolution through a smarter FAQ while strengthening web-based customer relationships.

Why Helpfeel

After evaluating multiple FAQ systems, Helpfeel ranked highest across functionality, admin interface usability, and cost. Three factors proved decisive:

Search capability. Noritz's products serve all age groups, and the terms people search vary widely, often mismatching product manual language. Even the water heater "remote control" is called "operation panel" by some customers and "screen" by others. The team concluded that flexible handling of these variations would be key to connecting customers with the information they needed.

Inquiry form function. The ability to surface relevant FAQ articles at the point of inquiry, helping customers self-resolve before submitting a formal request.

Admin interface and analytics. Usability and richness of the admin interface made it practical to run structured improvement cycles based on quantified, visualized data.

What They Did

• Upgraded to AI search algorithm version 2, adding support for sentence-form searches that predict customer intent from full sentences and always surface appropriate answer candidates.
• Reorganized the FAQ top page based on Helpfeel search data, adjusting category structure and button layouts to improve navigation pathways.
• Added header links to "Online Repair Request" and "Product Manuals" to improve customer access to high-priority tasks.
• Introduced Inquiry Form AI in May 2024, surfacing relevant FAQ articles at the point of inquiry to enable self-resolution before submission.
• Embedded repair request form links in every relevant FAQ article to encourage online booking over phone and email.
• Set a clear KPI (FAQ article reach rate, from 77% to 80%) and worked systematically through each gap in navigation pathways and search keyword coverage identified at monthly review meetings.

Results

The FAQ article reach rate KPI reached the 80% target. Iterative improvements to the top page enabled many more customers to reach the information they were looking for.

The Inquiry Form AI feature introduced in May 2024 contributed to resolving customer questions right at the point of inquiry. FAQ access via the inquiry form entry doubled within four months of launch, indicating a growing number of customers self-resolving before submitting a formal inquiry. Web-based inquiries through the inquiry form were reduced by 30%.

Online repair booking rates also improved. By embedding links to the repair request form in relevant FAQ articles and adding header navigation, the team encouraged more customers to use online booking, which enables automated processing and faster response compared to phone and email. The online repair booking rate rose 7 percentage points year-on-year.

In the 2024 HDI-Japan Public Ratings Survey, organized by the world's largest membership organization for the support services industry, Noritz received the top three-star rating in both the "Contact Center" and "Web Support" categories for the second consecutive year.

Beyond the numbers, the team found a good balance between human effort and digital capability. Previously there was a sense of resignation that "FAQ can't really solve fundamental problems." The team now sees Helpfeel as contributing to their vision of "an organization that uses digital tools to maximize human value."

"Helpfeel offers an appropriate balance: delegating what digital tools do well, while allowing human adjustment where needed."

Kozue Morita, Team 1, Business Support Center, Customer Service Division

Looking Ahead

The team continues examining what KPIs to set, working to bridge the gap between quantitative data and what they perceive from customer interactions.

Helpfeel's strength is delivering information to customers in a compact, fast format. The official website contains FAQ, repair requests, product information, and much more, and it can be hard for customers to find what's relevant to them. Through Helpfeel, Noritz can promote online handling of repairs and other procedures while assisting customers when they're deciding which products and services to choose.

The Customer Service Division is constantly thinking about how to help customers use products with confidence every day. Gas water heaters have a typical lifespan of about 10 years, but as combustion appliances, age-related deterioration can lead to unexpected accidents. Hot water is also a lifeline. The team works to proactively encourage inspections and timely replacements, and rapid coordination with service shops across the country when repairs are needed is essential to maintaining the customer relationship.

The aspiration is to build an organization that is indispensable to customers, one that can flexibly respond to their needs, so that customers continue to love and rely on Noritz products for years to come. Digital tools including Helpfeel will be central to making that possible.

“Helpfeel offers an appropriate balance: delegating what digital tools do well, while allowing human adjustment where needed.”

— Kozue Morita, Team 1, Business Support Center, Customer Service Division