2008 e-Commerce Satisfaction Measurement

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

USPTO Patent e-Commerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement
Instructions
The United States Patent and Trademark Office requests your feedback on your experience with
its patent eCommerce initiatives. Be assured that all of your responses will remain confidential.
Data will be used in summary format only. Because you are a valued customer to the USPTO,
your opinions are very important to us and will be used to guide our future action planning.
It is estimated that this brief questionnaire will require no more than 10 minutes of your time.
Please choose only one response for each question unless directed otherwise. Should you have
any questions or require assistance, please contact the Electronic Business Center at 1-866-2179197 or via email at www.uspto.gov/ebc.
Thank you for your time and assistance.

PRA Burden Statement for the USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction
Measurement
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a
collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB Control Number. This survey
will collect feedback from the patent community to assess their priorities and
expectations for future eCommerce initiatives. The USPTO will use the data for strategic
planning, allocation of resources, the establishment of service standards and performance
goals, and to tailor efficient and cost-effective customer satisfaction improvement
strategies. This collection of information is voluntary in accordance with E.O. 12862,
Setting Customer Service Standards for the Patent and Trademark Office. All responses
will remain confidential and are protected under the “Confidential Information Protection
and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002.” The data will be used and published in summary
format only. The USPTO estimates that it takes respondents approximately 10
minutes (0.17 hours) to complete this survey, including the time to gather the
information, complete the survey, and submit it electronically to the USPTO. The time
may vary depending upon the circumstances of the individual respondent. If you have
any comments or recommendations for reducing the length of this survey or on other
aspects of this information collection, please send them to the United States Patent and
Trademark Office, U.S. Department of Commerce, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA
22313-1450.
OMB No. 0651-0038 Approval Expires 4/30/2010
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Page 1

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

1. Please indicate the category of filer that best describes you:
•
•
•
•
•

Attorney at a patent law firm
Employee of a patent law firm
Attorney at a corporation
Corporate employee/patent filer
Independent inventor

2. Which statement best describes your organization’s policy regarding electronic filing of
patent applications or follow-on papers:
•
•
•
•
•

It is required of all patent filers in our organization
It is recommended but not required
It is left to the discretion of individual patent filer
There is no overall policy
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:

(If select Corporate employee/patent filer in Q1 otherwise skip to Q5)
3. Which statement best describes your organization’s electronic filing policy with respect
to utilization of outside patent law firms it utilizes?
•
•
•
•
•
•

Outside patent attorneys are required to file our patent applications electronically
It is recommended, but not required, that outside attorneys use electronic filing
It is left to the discretion of the outside attorney whether or not to e-file
There is no corporate policy
We do not utilize external patent law firms
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:

4. Please indicate the items that you have filed electronically with the USPTO or another
patent organization. (Select all that apply)
•
•
•
•
•
•

Full patent application documents
Provisional patent application documents
Follow-on papers
Pay fees online
Fillable forms
Other (please specify)

Page 2

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

If you selected other, please specify:
5. Please indicate the approximate number of NEW (utility) patent applications filed by
your company or firm annually. Include paper and electronic filings.
• 1-100
• 101-500
• 501-1000
• More than 1000

6. What (approximate) percentage of new utility filings is your organization currently
submitting electronically?
•
•
•
•
•
•

0%
<25%
25 – 50%
50 – 75%
75 – 100%
Do not know

7. Please select the one statement that best describes your overall experience with the
USPTO’s EFS-Web.
•
•
•

The system is easy to understand and use
The system is difficult to understand and use
Some parts of the system are easy and others are difficult to understand and use

8. In your opinion, what are the three most difficult or challenging steps in the filing
process using EFS-Web?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

I do not find any of the steps challenging or difficult.
Creating PDF files with embedded fonts
Installing and configuring JAVA
Indexing documents on the Attach Screen
Uploading PDF files
Using Multi-Doc PDF file
Paying Fees
Conforming EFS-Web to our established workflow processes
Conforming to PKI Subscriber Agreement
Fillable forms
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:

Page 3

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

9. Please rate your satisfaction with electronic filing of patent applications and follow-on
papers using EFS-Web in the following categories. [matrix question]
Categories:
• Ease of filing
• Time involved in filing
• Confidence in security and integrity of applications filed electronically
• Compatibility with existing processes/workflows
• System reliability
Scale:
•
•
•
•
•

Very satisfied
Somewhat satisfied
Somewhat dissatisfied
Very dissatisfied
Unknown

10. Please rank the top three factors in terms of their importance to your individual
decision whether to file electronically.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Immediate visibility of application via PAIR
Change in current work processes
Confidence in the Technology
Cost
Ease of submission
Proof of submission via immediate electronic acknowledgment receipt
Time involved
Organizational policy
Other

11. Please rank the top three factors in terms of their importance to your corporation's or
firm's decision whether to file electronically:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Immediate visibility of application via PAIR
Change in current work processes
Confidence in the Technology
Cost
Ease of submission
Proof of submission via immediate electronic acknowledgment receipt
Time involved
Other

Page 4

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

12. Does your corporation or firm utilize Private PAIR to view applicable documents and
data?
•
•

Yes
No

13. Do you make use of Private PAIR to view patent application submissions you make
using EFS-Web?
a. Yes
b. No
If No, go to Q18.
14. Please indicate the importance of the following changes to PAIR by designating the
importance of each statement either to you personally or to the workflow of your firm or
corporation. [Matrix Question with scale: Very important, Important, Not very important, Not
important at all]
a.
b.
c.
d.

Attorney Docket Number Self-Administration feature
Customer Number Details Self-Administration feature
Bib data XML download feature
Status Changes XML download feature

15.

Overall, how satisfied are you with the functionality of Private PAIR?
a. Very satisfied
b. Satisfied
c. Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
d. Dissatisfied
e. Very dissatisfied

16.

I would like the ability to download application and document data in the following
formats. Check all that apply.
o XLS
o CSV
o PDF
o XML
o HTML
o RSS

17.

I would like the ability to download application transaction history in the following
formats. Check all that apply.
o XLS
o CSV
o XML
o HTML
o RSS

Page 5

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

18. Please rate your level of awareness of the following e-commerce initiatives: (Scale of
Very aware, somewhat aware, not aware at all)
•
•
•
•
•

EFS-Web
Private PAIR
Priority Document Exchange (PDX)
Complex Work Units (CWU) Pilot
PAIR Outgoing Electronic Correspondence

19. How would you prefer to receive information about e-Commerce at USPTO (e.g.,
announcements, new features, pilot programs, documented problems, scheduled outages,
etc.)?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

RSS
Targeted email
Podcast
USPTO website updates
Broadcast emails
eNewsletter
Other- please specifiy

20. Please indicate your level of satisfaction with the Electronic Business Center’s (EBC’s)
ability to support your e-filing needs.
o Very satisfied
o Satisfied
o Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
o Dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied
o I have not used the EBC
If selected “I have not used” skip to Q23

21. Please indicate how beneficial extending the hours of the EBC to 24 hours per day 7
days per week would be to your organization.
Scaling:
o Very beneficial
o Somewhat beneficial
o Not very beneficial
o No impact at all
22. How rapidly would you say the EBC was able to resolve issues you have encountered ?

Page 6

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

•
•
•
•
•
•

While on the initial telephone call
Within the same business day after the initial telephone call was made, or email was sent
The next business day after the initial telephone call was made, or email was sent
Two or more business days after the initial telephone call was made, or email was sent
I was transferred to another USPTO organization
They were unable to resolve my issue(s)

23. Which of the following statements best describes your participation in the patent
application process in your organization?
•
•
•
•
•

I am responsible for most or all parts of the submission
I review patent submissions prepared by others
I play a role in a collaborative or iterative process involving many other individuals
I submit applications prepared by others
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:

24. In your organization, who typically enters patent application data into a form?
•
•
•

Another attorney/patent agent
Paralegal or legal secretary
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:

25. In what time zone do you typically file patent applications?
•
•
•
•
•

Eastern
Central
Mountain
Pacific
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:

26. What type of training did you receive on EFS-Web prior to using it?

Page 7

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

•
•
•
•
•
•
•

USPTO Webinar Training
USPTO On-Site Training in Alexandria, VA
Training by resources within my company/firm
Self-Training with USPTO resources (e.g. CBT, recorded training and/or training
documents)
Third party training
None
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:
27. Please indicate how much training, in your opinion, is needed in order to use EFSWeb?
•
•
•
•

None
Minimal
Considerable
Extensive

28. Please indicate how much training, in your opinion, is needed in order to use Private
PAIR?
•
•
•
•

None
Minimal
Considerable
Extensive

29. Which area(s) of EFS-Web do you feel require the most training? Select all that apply.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Creating PDF files with embedded fonts
Installing and configuring JAVA
Indexing documents on the Attach Screen
Uploading PDF files
Paying Fees
Navigation and Functionality
Using Multi-Doc PDF files
EFS-Web Fillable Forms
Other (please specify)

If you selected other, please specify:
30. Rank the top 3 enhancements to e-Commerce you would like to see, from most to least
important:

Page 8

1/4/2008

Draft - USPTO Patent eCommerce Customer Satisfaction Measurement

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Certificates for non-attorneys
Integration with document management system
Tighter integration with other USPTO systems, e.g., assignments, RAM, etc.
Additional forms
Integration with international patent offices
Improved online help facility
Personalization, .i.e., the ability to customize my view and set up a profile
Other – please specify

31. General Comments on EFS-Web: [verbose text]

32. General Comments on other e-Commerce Initiatives: [verbose text]

Page 9

1/4/2008