High Performing Tech Support

THE IMPORTANCE OF OMNI-CHANNEL TECH SUPPORT

It never fails that in order to succeed, a series of thoughtfully-conceived strategies must be implemented to keep ahead of the competition, and the business of tech support is no different.

Customers expect tech support to be omni-channel and always on, while they also want to feel taken care of with an above-and-beyond delivery. This is not the easiest combination to achieve. And as customer expectations continue to rise, many businesses are behind the curve in providing top quality tech support that stands out in the competitive landscape.

The good news? There are several effective strategies that high performing businesses can implement to create the best tech support possible for their customers. But before we delve right into these top four strategies, let’s review the real reasons why tech support, although evolving, is here to stay.

WHY DO YOUR CUSTOMERS SEEK TECH SUPPORT?

Today, we live in an era where technology presides over most of our daily necessities. Devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and laptops have become essential parts of our regular lives.

In fact, we cannot imagine a single day without these electronic devices. And although having the whole world at our fingertips has undeniably made our lives much easier, we can’t ignore that there are drawbacks. Like, for example, when a technology you absolutely depend on just isn’t working.

Sure, there is a ton of information online where you can try to troubleshoot your problem, but with the saturation out there, it can be hard to weed through the information and especially difficult when the answer turns out to be a technical solution.

This is where tech support comes into the picture. Tech support is one of those things that you don’t really think about until you need it, and then suddenly it is essential, right now.

In these situations, it makes sense to contact an expert, who is adept and efficient enough to filter out and find the most efficient solution to any particular problem. The expert who is able to solve the problem quickly becomes the customer’s friend in need in no time.

Because the success of your business indirectly tied to your customer satisfaction, going without tech support in today’s digital age really isn’t an option.

STRATEGIES TO IMPLEMENT TO ENSURE YOUR TECH SUPPORT THRIVES

While there is no magic wand when it comes to tech support, here are some of the most tried-and-tested strategies deemed to be the ‘secret sauce’ to success for a thriving tech support strategy. Our top four tips for dynamite tech support all start with taking care of your tech support reps.

1) Take care of your reps, starting with high-quality training

Tech support personnel are brand ambassadors of your businesses, and oftentimes can be the first human point of contact for your customers. With that in mind, it goes without saying that you first need to hire the most competent professionals for their respective roles.

There’s nothing worse for a customer than to realize that the rep on the line is not professional and in fact, has less technical knowledge than the caller himself. It would be disappointing for the customer and he or she might never use your services again. The chances of you losing a customer for a lifetime increases to an all-time high when hiring poorly trained staff.

Also, the world of technology is ever-evolving at a such a rapid pace that constant training is essential. Do you want your representatives to remain a pro in this domain? If yes, then consider arranging regular training classes for your representatives.

After all, they are the face and voice of your company on the front lines of customer satisfaction. The key to achieve a high-performing tech support is not only ensuring your representatives remain up-to-date on the ongoing trends but also predict, procure and practice what could be the next big thing.

In addition to training, keeping your reps happy will shoot you leaps and bounds above the competition in terms of customer satisfaction. A happy employee means a happy customer, so take care of your people first.

Keeping things interesting on the floor, providing positive working conditions and incentives, and allowing your team to bring their whole selves to work is a great start. High-Performing tech support ensures that your customers are satisfied and elated with the assistance they received.

Attaining a high level of customer delight is only possible if the company representatives are content with their work life and motivated to serve every single customer.

For more employee engagement strategies, check out our eBook on the topic.

2) Set up omni-channel, always-on support

The ubiquity of instant communication channels has empowered people to get the required support in their most desired mode. Consumers have the choice to choose the medium and channel of their preference to get solutions for their problems.

As a leader in tech support, you should offer the best solutions to your customers across all channels, whether it be social, chat, email, phone, etc. For example, incorporating the use of visual medium and chatbots for efficient and quick replies to clients, are two impressive innovations that help scale up the tech support businesses.

Not so long ago, websites and interactive voice response (IVR) were the only mediums for customers to get in touch with the tech support team. The evolvement of digital channels has made communication easier than ever before.

Nearly everyone has multiple social accounts which are their preferred mode of communication. This shift in consumer behavior is something you need to tackle with sheer intelligence. The repercussions of poorly managed and monitored brand digital properties can be worse than not providing support in the first place.

Thanks to growth in the digital space, the avenues for your customers to reach you have considerably increased. Social media offers an unprecedented wealth of consumer data for tech support companies to analyze and work upon.

It is imperative to not only offer tech support across social channels but to use them for all business communications, allowing your customers to see that your digital presence is on-point.

Also be sure to address direct messages, swiftly and accurately and watch out for illicit remarks or reviews written by unhappy customers that might tarnish the reputation of your brand.

3) Empower customers with FAQs & self-service options

Let’s face it – no one enjoys calling and waiting, especially again and again, for someone to come to their rescue with a probable tech solution. On average, every third customer raises a complaint about experiencing unexpectedly long wait times or repeated personal information.

Not to mention, being a customer on hold on a call can be extremely irritating, to say the least. All of this can easily lead to client discontent.

So what is the best strategy to deal with such a situation? The best practice to keep your customers pleased is to offer them simple-to-read and easy-to-follow self-help tutorials (text, audio, and video) that they can start with before even reaching for the phone.

Most customers want to begin with a self-tried option and will start with an online search or a peek at your website to solve the issue first.

By empowering customers to solve their own problems using the medium of their choice, you give them options and allow for self-selection into a phone call, which is often the last resort of today’s digital-savvy consumer.

Also, this will drastically decrease the turnaround time of tech issues getting resolved without requiring call tickets or waiting time. Creating self-help tutorials might take some time, but once done, the rewards will be recurring.

Consider creating a resource center for your customers right on your website that houses all your videos, articles and how-to-guides in an easy-to-find configuration.

Make sure they can search for what they looking for and at the end of each piece of content, create an obvious help button that takes them directly to chat, email and your phone number just in case they weren’t able to fix the issue.

Using AI and chatbots offer the customer an interactive tool and will help your team gather all the information first before engaging. But don’t rely too heavily on these tools, as humans are essential for top tech support.

Again, creating the portal and implementing these tools for your customers can take time, but the satisfaction from your customers will pay dividends in repeat business.

4) Remember, tech support is customer care

Lastly, about that hold time—don’t forget that tech support is at its root, customer care. Maintaining best practices for customer care is essential in the tech support realm. Make sure that your team addresses all the customers’ concerns even beyond the original issue.

Ensure that your tech geniuses are just as nice and pleasant as they are knowledgeable. And never forget to end each interaction with a friendly, personalized close.

Each of these efforts will go a long way in turning annoyed customers seeking tech support into long-time users of your product or service.

Be sure that the customer experience on the phone is lightning fast by implementing a smooth digital process on the back end.

Optimize time and manual effort by automating several company processes is the best way to boost work efficiency. And make sure you are using the best software you can, to access customer data and product updates quickly, as not to leave your customers waiting.

Never discount the effect that a personal, caring, one-on-one conversation can have on your customer in terms of retention. Great tech support with understanding and patient reps can mean the difference between a cancellation and a lifetime brand advocate. Personalizing your approach with each caller is what really makes all the difference.

HIRING AN OUTSOURCING TECH SUPPORT PARTNER

For large scale organizations, it becomes difficult and impractical to undertake every operation in-house. Hiring a reputable and high-performing outsourcing partner is often a necessity more so now than ever before in the field of tech support.

Looking for a top call center with key experience in tech support is a great place to start. Make sure that your chosen provider has case studies and testimonials from other clients, and is an established outsourcing provider to boot.

Tech support can be tough as it requires a vast knowledge-base, top talent and a tried-and-true process. Be sure to visit your potential outsourcer and see their results in person. And never settle for a low-quality provider to save costs.

WHY OUTSOURCE YOUR TECH SUPPORT TO PERSONIV?

If you are looking to hire an outsourcing team to manage your tech support, consider Personiv. With nearly 40 years of experience in outsourcing everything from tech support and customer care to accounting and back office, Personiv has the processes, tools, flexibility and expertise to take your tech support to the next level. Visit us at Personiv.com to find out more.