Editor’s note: Veranika describes the typical problems companies may experience with customer service and shows how establishing a customer service desk can help fight them off. Read on and, should you be ready to get those improvements, you are welcome to outsource IT help desk to ScienceSoft.
Nowadays, a customer service desk has become a necessity rather than an option for companies seeking to build and grow a base of loyal customers. And we at ScienceSoft believe that a structured customer service desk goes beyond software that helps manage support tickets. We consider it a single point of contact for a product/service provider and product/service consumers, which should comprise people, processes, and technical tools.
Below, I describe some typical problems that signal it may be high time for you to reconsider your approach to customer service and explain how a structured customer service desk supported by reliable software can help with that.
Customer service challenges
Disjointed case management
Support teams deal with thousands of incoming requests and questions from customers daily. After a ticket is opened, it is assigned to an available support agent who should solve it as early as possible. But in case support agents can’t provide customers with quick help, you are unlikely to find out the reasons for such inability without visibility into the case management process. And the lack of established case assignment and escalation processes will prevent turning the situation around.
Time wasted on minor issues
Many customers turn to support with small issues that they might have resolved on their own. Still, they have either no instruments to do that or no information about such a possibility. As a result, customer support agents may get too busy answering such inquires while losing time for handling complex customer issues.
Inefficient multi-channel communication with customers
Customers require support through various channels, including email, phone, and web. Many companies claim it’s quite a challenge to manage all of them in a convenient way and consolidate all the incoming inquires.
Ways to improve customer service
To tame customer service problems discussed above, I suggest establishing a customer service desk – a centralized hub for handling your customers’ inquiries supported by relevant customer service software. This is how your customer service can work with a proper customer service desk set up.
Coordinated case management
A service desk can bring structure to disjointed case management so that it includes the following steps:
1. Customers reach you out via multiple channels – phone, email, web, social media, and SMS.
2. A case is started and assigned to a relevant agent.
3. A customer service agent is working on a solution.
4. A case that hasn’t been closed on time is escalated or reassigned.
5. The solved case is closed.
Also, with relevant customer service software in place, you get an opportunity to track all the cases and see how and when they are solved.
Customers’ self-support opportunities
A customer portal with self-support materials can spare your service agents a great deal of time and effort helping reduce the number of simple, repetitive tasks your agents receive. These materials may include user guides, FAQs, articles on solving problems with your product or service, introductory and advanced training on the effective use of your product or service. Self-support materials can be written by your technical and marketing specialists and should be revised regularly in order to keep your customers tuned.
Efficient multi-channel communication
A customer service desk supported by software will help consolidate multiple channels available for making inquiries funneling them into one hub. As a result, your agents will communicate with all your customers more efficiently.
Make your customer service success tangible
The good thing about customer service desk initiatives is that their effectiveness can be easily measured and tracked. The benefits described above will manifest themselves in improved customer service metrics, such as shorter first response time and average resolution time, higher customer satisfaction score (CSAT), and resolution rate.
However, obtaining such tangible customer service improvements may not be as easy as it seems. You’ll need an experienced customer service team with a good understanding of your software and solid communication skills, as well as customer service software meeting your particular business needs. If you think you may require help with any aspect from above, feel free to drop a line to my team and me.
Looking for a way to improve your customer service? Our specialists in customer service management provide a full cycle of consulting and optimization.
