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What do you want out of Customer Service?

Abel007

Abel007

Platinum Member
I work in a call center environment for a small software company. We make software for insurance agents and support that software through email and phone support. 99% of our actual support is through the phone. We currently have social media outlets on twitter and facebook where we post updates to our software and perform short "How To" videos.

I would love to move some of the phone support into an online FAQs section and even have an actual forum where clients who do not have emergency issues can go and ask questions and have us answer them in a timely manner.

Would this appeal to anyone or am I aiming too high/making it too complicated?

What are some things you have seen or would love to see when you need to contact someone in a customer service role? Online chat, FAQs, etc.

Have you seen specific software that you have enjoyed using while contacting a customer service rep for a specific issue or question and would like to share it?

Thanks for the input in advance.
 
FWIW, when I need tech support, I check the site for FAQ's and other sources that relate directly to my problem. If I don't find them, I pick up the phone and call tech support.
It pisses me off when I end up talking to some moron in India who can't work past his script...and his "steps" entail going through everything two or three times before passing me on to "level 2 tech support" where I MIGHT get to speak to someone who actually knows something.
 
Honestly, I generally hate talking to customer service via phone or instant messaging unless I absolutely have to. A FAQ is a good idea because it allows me to troubleshoot things myself before I turn to asking for help. A knowledgebase of solutions to problems can also be helpful because I can search for people who are experiencing the same problem and see what steps were taken to resolve it. Anything that allows me to fix my own problem rather than speak to someone is a plus in my book.

Maybe I'm just anti-social...
 
Thanks for the info guys. I also look at the FAQs section before calling in for support. I also find myself looking for an online chat before I look for phone numbers. I guess I am anti-social as well. 🙂
 
FAQs are sometimes useful, but I find that they are often dumbed down and inherently obvious; things that I already knew or already tried. But I'm sure it helps some people.
 
FAQs are good... as long as they are written by someone who actually understands the software, and not the person on the helpdesk that is the least capable and just needs something to do.

That said, I completely disregard FAQs when the company has proven to me that they'll walk me through every single little step while troubleshooting, even if I've already done so.
 
Online FAQs can only help reduce call volume. Especially when you play a recording while people are on hold referring them to the online FAQs! But don't cheese out - make them comprehensive. Periodically analyze the calls that come in and use those questions to expand the FAQs.

Online chat... not so much. How many people can succinctly and clearly describe their problem? You end up typing and typing and typing trying to draw out the information you need, which would have been faster on the phone.

Another advantage of having a forum is you will find expert users will jump in and answer questions other people raised, and you'll get valuable feedback on features people want.

Want to go the extra mile? On your FAQs page, put a button so users can request a phone call from support and then input their phone number. That way I know I won't have to sit on hold. And that way they'll have to look at the FAQs first.

And if you have how-to videos and info about updates, put them on your own site. I have no desire to go to FB or twitter to find information when I should be able to find it on your own site.
 
FAQs and more extensive KBs. Possibly white papers for something with a long list of steps like "how to add a restricted FTP account to a hosted server running Plesk"
 
i want to be able to ask my question once, and have a qualified person on the other end able to answer it directly. i am more than happy to search a kb or forum for solutions. id rather do that than sit on hold. but, official reps on forums need to be more candid, need to acknowledge the negative aspects of their product instead of ignore them like it seems happens a lot. FAQS are good too, for the really common stuff.
 
BoomerD said:
FWIW, when I need tech support, I check the site for FAQ's and other sources that relate directly to my problem. If I don't find them, I pick up the phone and call tech support.
It pisses me off when I end up talking to some moron in India who can't work past his script...and his "steps" entail going through everything two or three times before passing me on to "level 2 tech support" where I MIGHT get to speak to someone who actually knows something.
Click to expand...

exactly!

i would also say have people who we can understand. I hate calling up tech support and getting "joe" who has such a thick accent that you can't understand a damn word he says.
 
BoomerD said:
It pisses me off when I end up talking to some moron in India who can't work past his script...and his "steps" entail going through everything two or three times before passing me on to "level 2 tech support" where I MIGHT get to speak to someone who actually knows something.
Click to expand...

Hey, one of the benefits of free trade. 😉

I do feel annoyed if I talk to an Indian.. even though I am one myself.
 
I applaud your intent however, customer service departments are almost always diametrically opposed to customer service because their goals are exactly opposite.

A customer service department wants to aid the greatest number of clients at the smallest possible cost. Customer service tries to operate the business so as to generate the fewest number of complaints even if that costs a little more.

Outside of the service industry, I have NEVER experienced customer service from a customer service department. I hope you're the first. Good luck.
 
Abel007 said:
I work in a call center environment for a small software company. We make software for insurance agents and support that software through email and phone support. 99% of our actual support is through the phone. We currently have social media outlets on twitter and facebook where we post updates to our software and perform short "How To" videos.

I would love to move some of the phone support into an online FAQs section and even have an actual forum where clients who do not have emergency issues can go and ask questions and have us answer them in a timely manner.

Would this appeal to anyone or am I aiming too high/making it too complicated?

What are some things you have seen or would love to see when you need to contact someone in a customer service role? Online chat, FAQs, etc.

Have you seen specific software that you have enjoyed using while contacting a customer service rep for a specific issue or question and would like to share it?

Thanks for the input in advance.
Click to expand...

What kind of software? Rating software, agency management, etc?
 
maniacalpha1-1 said:
What kind of software? Rating software, agency management, etc?
Click to expand...


Rating and management.


Thanks once again for the input guys. I understand the frustrations of dealing with a CS Rep that gives you the run around or doesn't help. We are really all about helping out our customers. If the call takes 10 minutes or 2 hours, it doesn't matter as long as they feel we have resolved the issue. We do not set time limits on the calls.

I will be setting up a FAQs section on our website as soon as I can. From your information it seems that would be used more often than I originally thought. I also love the idea of having us call the client back instead of them calling us. After the FAQs are setup I will look into a forum. The forum would be moderated by me constantly and as always, we have to take the positive and the negative in stride and address them with equal time.

Keep the info rolling though! I want to hear from as many as possible.
 
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