It’s a well-known fact that technical support services have many benefits for any company out there. In fact, technical support teams can greatly improve the way a company is perceived, make sales grow quicker than expected and transform customers into loyal ones. The reduced turnover rates and the better branding that come with great technical support services should motivate all companies to invest more time and financial resources into bettering this sector. Any company should have these components present into their scheme: good products, good marketing strategies and impeccable tech support services. This article will cover all you need to know about this last component: technical support. You will learn how to master technical support, from getting to know your basic customer to what advice to give to your team. Here’s what you need to know:
Analyze competitors
First of all, you should see with your own eyes how other companies handle tech support. See who your competitors are, enter their website and notice what channels they use for offering technical support to their customers. You can even try the services yourself and see how the team responds to your questions. This will represent your research phase, when you notice what you like or don’t like about how customers are treated and implement your own rules regarding tech support services. Once you do that, you should put together the best tech support service out there. You should invest more attention to training your team to offer the best possible services to your customers.
Available communication channels
Your tech support team should be trained to use multiple communication channels, not only phone calls. In this era of technology, people prefer texting over calling, and you should be flexible about that when it comes to tech support. Offer support via email, live chat, social media platforms and phone calls altogether. This way, your clients will have many options to choose from and they will surely appreciate that. Facebook is the principal social platform out there, and being available at least eight hours a day for quick responses is what clients prefer the most. If you can offer 24/7 tech support, do it without second thoughts, as customers are immediately attracted by companies that ensure nonstop support. Multichannel tech support is one of the sure methods to increase sales through this service.
Self-service
Another good option that will surely attract people to your company instead of the competition is represented by self-service. Implementing a self-service tech support option will allow people to find solutions to their problems by simply searching for some keywords related to their product. This self-service option should include educational material that helps the customer get a better grip on how the product functions. For instance, step-by-step guides and user manuals should be included here, in case the customer lost the printed version of them.
This self-service section should also include frequently asked questions related to the products that the company sells and a detailed answer for each. This list should be updated according to the questions that people ask over the other communication channels available on the website. Self-service options are very convenient for people who know how to do some research on their own and want to do it fast, on their own. Plus, this self-service option is available at all times and is not limited by a working schedule, such as in the case of a tech support team.
Figure out customer types to increase sales
There are multiple customer types that have to be approached differently in order to increase your sales. Some people will call only to ask tech questions related to your products so that they decide whether they want to buy from you or not. These are potential customers and should be approached in a welcoming, nurturing manner. To turn a potential customer to a paying customer, you must show product value and point out benefits offered by the company, including tech support service.
Other customers will call to get solutions to problems they encountered with your products. That means they already bought something from you, so their interest in your brand is quite high. These are the new customers, who are not adapted to the products yet and need guidance to use the products at their maximum capacity. The tech support team must know how to explain how a product works so that the customer can easily understand the process. A contact option should be left open at all times with new customers. Have a user onboarding guide prepared – you’ll save plenty of time on calls.
Finally, the most difficult type of client is represented by the impulsive customer. The tech support team must be prepared in this situation. Impulsive clients will make a buying decision on the spot, depending on what you say. In order to deal with such clients, you need to make the way to check out very clear for him. Keep information quick and the answers short. That’s the best way to communicate with customers that are guided by their buying impulse. Too much talking or too many details might confuse the client and it will lead to no purchase.
Gauging the client’s tech level
The personality of the client is not always the most important factor when communicating with the tech support team. In many cases, the client’s tech level is much more relevant for a good collaboration between him and the tech support agent. For some customers, a basic tech explanation might be enough to solve an issue, while for others it might take a while to understand what to do next. People who are not technically inclined must receive clear explanations from the very first beginning. Basic concepts should be explained before giving the client the final solution. For instance, a user who is not familiarized with technology at all must be given details about basic tech components and features (e.g. where the reset button is on a device).
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