A support portal is an effective tool in helping you offer your customers the top quality support that they expect from you. If you use it as an additional channel next to the existing ways of providing support, there are major benefits for both your customers and your organization.
1. You give customers 24/7 access to real-time information
A support portal is not bound by opening hours. Customers can login to the portal 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to view information or to submit new support issues. That works great for customers who work outside the regular opening hours of your company, for example in the evenings or during the weekends. Or when your customers are active in different continents and time zones. In addition, the information in the support portal is real-time. No outdated e-mails or reports, but always correct and up-to-date information.
2. You have complete control over who has access to which information
You have complete control over who has access to the support portal and what information he or she can view, edit and enter. Only your customers and your own employees can login to the support portal. In other words, it is a a safe and secure environment that you can perfectly tune to visitors by publishing information and documentation that meets the needs of your customers.
"With a support portal, communication becomes much easier both internally and externally."
3. The communication improves, both internally and with customers
Communication is a key factor in providing successful support. And with a support portal, communication becomes much easier both internally and externally. No more paper work, emails back and forth or searching for missing documents. The support portal is the central location where all relevant information about a support issue has been brought together. Colleagues are in no-time fully informed about a case they get involved in or take over. And customers are always up-to-date about the status of their problem or question.
4. You get more satisfied customers because of a better customer experience
The support portal should not be regarded as a substitute of other forms of support. Customers should still be able to reach out to you via telephone and e-mail, and the support portal is just an additional channel. When customers see that the support portal enables them to find the answers to their questions themselves, provides a better insight into the status and follow-up of their questions, and ensures them of faster and better support, the support portal will quickly become their preferred support tool. They will experience the support portal as convenient and are therefore more satisfied with your service level.
5. It saves your employees a lot of time
Your support department works more efficiently with a support portal. No more time needs to be spent on questions like "Has anyone looked at my support ticket yet?”. Customers also find the answers to their questions faster, for example in documentation or FAQs. And, as stated earlier, colleagues are quickly informed about the status of a support case, which means that less time is spent on internal briefings and transfer of work. And on a support site, all support tickets are stored centrally, which allows you to search on specific terms and topics. A question may have been answered earlier, which can save you a lot of time.
Conclusion: Make the lives of your employees and your customers easier and more pleasant with the successful deployment of a support portal.
Wilbert Schreurs is Support Consultant at Dysel and helps customers with successfully using Dysel’s software solutions.
