We understand how frustrating it is to manage an IT help desk, especially since customers typically only try to contact a company when they are angry, frustrated, or have lots of questions. Although patience and stellar customer service skills are a great foundation, there are many ways you can improve your company’s help desk support team. Below are six different strategies that can make your customers smile and make your department run more efficiently.

Tip #1: Give Your Customers The Right Materials So They Can Help Themselves

Do customers often call in or email your help desk with the same questions about a specific product or service? If you notice there is a pattern about what they are confused about, rewrite the instructions so that it is more clear. Make a list of the most commonly asked questions and upload it to your company’s website. You can also create a forum where customers can post questions and share information with each other. The easier you make it for customers to help themselves, the happier they will be.

Tip #2: Use Gamification to Motivate the Help Desk Support Team

How can implement gamification in the customer service department? Perhaps you can track how many compliments agents receive or their average hold time. Regardless of the metrics you use, gamification can motivate employees to do their best job every day and not be complacent. You can also find ways to reward employees that consistently perform well by celebrating their success and hard work.

Tip #3: Encourage Employees to Ditch The Script and Be Genuine

Your customers are smart. They know when someone is reading a script or saying something they have memorized. One way you can improve your help desk support team is to encourage them to be genuine with customers. Most of them will appreciate the effort.

Tip #4: Take The Time To Know Your Customers

Use software that will allow you to keep track of your customer’s questions or issues. When someone calls in or sends an email, it should be easy for a help desk agent to see if they have contacted the company before and why. They will be able to resolve issues faster and be more personable when they can view the previous tickets and notes written by other help desk agents.

Tip #5: Cultivate An Atmosphere Where Agents Can Collaborate

Another tactic you can use to make your IT help desk better is to create a collaborative atmosphere. When your company encourages teamwork and has a positive and supporting culture, it will make it easier for agents to focus on the customer first instead of their own ego. For example, if an agent doesn’t know how to resolve an issue they can easily ask their coworkers for help without fear of retribution in a collaborative work environment.

Tip #6: Create Customer Service Surveys So You Can See What Your Company Should Work On

Lastly, we recommend that you create and administer customer satisfaction surveys at least once a year to get feedback from your customers. Is there anything they recommend you work on or improve? Closely examine the results and look for patterns. A simple survey with a sliding scale can give you insight into what you can do to make the buying experience better for your customers. You can also place questions on the survey that ask questions about the customer service agent’s attitude, responsiveness, knowledge, and problem-solving ability.

For more information about our help desk support services, please call us at (888) 676-1228 or contact us online today. At SystemsNet, we can take care of monitoring and managing your existing systems so you can focus on your business.