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Introduction

With a record number of IT startups springing up all over the world, the demand for delivering high quality technical support for customers is also rising simultaneously. BPO and business support providers are stepping up to fulfill the demand and it’s becoming easier than ever for both SMBs and enterprises to outsource their tech support services.

IdeasUnlimited has been on the frontline, providing technical support for many IT businesses looking to enhance their customer service experience. One of the most important pieces of advice we have for those looking to outsource is this; make sure your firm is prepared. Partnering a technical support provider is a partnership and it’s imperative that companies are ready to adapt to the new workflow. Here are some of the important pointers to keep in mind for those thinking about outsourcing their technical support services.

Software Integration

Let’s take an example scenario. You need a technical support provider to handle your inventory. However, you might be using a certain inventory management software like Channel Spyder that a provider either does not know how to use, or doesn’t have it installed in their infrastructure.

These types of conflicts are something we see happen all the time. It’s important to note that a technical support service may not be properly equipped to become a seamless part of your organization and the gap is usually in the software front. Before signing up, always make sure to share some information about what softwares might be required in order to allow the project to go smoothly.

It’s also important to keep in mind that if you plan on serving overseas, you may need to translate your product for the local region. This may cause complications with software integration but it is something most BPO’s are prepared for. Be sure to find out if software in multiple languages is supported.

Data Security

When working with a third party support provider, it’s important to note that there is a lot of exchange of information. This might include client data which is something that always needs to be handled with care. Trusting another firm to handle your client’s data with care can be daunting, but it’s important to know first hand that the support provider is equipped to protect data at all branches.

Certifications are some of the best indicators of data security assurance. In particular, PCI compliance and GDPR certifications mean that a company will always protect client data at all stages from payment to onboarding.

Another important thing to note is that the support service provider needs to be disaster proof. Power outages, natural disasters and cybersecurity breaches are just some of the things that can potentially leak sensitive data or leave the database open. Therefore, a technical support provider must be equipped with all the necessary measures to ensure that all digital information remains safe. Tools such as cloud storage and uninterrupted power supply can make sure that all systems remain online and data is preserved.

Multilingual Support

Before outsourcing your technical support, first analyze your customer base and find out their preferred language. IT support is complex as it is. There’s no reason to make it even more complex for your customers by delivering it in a language that is not native to them. Therefore, when outsourcing, always know first hand whether or not you will need your technical support delivered in more than one language.

Multilingual support comes in a few forms. You can have phone service in multiple languages or even chat/text service written in the language of your choosing. In our experience, many companies also recruit BPOs to help them localize their products in other countries so translation/transcription is also something that could assist IT businesses.

Text/Live-chat

More and more companies who provide IT services are beginning to switch to live-chat support. Live-chat allows your users to resolve small queries that usually don’t require a full phone call. It’s also not uncommon to add text alerts in your live chat support to inform users about the status of their query ticket. Therefore, it’s always wise to integrate live-chat and text support when outsourcing technical support.

Many companies offer automated solutions to make this simpler. But in the end, you will always need someone to be ready to on live-chat to have a full conversation with your customers. For this, make sure that your support provider is ready and capable to integrate their live-chat system with yours in order to provide seamless technical support.

Another important factor is whether or not live-chat/text can be supported 24/7. With live chat, you invite people from all time zones to interact with you and therefore, need to have your channels online at all times. Even a small downtime or a missed customer query can tremendously hurt your brand reputation.

Conclusion

For those looking to enhance their technical support, outsourcing it into the hands of experienced call centers and support service providers is the way to go. IdeasUnlimited has been in the business for over 11 years and our expertise allows companies of all scales to deliver high quality support services with all the benefits expected at enterprise level. To get started, simply visit www.ideasunlimitedonline.com/contact-us and our team will help you set up your own technical support.

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