3 Common Consequences of Slow Service

Clients often demand immediate technical support for a wide range of IT issues. They want fast and effective support that allows them to get on with their own operations. One area that most IT solutions providers can improve is response time.

You don’t want clients to think that your response times are slow, as that may cause them to find solutions elsewhere. Here are 3 answers to common challenges technology solutions providers (TSPs) face that impact speed of service:

Scenario 1: Customers Complain About the Same Issues

Your team effectively closes a large number of tickets a day, but they waste time answering the same types of questions over and over again.

While you’re happy about the professional solutions your team provides, you know that answering these questions adds to the volume of work your team must process every day. Plus, trying to get through all of these similar tickets makes it difficult to get to more complex IT challenges.

Solution: There’s no reason your team should spend a lot of time answering routine questions. Create standardized processes for all common questions and issues, including answers your team can automatically send for common questions. Your clients still receive stellar service without your team spending more time than necessary solving issues.

Scenario 2: Clients Perceive Long Wait Times

During peak times, it’s difficult to complete tickets as quickly as you’d like. Sometimes, certain projects take longer than expected, making it difficult to finish everything in a timely manner. Just as you start to work on an urgent client project, a different client calls angry and concerned about their project. They say they waited long enough and expect a resolution immediately.

Solution: Consider what processes you currently have in place to communicate progress to clients. When delays happen, how is this information communicated with clients?

Implementing workflow automation tools keeps the team, SLA stakeholders, and clients informed about progress. Clients won’t get anxious because they’ll already know the status of their project.

Scenario 3: Your Slow Reputation Makes Clients Choose Competitors

You’ve been talking with a great prospect for a few weeks. The next thing you know, the prospect chose a competitor over your company. You follow up with the prospect to find out why. The lost prospect says they heard about your company’s slow response times.

Solution: TSPs need to be focused on reputation management, just as any other business does. If a client doesn’t get what they consider quick and effective service, find other ways to make it up to them. You want to ensure that clients remain satisfied with your company and will speak well about it.

If you want a company customers want to refer, you need to develop an internal culture full of accountability and efficient internal processes. Clients don’t want to wait for their IT issues to be resolved. By developing internal processes, prioritizing client communication, and ensuring client satisfaction, your company stands a much better chance of reaching its goals.