How to Use Tech to Improve Product and Customer Support

Customer support used to consist of representatives picking up the phone and blindly helping a client until they could get access to their paper file … IF they could. Current technology places the client’s file in the representative’s hands almost the same instant the call is received.

Whether the customer support center is at a manufacturer’s facility or a remote location, technology streams product and customer care together for seamless interactions and swift solutions.

Real-time tracking

Your product support begins with tracking the item through shipping. As soon as the product enters the facility, it’s scanned and tracked for all movements.

Employees know where the product in the warehouse at all times, down to the row and shelf. The moment it moves to a showroom, the system records the date and time it was moved.

Customers who obtain that product in the future will have a track record embedded in the vendor’s system to verify its age and use history, especially if any operational issues arise.

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Widespread database notifications

Once a product is sold, its history continues in the vendor’s system. If a recall or warranty issue arises, the system alerts employees about the affected customers.

The vendor has the choice of contacting the customer manually or in some cases allowing the system to send an automatic notification. This ability to effect immediate contact makes technology the customer’s best friend.

Although the client might not have suffered from any problems yet, the information gives him or her a chance to address the problem before potential frustrations occur.

Critical issues pinpointed

Many customer complaints used to get lost in the disconnected computer systems of the past, but today’s technology connects all databases through product part and serial numbers. When a customer has an issue, employees immediately log it in the system against the client’s account and product type.

If the item comes in for repair, employees will know exactly what the issue is from the logged information. Customers aren’t condemned to retelling the tale, which only heightens frustration.

Immediate status

A customer may call a repair facility looking for the item. Older computer systems wouldn’t allow employees to see real-time locations, which forced them to forward a call to one or more other people for status verification.

When customers have to talk with numerous people, they tend to become irritated about the waste of time. Computer systems that have the latest technology can give any employee instant access to actual product locations.

If a customer’s product is waiting for a part to be received, the employee can relay that information without having to forward the call.

Consultants at your service

Your business may not be too tech savvy, but consulting companies are prepared to help you integrate these systems. According to CSG International, you can train employees on new hardware and software for the best customer and product support around.

Customers want to feel special the moment they speak to a company representative. If they encounter a support person who has all the information ready, customers are more inclined to remain loyal.

Review your technology and how it helps customers today. You may want to look into an upgrade to increase your profits in the future.