What level of Technical support should we provide over LIVE CHAT?

[LiveChatAdam]

Hi,
If you have many frequently asked questions you can always create a FAQ section on you website. It will definitely save your time.
Cheers,
Adam


MOD NOTE: Post edited.

 

[shashank]

I know some customers, who buy hosting from the companies, who is offering chat support on website.

I think chat support is good option. Company can make a policy, what can be discussed over chat.

Its good to offer live support BUT it tends to come with alot of time loss. I would start by making sure the email support is quicker and my knowledge base is very comprehensive.

 

[Blue rock hosting]

That's a good question for sure,Depending on the issue that is going on.How I do it is if it is a easy fix then I go ahead and do it,If I can see that it is going to take me some time let say for example 2-3 hours to fix the issue,I let the customer now that this is an issue that our tier 2 tech support team needs to handle and to submit a ticket to them.

 

[NewtekTech]

Utilize the highest level of support agents that you are able to.

Yes you may have a to deal with some lower level questions from time to time but, In the end, you have the issues resolved faster, less escalation to other departments and customer satisfaction rating will be higher.

 

[storminternet]

Complex issues which takes time can not be sorted out on live chat when customer is continuously buzzing. In that case ticket is better option. Issues which can be sorted out quickly can be be generally handled on live chat. I think this should avoid customer dissatisfaction.

 

[25Fast]

We also provide only L1 support via chat, also we are planning to provide also L2 and L3, but it's not easy to manage...maybe the level2 is possible, but the level3 sometimes request time and in chat...is hard to handle!

 

[Hostfolks]

Try and keep it to aminimum, 1-2 and bringinhigher level later if needed and customer wants to stay on chat.

 

[VpsAG]

Try to provide Tier 1, pre-sales and sales support and critical tech support. This is the bare minimum.

 

[cheapdedicated]

Try to provide Tier 1, pre-sales and sales support and critical tech support. This is the bare minimum.

You may do what Hostgator does. Once you start asking for account specific support they force a login

 

[whmcsguru]

Simple questions, yes, absolutely. More complex stuff should require a ticket. Same goes with phone support.

None of this 'we will open a ticket for you' garbage either. Have the customer open the ticket, explaining the problem and the rep handling the case reply with what was done to try to fix it.

I realize that's not the popular opinion, by any means, but not everything can be 'instant gratification'. Sometimes, you have to wait a couple of hours for a problem to be found and solved. Don't keep agents on the phone, or on a chat , taking away from other support, that's just rude.

 

[WWTSLarry]

Here's the way I do it...

- All requests REQUIRE a ticket, sales, billing, customer service, L1 support, L2 support, L3 support, etc...

Live Chat
--
1. Sales
2. L1 Support Issues Only
3. Customer Service
4. Billing

If the customer has an emergency. I will be nice and I will verify them and will open a ticket on their behalf. They are already frustrated enough in an emergency situation.

We use Security PIN verification for accounts. The client WILL need to login to their WHMCS account in order to get the Support PIN to verify. After they generate that, then we can proceed with supporting their account.

This is a MUST with accounts. We may also implement 'Security question' verification as well into our support verifications and account holder validation.

We are very limited on what we provide on live chat, but we do also do billing and customer care (account changes, etc.) via live chat too, but again, everything needs a ticket first before live support is provided, for documentation and tracking purposes.

We use LiveChatInc and they have a module that is nice, that attaches the ticket to the customer's account, if they are logged in and start a chat with us. So we can always reference that chat ticket, but we still create 'another ticket' for the actual issue and the troubleshooting that takes place, and for documentation purposes.

If you don't document it, it never happened!

 

[wizzo85]

We always try to resolve issues through live chat, however for more complex issues, we would ask the client to open a support ticket and make sure that it is addressed in a timely fashion.

I believe that keeping your customers happy is key to building a good reputation for your business.

 

[HostMeRight]

Tickets are always best to resolve any issues that arent a quick fix. I use live chat for issues that only require a few minutes to resolve at most. better to keep tickets logged for any reoccurring issues that arise