Tips for Better Email Support
Think email is “Old School”? Think again. Social, text, live chat and advanced self-service are creating a lot of buzz in contact centers these days, but now is not the time to forget email. It’s time to make it better. Many customers still prefer to email customer support. Phone remains number one, but ignoring email as a customer support channel could be a major mistake. In fact, Forrester research indicates email is still the third most widely used form of communication among online adults.
Email can meet the new world of customer expectations as long as contact centers are willing to keep an open mind and take a can-do approach. Here are three tips to creating better email customer support:
Ramp Up The Speed
We live in an age of instant gratification. Customers want help and they want it now. So how can the contact center deliver? Following are some ways to improve your email response time:
- Hire more people
- Improve your email software
- Route emails
Promote Self-Service Options
Our call center clients often ask, “how do I encourage my customers to use self-service?” Email offers the perfect opportunity to do this without seeming to push your customer off to another channel. Gently point customers in the right direction by suggesting they visit your website to do specific tasks or include links to your online knowledge base or self-service portal in the agent email signature.
And speaking of the email signature—make sure it includes the name and location of the agent. Again, customers want to know they’re speaking with a human who can effectively solve their problem.
If you are ready to consider email customer support, contact us today at 678-882-5737 to discuss your situation and explore the email support outsourcing options available.