Your organization can serve as many users as possible with self-service technology, with less reliance on human interaction. There will always be situations in which only a live agent can help, but in many cases, self-service technology is the ideal solution. Customers get what they need, quickly, and your organization seems a good return on investment (ROI) with savings in time and money.
In this article, we will explore the return on investment one step further, looking at real-world case examples of self-service technology. We will explore how the right self-service technology improves escalation and its results. This tech also makes it easier to find and recognize your high achievers and to use alerts and notifications to improve responsiveness overall.
Of course, these are just a few of the ways self-serve technology gives you great ROI. Keep reading through this series to learn more!
Escalation Enabled
Using self-service technology, users can escalate their requests to get higher visibility and thus faster resolution. For this to work, your organization has to accept that escalation happens. It isn’t a negative reflection on your organization but simply a reality of working with people. Your customers will run into problems that require a closer look, but if they can escalate seamlessly, those problems are resolved faster.
One of the best ways to use self-serve escalation is to give customers options. Do they want to escalate through a chat, a voice call, or video, for example? Can your organization use proactive escalation with automation to look for certain words or phrases that indicate more help is needed?
Whatever your technology choice is, if you’re looking for a good escalation ability, ensure that the context of previous interactions follows the escalation. That way, whichever staff member handles the next step has all of the information they need. The key is to handle customer issues efficiently so that they have a better experience and so your staff can move on to the next task.
An example of a self-serve technology that includes escalation options is (the fictional) Omega Market, which uses a messenger tool for self-service. Whenever a customer wants to escalate their issue they ask the chatbot to speak to a live rep and give their preferred contact information. While this is just a sandbox version of a chatbot to show off how the technology works, it’s a great example of how simple escalation can be.
Benefits of Alerts and Notifications
Organizations implementing self-service technology find that responsiveness can be improved by the use of alerts and notifications. The system monitors real-time data and processes it into alerts and notifications when needed.
An alert is usually there to tell staff that something isn’t quite right. Whether your staff receives an email, chat notice, ticket, or page, it is advised that a task requires more attention. A notification may also inform users of issues that might be impacting their interactions with the organization or the technology.
FieldAware is one self-service system that uses alerts and notifications well. Customers have access to a field service portal that allows them to – self serve style – request work and review details of previous work orders. Technicians use the other side of the app for mobile field service management, and alerts and notifications work in both directions.
Field technicians are automatically notified of any changes to their schedules based on information that comes from customers, including from the self-service portal. Customers are informed of pending appointments and any other information they need to know before, during, and after scheduled work.
The result is that customers are happier, getting the work they need to be done without delay. Techs are also happier, as they are less likely to encounter a scenario where a customer isn’t there to provide access, thanks to the alert system. They are also more productive and better able to use their time, with notifications of any schedule changes.
Visibility of, and Spotlight on, “The Best”
Our eWorkflow system has a dashboard system that allows organizations to highlight their best performers, give graphical alerts to managers, and recognize high achievers. Self-service capabilities, across various channels, are critical to making the most of the staff you have. By managing many issues through self-serve options, low-level incidents no longer take up staff time, so your best performers can focus on the relationships where service matters most. Along with Workflow Process and Incident Tracking, we offer GroupLink Self-Service Portal and GroupLink for SafestSchools. Each of our systems provides eWorkflow, work from home, and IT service management capabilities, for a positive ROI.