How Do You Make Self Service a Preferred Option For Customers

Did you know that 91% of organizations considered web self-service as a substantial investment? More than 60% of consumers prefer this automated customer service in websites and mobile apps for simple tasks in the US. It is not surprising to know that in 2017, it surpassed human-assisted customer care. 

Companies should recognize the great potential in self-service as it can reduce costs and increase performance. To get more customers to choose it, you must provide easy-to-understand information, give them the answers to their questions, and take every opportunity to promote and improve the service. 

Although customers prefer self-service, businesses still rely on email and phone options. They need to know how to change customer behavior and drive them to use the self-service features and their web. Learn more about making it a preferred option of customers by reading further. 

Why You Should Include a Self-Service Feature

It is not surprising that self-service has become the preferred method in customer service because it can provide faster solutions, which they can navigate on their own time. Instead of calling and getting on hold, they can utilize the company’s resources to browse the answers to their simple support inquiries. 

On the other hand, your customer service team does not have to deal with repetitive cases, reducing their stress from the incoming request queues and clearing up more time to solve more complex and unique circumstances. In this way, customers dealing with more significant problems can get more attention. 

You should know that a self-service feature is easy to adopt and integrate into your customer service offer. If it is not in your list of options yet, you can start it on your website by building out knowledge base training videos, articles, chatbot response maps, and a section for frequently asked questions (FAQs). 

On the aspect of revenue, the self-service option reduces costs while it maximizes your profits. Studies show that customers opting for this customer service make purchases of higher average value. They can have their time to explore and come across more products and services they may like to purchase. 

How To Make Customers Choose Self-Service Option

Now that you know the importance of providing a self-service feature, you need to learn more about making your customers choose this option. Below are some tips for doing it right.

Provide Easy to Understand Information

You should write the self-service support resources you provide in a manner easy to understand. Note that not all customers are the same— some may easily comprehend the technical language you use, and some may not. The best thing to do is minimize its use if your customers are not all highly advanced users. 

Another effective way to present a lot of information in a digestible way is through step-by-step instructions or tutorials. You may use lists and headers, too, to chop information and include images and videos to provide clarity if texts are not enough. 

It will also help to include relevant links within your web support documents and knowledge base articles.

Give Accurate Answers to the Right Questions

Customers will not use the self-help resources you have provided to them if they cannot answer their questions. You first need to examine the support ticket issues to identify the most prevalent reasons why customers contact support for assistance. 

From here, you can create an online Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page on your support site or come up with a list of articles that provide solutions with explanations. Alternatively, you can provide training videos, technician documentation, and tutorials. 

Web Self-Service Options Promotion

Building a web self-service option is not enough to drive in customers. You need to let them know of the available options and promote them whenever there is an opportunity. One way to do it is to display links to resources on your support site and ensure that your site works on any device and is responsive. 

In addition, maximize your channels by promoting your self-service options. You may also remind callers on hold that they may access the online resources available on your website and include related links in outgoing support mails. Alternatively, agents may inform callers of this feature once the ticket is resolved. 

Pay Importance to Self-Service

The self-service option is not something you can only set and forget like other customer support software. It needs continuous effort, including usage monitoring and content examination for recency and relevancy. 

Ensure that articles related to software support are up to date with the current versions and revisions. You may also add the date on support pages so that customers know that the information they are reading is still applicable. 

Conclusion

Self-service is not just for the customer. It can also be an attractive option to business owners that are looking to reduce costs and increase performance by offering a more streamlined experience with less human involvement.

To get your customers on board, make sure you provide easy-to-understand information, give them the answers to their questions, and take every opportunity possible in order to promote this service. If self-service isn’t already part of your company’s strategy, it might be time to rethink what you’re doing if you want better results from both ends of the equation.

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