Email and customer support can eat up A LOT of your time as your online business starts to grow.
This is actually one of the tasks you'll want to outsource first - and the quicker the better. 😉
Until you're in a position to outsource your email and/or customer support, you'll want to handle it as efficiently as possible. And doing three things will actually put you in a position to outsource it more easily, which will make for a much smoother transition.
Three Practical Ways to Manage Email & Customer Support
1. The first step is to copy any "common responses" to a Swipe File. You can do this in a text file on your desktop, or ideally in a program like Evernote that you can access from any computer or device anytime.
Not only will this make support/email much faster for you, allowing you to simply copy & paste responses instead of retyping them over and over, it will also make it MUCH easier to outsource this task when you're ready. You can simply give your assistant a copy of the Swipe File so that tickets or emails are answered in the way you prefer.
2. Once you have a growing Swipe File, use that to create an FAQ page on your website. Link to this page instead of directly to your contact or support page, and then include a link to your contact page if their question was not answered.
Not only does this cut down on redundant Q&A, it also gives you another optimized page to discuss your products and services in detail which may interest potential buyers or clients. Be sure to include a link to your FAQ page in your site navigation and in your email signatures.
3. If you find yourself answering a lot of questions via email, keep in mind that you're working for free. Or at the very least for very limited ROI (return on investment). More in-depth questions that don't belong in your FAQ, and that aren't common enough for your Swipe File, are great inspiration for blog posts!
I usually ask permission by saying something like, "This is a great question! I am sure many other people would love to know the answer as well. Do you mind if I use this in a blog post this week? I can share your question anonymously, or I am happy to include your name and website address if you like." Other times I simply write a blog post (not including the question) and reply to their email with the link and a "thank you" for inspiring the post.
You can also expand on each of the topics in your FAQ or Swipe File and create blog posts out of those. You can then link to them from the shorter answers on your FAQ page for further explanation, and also include the link in your Swipe File when responding to emails or tickets.
Each post you create from questions or common support requests should have a call-to-action of course, leading your readers to your products or services - or your recommendations.
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How are you currently handling your email and/or customer support?
What software programs do you use, how did you outsource it or choose your VA, or what do you find most challenging about it? Leave a comment below... I look forward to hearing your thoughts!
Best,
About Lynn Terry
Excellent tips, Lynn.
I'd also add, get some decent support scripts set up on your server as soon as you can afford them... ones that can handle FAQ pages and Troubleshooter guides as well as opening and tracking tickets etc. If your customer has a problem, looking professional when they get to your support site reassures them that you'll be there to help before they even open a ticket. I use Kayako eSupport.
Neil.
Great post Lynn. Anything that can free up our time is worth the small amount of work to set it up.....
This is something I had to learn the hard way awhile back. What I did is I simply opened a support portal and put up an FAQ page. They could still submit questions but the FAQ cut a lot of these down.
I also found I was getting a ton of email into my regular inbox so I set up my email list with a canned reply if someone asks me a question via email. The canned reply instructed them to check the FAQ on the support site first and if they still had questions to submit a ticket at the help desk.
This allows me to keep everything neat and organized.
I also like 'Canned Responses' Gmail add-on to create templates with answers to the most frequent questions I get a lot 😉
I love these tips, Lynn. They are especially useful if you're just starting out like us and don't have the money to pay for a robust support system.
I also like your idea of taking customer questions to form your FAQ and then turning more complex issues into blog posts. Will definitely keep your blog alive with new content.
I like to use a help desk system that pipes support requests through my email this way, more than one person can handle support and we can track the request to insure it is handled properly. Also, the system includes a built in knowledgebase/FAQ and canned answer system. This helps immensely!
Thanks a lot for this as recently I have planned to start my service blog and I am going to consider all the points which you have written here. It is very necessary to manage everything effectively as customers are your assets and leads get you business.
Lynn,
So very sorry to hear that you haven't been feeling well. Good to have you back. Take it easy and looking forward to all of your posts.
Monna
I actually hired a VA to help me with emails and customer support. There are a lot of sites where you can acquire reliable VAs.
For email: I have an autoresponse message that says I check email twice daily Monday - Friday. Got that idea from The 4 Hour Work Week. I've had great feedback from people saying that the expectation has been set, so there's no confusion.
For client support: I use Zendesk. It's simple enough to set up, yet it has lots of great features. Clients can either login to post a support request or send it in via email.
I also tell clients that the absolute fastest way to get their question addressed is by using the support desk, especially now that I have 2 VA's who take care of client needs. I don't answer client support questions in my personal email any more.
We also have client membership areas with lots of tutorials, so we always try to refer them back to a tutorial first. That alone has significantly reduced support requests, so when we do get something in, it's because they are really stuck or it's something we haven't seen before.
I love # 2, as I never thought about routing folks through a FAQ style page first. Thanks!
This is great advice! I am still in the beginning stages of all of this and so I'm definitely not ready to outsource yet. These ideas will be a great time saver!