Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Outsourced Tech Support *doesn't* have to suck

But I'll tell you why it does, EXCEPT MY tech support services of course:-)
These other outsourced tech support services thing providing technical support starts and ends with any specific issue being opened, touched, and closed.
Typical billing by service providers is either set up on a "per incident" or a "per touch" basis. Both of these are terrible in my humble opinion. Because both are focusing on monetizing issues rather than providing a complete technical support service. I've actually heard of Call Centers that have a "per touch" pricing. Which means every time a support person has to "touch" an issue, they bill a flat rate of, say $5. So what do they do? something like this:
Support Agent: Thanks for calling tech support can I get your name?
Customer: I'm Ean Jackson
Support Agent: What can I help you with?
Customer: The system seems to be down
Support Agent: That's not a first line issue. I'll send you to the correct support person
(sends customer to second support agent and now it has a second "touch" chaching!)
Support Agent2: Hi, you said the system was down? I'll have to check it out and call you back
(hangs up, tests. Yep, it's down. Calls customer back--Touch 3 ChaChing!)
....and so on. you get the point.

So in effect, I do understand people's loathe for Outsourced Support. Because the outsourcers are turning the organization into something closer to 4-1-1 information where the operator has become no more intimate with the product and company being supported than the person calling.
Alternately, We at SourceSouth understand how to maintain the intimacy of support engineer and supported product and company. As a result, the support engineer has more pride in their job, as well as more accountability.

Saturday, June 14, 2008

Turn your customers into your sales force

I started SourceSouth and did what most entrepreneurs think they are supposed to. I wrote a sales plan, defined my customer profile, and grepped all the numbers from the online yellow pages I could into an excel spreadsheet for my, at the time, one employee to start cold calling to generate business.
It didn't work at all. I got one meeting and no business from it.
I also spent a good deal of money flying to Hosting Conferences to try and sell sell sell my outsourced tech support services. That essentially failed as well. Luckily I simply believed that the overwhelming size of IT in the U.S., combined with the still-relatively new phenomena of Outsourcing was a good play to put my time and effort into, to open an office an Argentina.
I did so, I got an account in Tech Support and I luckily landed a development account as well.
I worked my ass off on these accounts and found some others as well. And because I did that I received personal referrals into new "accounts". Then I got referrals to other accounts. That's when I realized that, at least when you are small just do a great great job with your initial clients and sure enough they will refer you to new business. In other words, take the money you have ear marked to put into some sort of sales and/ or marketing campaign and reinvest it into more development time into that great customer that pays you their hard earned money.
Then next time they are out mountain biking with their buddy that needs some development done, they'll mention you.