Customer support staff can only do so much. While there have been new developments like hiring remote workers and supplying them with headsets and laptops, management systems where they reply to more than one chat at a time, and also callback systems they can use, many are still working flat out from the start to the end of their shift.

That’s because no matter what, customers will always need further support in some capacity. Moreover, while AI is certainly changing the game right now, people will always want to talk to a human for complex tasks or those relating to higher-level account security.

In this article, we’ll discuss three ways to save customer support staff time, allowing them to give higher quality responses to each one of your customers in turn:

Automate Simple Inquiries

A huge portion of customer support time gets used up answering the same basic questions over and over, which is where automation can be so helpful. Setting up a robust knowledge base or a detailed FAQ section on your website can give customers the answers they need without ever needing to contact a person. 

In addition to and supplementing that, chatbots can quickly provide a link to a help article if a customer request matches it, or give an order status, which frees up your staff to focus on more complex issues that require human expertise. It helps the support team feel less like a repetitive machine and more like problem solvers that don’t need to just refer but provide solutions that require thought. You’d be surprised how much that filters out.

Streamline The Ticketing Process

Often, the real time sink for a support team isn’t the customers themselves, but a messy internal system. An organized ticketing platform can help you set priorities because they automatically route customer issues to an applicable person or department, so no one has to waste time manually assigning tasks. They also keep a full history of customer interactions, which means a support agent doesn’t have to ask the customer to repeat themselves. 

If it’s properly adjusted to the needs of your firm, it means your staff spends less time on administrative tasks and more time helping people with the relevant need. It also makes the entire operation more efficient and less stressful for both sides of the customer support interaction.

Proactively Communicate With Customers

Even this year, a lot of calls and messages to customer support are simply people asking for updates or information they haven’t received yet. The easiest way to save your staff time is to get ahead of those questions, as sending proactive notifications about updates like shipping delays, service outages, or scheduled maintenance can prevent a flood of calls. 

For a lot of businesses, using provisions like the best ringless voicemail service can be incredibly effective, as that system sends a pre-recorded message straight to a voicemail inbox without the phone ever ringing, which is a very quick way to send out mass announcements, and without your staff having to make a single call to do it.

With this advice, you’re sure to make life easier on your support team.