Having robust service desk analytics, customer facing knowledgebase content, and other self-service tools available is critically important but so is performing regular upkeep on them.
If they are no longer relevant, in the best case they portray laziness or incompetence.
In the worst case, they cause additional customer confusion that compounds issues the customer was originally trying to solve.
When instructions are outdated, they can make a customer’s already stressful situation worse.
Knowledge articles can quickly become outdated and irrelevant or show incorrect information. Analytics can begin to show new trends that are easy to miss if you aren’t looking for them regularly.
An easy way to eliminate complexity in your internal support systems and ensure you’re keeping up with needed refreshes on your support resources is to create a recurring scheduled ticket inside of your existing ticketing platform.
Sure, you could set a reminder elsewhere - add something to a shared calendar, a Jira board, or use an outside project tracking tool, but it’s very easy for items to slip through the cracks when using many disparate systems.
By using the ticketing system your support agents are already using day-to-day, you can make it less likely that these maintenance items will be forgotten.
Many platforms natively allow you to create ticket templates with specifics automatically filled in, such as:
Categorization
Tagging
Statuses
Pre-filled notes
You can then schedule the ticket to be created every week, month, quarter, year, or however often you need. In some cases, like Connectwise Manage, you can attach a prefilled checklist to track progress on individual sub-items.
If you add in automations, you can also have the ticket automatically assigned to the most relevant person or team every time it pops up, and send a notification to ensure it’s seen and actioned.
Links to SOPs or other instructions to help complete the upkeep tasks can be added to the ticket template notes so every time a new ticket generates, the resources are ready and waiting for the assignee to act on.
Linking SOPs can reduce the amount of changes you need to make to update your processes across the board.
The SOP can be updated independently, and any changes will automatically reflect in future auto-generated tickets.
To some, the thought of adding another ticket to the board raises red flags. But for those with a forward-thinking outlook, it’s a perfect opportunity to fold critical resource maintenance into the daily fold.
If you’d like to approach your product support with a proactive mindset, a Product Success Sprint may be a perfect fit.
Schedule a meeting and we’ll briefly discuss your company’s specifics and determine if you’re a good fit.
