Helpdesk Tactics

Introduction

You might not have a full helpdesk strategy to grow your business at this moment, but we have set forth some guidelines that you can easily apply to establish the right mindset (Chapter 1). And we’ve looked at how you can create a baseline code repository that can be used to make a flexible and custom CRM system backed by a strong cloud-hosting platform like Azure (Chapter 2) that will help you manage incidents and communication more effectively.

You can kick-start that process right now in order to grow your business. Here’s the focal point of the process—you’ll need a mechanism in place to help turn your customers into evangelists so that they do the marketing work for you. As the old saying goes, there’s no better way to get new customers than by word of mouth.

If you adhere to the guidelines and mindset set forth in Chapter 1, you’ll find that your helpdesk will be more agile and productive. Having a leaner helpdesk that can resolve and close incidents quickly will delight your existing customers, making them feel grateful and important. This appreciation will be paid back in the form of referrals. That’s when your customers become evangelists of your brand and product.

This chapter will describe the path that leads customers to become evangelists, and it will explain the tactics and process you’ll initiate to make this happen.

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to apply these tactics to help you grow your business through customer service.

Steps toward evangelism

As we all know, Rome was not built in a day.

The same goes for converting a customer into an evangelist. That won’t happen all at once. The conversion requires dedication, effort, consistency, and, above all, grace and patience. The key is to allow time for each customer to make the transition at their own pace. You can’t force that on them.

Some customers might be very enthusiastic about your product and services right off the bat, but others might be more cautious—until you gain their full trust, they are unlikely to go out of their way to talk to others about you. Customers each go at their own pace, but they all want to be cared for and to have their issues resolved in a professional, timely, and accurate manner.

So, what does this path to evangelism look like? Let’s have a closer look.

Table 6 represents what a typical path from customer to evangelist might look like.

Table 6: A Typical Customer-to-Evangelist Path

The cool thing about this path is that the transition from prospect to evangelist can be pretty smooth if we provide reliable and top-notch support.

This path assumes that the customer is positive about the product, company, service, and the overall level of support received. However, if the customer has negative views, those can be turned around in the early stages, although the transition to evangelist will not occur as easily.

Defining and finding evangelists

In the strictest sense of the word, and in the context of today’s interconnected society, an evangelist is someone who can place your product, services, or brand in a good light in front of their network.

When an effective evangelist speaks, other people tend to listen closely. Evangelists are also known as influencers—they are followed and trusted within their networks and their opinion is valued and respected.

Evangelists usually have large online and personal networks. And, apart from their network size, they tend to cultivate strong one-on-one relationships with their peers. When they talk, people tend to listen carefully.

Some other characteristics of evangelists worth considering:

• They have connections to other evangelists.
• They like to try new things.
• They appreciate when things work, so they endorse carefully.
• They might be extroverts or introverts, but what matters is how much they identify with your brand and how well they have been treated.

Take this and write it down. Read it a few times and memorize it. Act upon it: If you want to grow your business you need to find evangelists.

LinkedIn, arguably the world’s most important social network for professionals, is an invaluable resource for finding well-connected evangelists who can help you grow. However, let’s clarify one crucial point: an evangelist is not a power connector. Just because someone has a large network on LinkedIn doesn’t mean they can necessarily be influencers for your product and brand.

A well-connected person on LinkedIn might be a potential evangelist for your company if they work in the same industry and have more than one group in common with the groups your company deals with. Finding a person with an affinity for your industry gives you an opening to approach this person and start an informal conversation about having a look at your products and services.

You should also look for people who are not simply related to your company’s groups or industry, but who have recommendations and are actively involved in the community. In other words, people who write articles, answer questions, give speeches, and are active beyond their regular 9-to-5 jobs.

You can find this information by checking a person’s activity within the network and the level of recommendations they might have. Outside of social networking, you can also look into which groups of people related to your company’s industry are respected by your peers. You are likely to find potential evangelists in such groups.

Last but not least, you can find evangelists at conferences. Go through the list of speakers at a conference related to your industry and do a bit of research so that you can approach the appropriate people in a friendly and non-business-oriented manner. Ask questions related to what they do or the topics of their talks. If you show interest in what those people do, they will often reciprocate and ask about what you do. If they do show further interest, you can take the conversation to the next level. Do not attempt to make a sales pitch unless there’s an explicit interest from the other person. Play your cards wisely. This brings us to our next point.

How to create evangelists

In an ideal world, we could bring in all the evangelists we might ever potentially need from our existing network, be that online or offline. However, let’s not overlook the potential evangelists who might already be next to us: our current customers.

How can we turn these customers into fierce advocates of our brand? Here are some actions that can move current customers in that direction:

• Build a strong sense of trust.
• Ask for opinions and ask questions.
• Use a highly empowered language.
• Keep the communication flowing—send regular updates.

• Show appreciation.
• Make a bond.

Let’s explore each of these actions in detail.

The art of building trust

Building trust doesn’t happen overnight. It is built every day with every little interaction we have with our users. Pay attention to your customer’s details and listen more than you talk. Keep track of what you do and what you don’t (and why you don’t).

Over time you and your company will make mistakes when dealing with customers. Product and communication mistakes happen, and when they do, take a step back and don’t be shy to ask forgiveness. It will go a long way toward nurturing trust.

Let’s examine some examples of trustworthy expressions. Trust is consolidated when your customers trust that you will do the right thing, when they trust you with their contacts, when they trust you will not embarrass them, when they explicitly say they trust your product and brand, when they share their sensitive data, when they trust you will stand up for them, and, most importantly, when they put their careers on the line for you. These commitments of trust can go both ways, which means that you, as a service provider, can also demonstrate these attitudes with your customers and users.

Building and nurturing trust are perhaps the most important aspects of customer service—you cannot create loyal evangelists without trust.

The power of asking

Asking can also go a long way. What would you do if one of your customers suddenly asked for a free upgrade to a new version of one of your products? Would you turn around and simply give it to them? Consider this: somehow the fabric of the universe has been designed to work in such a way that it rewards those who give more than they take.

Imagine if everyone went into business with the mindset of providing more value to society than the value they capture from it. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Strong empathy can lead to strong business.

Asking shows two important traits: that we respect what people think and say, and that we are interested in their story, not just our own.

Of course, you are not simply going to turn around and say, “Hey, do you want to become my evangelist?” However, you can ask some of these questions:

• Will you introduce me to your colleagues or connections at other companies?
• Who else should I show this to?
• Will you introduce me to that person or company?
• What other features do you want or need from this application?
• What would make this a killer application for you?
• Which features can we enhance to make your day more productive?
• Will you share this with your peers at the event you are going to?
• Will you give us a testimonial we can use?
• Would you be willing to be a reference for us?
• Would you be willing to help us test our new version?

These are only some of the questions you might ask. If you can think of others, take a moment to write them down.

If customers are satisfied with the level of service you provide and the quality of your product, they will likely be inclined, and even happy, to help if you ask.

So, in order to find out, simply ask.

Highly empowered language

When a customer is ready to share your story with their network, they might need some help from you. Just because they are willing to take a leap and become your advocate doesn’t mean they can spread the word without your assistance. If they are going to put you on the front page of their network, you should provide them with content they can use to spread your message. Think about the following:

• How do they describe your company, your services, your products, and you?
• How can they invite others to help them spread your message?
• How can they keep it simple and remove any unnecessary words that do not help get the message across quickly? If your company, product, and services cannot be understood in one sentence, it won’t be understood by the average user (which is the majority of users).
• How can they share bits and pieces of your materials via email and social networks? Make sure to follow up (not in a pushy way).

Let’s say your company has an amazing product called “Simple Awesome CRM.” The name sounds familiar.

Because you are the visionary and the creator, you might think of it as “CRM 2.0” or “CRM Made Simple,” but does that message really convey the product’s features to everyone the way you hope it does?

If you examine both statements, “CRM 2.0” doesn’t really mean anything, and neither does “CRM Made Simple.” You might think it does, just as you might think “Web 2.0” means something, but these are simply clichés.

Even though CRM is a well-known acronym recognized by a lot of people, it is still unknown to most people.

You should use a sentence that describes your product in a super-concise and effective way that most everyone can relate to and understand.

A great way to describe your CRM product would be: “A replacement for a helpdesk ticketing spreadsheet.” Anybody who has opened a helpdesk ticket knows what this means and knows how hard it is to keep track of issues.

So, keep your message simple and clear enough that it can be understood by everyone, from new employees to the CEO.

Keep the communication flowing

Sometimes people make the mistake of assuming that because an evangelist already knows a product and company, they already know everything necessary to begin relaying the message.

Don’t make that assumption. Keep your customers in the loop. Keep them apprised of all your developments. In other words, keep the communication flowing. That doesn’t mean spamming them with information or content, but it does mean that regularly, say once or twice a month, they should hear from you and should know what you are doing. Here are some things you can share:

• New features in your products.
• New range of services.
• News or hot topics within your industry or role.
• Updates about your company.
• Industry trends.

If the time comes to send out your usual monthly update and you find you don’t have anything new to add since your last update, why not invest some effort in making a bit of news?

Surely there is something you can mention—keep your eyes open and share that. This is what public relations people do all the time. They take something typical and phrase the description in a way that makes headlines. Stand out and create some content—a new blog post or a free e-book or some new training material. Remember to keep the communication flowing.

If you do that, your customers will see you are engaged, they will appreciate your commitment, and they will be willing to spread the word.

Show appreciation

When someone goes out of their way to say something positive about your product or company, take a few minutes to put everything aside to write one or two lines saying thank you. It takes only a couple of minutes, but it can have a profound impact.

Remember, if you don’t have a crystal ball, neither do your customers. Don’t assume that simply because you are thinking about them, customers will be able to read your mind. Take the time to let them know you appreciate them.

Sending a thank-you is always a nice gesture, and email is the perfect mechanism for this, as it leaves written evidence.

Of course, you can always call customers. However, you should do that only after you have first sent the written message. You can also take it to the next level by sending a token of appreciation, such as a card. Kind gestures are remembered—they show the extra effort you put in.

Finally, there’s one other way you can take it to the next level: make a bond.

Make a bond

This might seem a bit unusual, but making a bond doesn’t mean your goal should be to establish a personal and long-lasting relationship with any of your customers or evangelists.

Making a bond means being aware that when you speak with those people, at some point they might make a comment about something personal, something that matters to them. When that happens, you should value that moment and listen carefully. Listen like you really care (and you should care). Remember what they say. If your memory is bad, take a moment to write it down.

Show them you care—when you speak to them again, ask about that topic. Be kind and ask if they sorted out their problem. They will appreciate that you thought about it, even if the subject is totally unrelated with the professional relationship you have with them. Make a bond, and you will be remembered.

Converting incidents into sales

We’ve seen how we can take customers and nurture them by building a strong sense of empathy and self-awareness in order to turn them into evangelists. That’s an invaluable asset, but how can we generate more sales without specifically selling?

When a customer raises an incident, there are two ways to respond. You can choose to see the incident as just another problem or as an opportunity to improve and create a solution more focused on the user’s needs. You can also view it as an opportunity to create new potential features and to get customer feedback on which features they might consider useful.

In essence, these incidents are opportunities that can be used to initiate new business. However, to successfully start this conversation, it is essential to move away from the money aspect of the sale and focus more on the user’s needs: a solution-based sale.

While the price will be important at some point, it should not be the main driver for this conversation. You first need to ensure that the customer will get the best possible solution. The conversation should be conducted as though the customer is a strategic partner. Customers can help us understand their needs, and we can help them understand which solutions best fit their situations.

Notice how this differs from viewing the contact in terms of needing to make X or Y amount of sales this quarter. This is a more customer-friendly view in which you aim to make sure that your customers have everything they need to succeed with your product.

Once you set this as your sales mentality, you won’t ever need to make direct sales again, because the customer will explicitly request that from you. With this attitude and partnership in place, sales will come naturally as customers feel that you care about them and that you want to help them succeed, not just sign a contract.

If for some reason what you have offered is not necessarily the right fit for a customer, let it go. Write it off. It’s better to leave it than to give them a solution they will never be happy with. If you don’t let it go, you risk the customer losing money and losing their trust in you.

A relatively simple way to transition an incident into a sales opportunity is to show customers which features and offerings your organization can provide. Don’t assume that because they are your customer they know all about you and the intrinsic details of your product or brand. Even if you have introduced some of these details in the past, that might not have come at the right time. Some customers are very problem-centric and might not pay attention to tangential details when they are focused on some other issue with a higher priority.

So how can you show them your new features? Simply ask if they know about them. For instance, you might say something like, “As a matter of fact, we have a tool that should solve the very problem you are talking about.”

You can also ask if any other features might complement any of the existing features they already use. Explicitly ask for value-added improvements for the features you already offer. Customers will value the fact that you asked them. And remember—their feedback is invaluable to you, as it will help you strengthen your product.

Typically, in some of these conversations with your customers, you might talk about features that are not related to the problem at hand. You’ll notice that as you develop your customer relationship, you’ll encounter new needs from them, and you’ll be able to introduce other seemingly unrelated products and features into the conversation.

By doing this, you are broadening your customers’ understanding of the scope of services you can provide. The advantage of this is that your customers will get the notion that they might not need to look elsewhere to fill in their gaps—you’ve already done this for them.

Remember to make sure you give customers a choice. You aren’t forcing them to buy anything, and if a decision to buy is made, it’s theirs, not yours. Add value for your customers and forget about ever explicitly selling again.

Company initiative and culture

In order for your company to have a successful helpdesk strategy, the initiative needs to come from the top, and as a developer with a strong sense of customer service, you should feel empowered to talk to your direct manager about a proactive helpdesk strategy. Management needs to be aligned and in sync with the concept, and this attitude should permeate throughout the entire organization. This will have an impact on financials, training, R&D, and product management.

Your organization’s helpdesk strategy should be embedded into the company’s fabric: its guidelines and policy manual. This way everyone will know it, and people can effectively reference it and be trained on it.

Furthermore, the company should have a way to gather strong metrics about customer engagement and should reward those actively involved in it. Incentive programs that make it easy for employees at any level to delight customers are also effective tools. In essence, the helpdesk should be seen not as a liability, but as an asset. Possibly the most important one in your company.

But how can this be propagated to all employees? The best approach is to implement orientation programs for new and current employees. Whenever a new employee is hired, they should know that customer service is a huge priority and is key to the organization’s success.

People committed to showing an exceptional customer service attitude should be rewarded, either financially or through some other form of recognition. Make sure that the time employees spend with customers is respected and valued. If someone needs to spend three or four hours with a specific customer on a particular problem, let it happen—by all means don’t punish that employee.

Summary

In this chapter, we examined tactics for transforming customers into evangelists. We also looked at how incidents can be viewed as opportunities for acquiring new business without going through a regular sales process. Last but not least, we saw how having a customer-centric company culture can permeate to all employees, allowing them to become internal evangelists for customer success.

By now, you should have the mindset, tools, and tactics in place to establish a proactive, customer-centric helpdesk strategy within your organization that will delight your customers, create evangelists, and help you grow your business.

In the next chapter, we’ll look at how reverse engineering can assist in helping us achieve faster incident resolution.