Technology is what keeps a business running. Without functional technology, a business would not successfully be able to deliver client needs or reach strategic objectives. It is the IT support desk that connects every aspect of the business together and keeps things running smoothly.
It is because of this that IT service desks are meeting clients’ needs and are as user-friendly as possible. In some businesses, IT support desks are also used for front line customer support. When this is the case, user-friendliness is more important than ever as the support desk is a key contact point in the customer relationship.
It is a common problem that IT support desks are not user-friendly. This can happen when IT support staff are primarily focused on the technical side of things, which ultimately is what they are there to do. There are a few ways you can run a user-friendly IT support desk, whilst still maintaining your technical requirements. Here are our top 10 tips for running a user-friendly IT support help desk;
1. Listen To Your Customers
Your customers, or end-users, know what they need and know if your IT support help desk isn’t meeting those requirements. Always put your customers needs first. This will stop technology from leading the process and ensure that you are only using technology to meet user needs.
Set up a feedback process where customers can let you know what your IT help desk could improve on. If you do receive complaints or criticism, then learn from it and use it to better your service.
2. Have A Proactive Approach
Sometimes waiting for your end-users to tell you what they want or need isn’t enough. When you are focusing on putting customers first, you need to take a proactive approach to your IT service delivery. Your IT team should be working to provide a service that pre-empts your customers’ needs.
One common proactive approach is to create self-service options that resolve the most commonly asked problems. Create IT support content such as blogs, resources and frequently asked questions and proactively communicate these to your users.
3. Document Your Processes
An IT support help desk should have processes that are documented and clear. If your processes are not scalable and documented, then it is impossible to deliver an excellent service. Having well documented and clear processes in place will make it easier to make improvements and train new service desk team members in how things are done.
Remember that every one of these processes should focus on your end-users’ needs.
4. Use Self Service Tools Carefully
Offering self-service solutions for IT support can be a great way to improve usability. This is especially true if users are tech-savvy and able to use these solutions effectively.
Self-service IT support tools are great because they allow users to solve problems very quickly, without putting pressure on IT help desk teams. However, it is important to bear in mind that relying on self-service tools too much can cause problems. You don’t want self-service to end up getting in the way of human interactions and hindering your user-friendly service.
5. Deal With Recurring Problems
If the same problems are coming up time and time again, then you need to do something about it. High volume, recurring problems can be very frustrating for users, and there should be a solution. Some of these problems might be able to be resolved with new technologies.
For example, if users are often asking for their passwords to be reset, then it could be worth investing in password management tools.
For some other recurring issues, it might be worth providing users with simple guidelines on how to fix it themselves.
6. Manage Expectations
One of the simplest, and most important, ways to make your IT service help desk more user friendly, is to effectively manage expectations. Whenever a problem is escalated to the help desk, provide the user with information on the support they need.
Explain the process that needs to happen to resolve their issue and give them a rough idea of how long it is likely to take. This stops customers from being kept in the dark about how long an issue could last for and gives them the chance to plan accordingly.
7. Use The Right Technology
Your IT support help desk is there to make sure your users and customers can use technology effectively, and to do this; they need to have the right technology available. IT service management tools are essential for improving your user-friendly service and reaching all targets.
Your IT support help desk could benefit from additional communication channels, automated chatbots, or self-service portals. All of these technology solutions can help to meet the modern customer’s needs.
8. Keep Improving
An IT support help desk must constantly be evolving in order to meet all users’ needs and resolve ongoing issues. When it comes to improving usability and ensuring your help desk is user-friendly, that constant evolution doesn’t stop.
You need to be continuously reviewing how you can improve and what can be done to achieve better results.
9. Provide Enough Staff
An understaffed IT support help desk will never provide a good level of service. You need to ensure your help desk has enough technicians to operate effectively. The size of your IT support team will vary depending on your business size and how you use technology.
It is crucial to get the staffing balance right, as you don’t want team members with no work to do, but on the other hand, you don’t want users experiencing lengthy wait times because you are understaffed.
10. Invest In Training
It isn’t only about how many team members you have on your IT support help desk, but also how qualified they are. When you have a team that are all highly skilled and knowledgeable in IT support, your help desk will operate more smoothly.
Here at TSG Training, we offer various training courses in IT service management, including
Service Desk Manager and
Service Desk Analyst. We also offer various free webinars covering a range of subjects, such as the
BCS Certificate in Information Security Management Principles Webinar.
