As published in business.com, June 2, 2020 There are two types of viewpoints when it comes to B2B (business-to-business) customer support. The first approaches B2B customer support as a cost center, or a necessary expense for running a business. After all, having a support team is required for your product, and it’s just something you need to have. The second thinks B2B customer support is a profit center.

In Part 1 of this blog series we suggested tools that can help your B2B customers solve issues on their own and ways to help them feel more comfortable doing so. We continued in Part 2 exploring one way that customers can speed up the time to ticket resolution with live chat. And we conclude in Part 3 with more ways to speed the time to ticket resolution, using visual support tools.

In Part 1 of this blog series we started exploring tools that can help your B2B customers solve issues on their own and ways to help them feel more comfortable doing so. Now in Part 2 of this series, we’ll explore one way that customers can speed up the time to ticket resolution with live chat. Let’s Chat!

“Due to increased call volume, hold times may be longer than usual.” How many times have we heard that when calling a customer support line? It’s frustrating enough when you have an issue that you need to get resolved without waiting endlessly on hold if you’re calling, or for an e-mail response if you’ve e-mailed in.

“Cloud is about how you do computing, not where you do computing.” – Paul Maritz, VMware CEO Once you decide to implement a new B2B customer support software solution, the first step is to do an internal assessment to determine how to choose the right provider.

You want to stop focusing only on getting tickets closed and instead work on building strong relationships with your customers. You’ve determined that e-mails and spreadsheets are no way to manage support interactions. And you want to break down the silos between support, sales, and product development and improve collaborations between these departments.

This decade has begun with economic uncertainty. From COVID-19 to political and social movements, businesses of all types have been impacted by these events resulting in major fluctuations in consumer trust.

Now that we’ve reviewed four elements of B2B customer support excellence and the strategic business impact of each in Part 1 of this blog series—profit contribution, brand reputation, efficiency, effectiveness—let’s take a look at goals and action items that will get you there.