Finding the Perfect Partner for Service Support and Delivery
FINDING THE PERFECT PARTNER FOR SERVICE SUPPORT AND DELIVERY
How do you deliver world class service and ensure incredible service delivery? This has been a challenge for many as businesses expand, intensified by the current pandemic.
Customer service and user experience is a game-changer. In many transactions, the quality of the service delivery is a key decision criterion. And the post-sale service and support must live up to expectations in order for the seller to win repeat business from the customer. No matter the business, providing, service is a key part of client satisfaction. Excellent service protects and builds revenue, so the planning of service delivery should be a key component of each product’s go-to-market strategy. The challenge comes, of course, when a rapidly growing organization needs to ramp up service and support operations in a geographic region where it doesn’t already have reliable service representatives.
Building out a service infrastructure requires hiring in a potentially tight labor market, as well as bringing those resources up to speed through training. The challenges are exacerbated when a company looks to expand internationally.
For many companies in growth mode, it just makes sense to reach out to an established service provider rather than attempt to build a service team from the ground up. However, the risk of this approach is real. Finding the right partner to service your clients transfers a huge amount of responsibility for the success of the company to a third party. Ensuring that the external organization provides a level of service that exceeds customer expectations — and sets up the business for continued growth — requires the selection of the right service provider.
To mitigate risk, due diligence is required. A list of services delivery options may include-
The provider-selection team needs to determine exactly which services the company needs at their locations. The requirements may vary by geography, region or facility. Perhaps break/fix work will be a core aspect of the service provider relationship, while parts management will be required in some areas but not others. It is crucial to delineate up front exactly what the company will require in each region — and each country — that the provider agreement will cover. Additionally, as labor shortages have become the stark reality, you cannot compromise on the talent, skill and professionalism of the individual who is representing your company in front of the client. You must ensure that the person meeting your client represents your company, culture and commitment to the customer experience.
Once the provider-selection team has put together a detailed needs assessment, they can narrow the field of potential service providers to companies that support all the different areas of customer service the company requires, in all the right locations.
At every turn, they should ask: What do our customers need, and what would a perfect customer interaction look like? How does the service from this prospective partner compare with that perfect interaction? Is this how we want our company to be represented to customers? Would this level of service harm or improve the chances of the customer doing repeat business with us?