We know, sometimes, contacting support could be a tiring and unpleasant activity for you. Finding the right contact, wading through support options, and actually communicating in a constructive way is all easier said than done. You already have the stress of dealing with a problem with your website or hosting, so the last thing you need is to struggle to actually resolve your issue. Right?
But, Customer support teams are very, very important. According to a survey, service insight and knowledge is the key to a positive experience with 62% of customers today.
Start with the Right Host
Of course, most of your basic hosting problems could be solved by choosing the right host in the first place. There are a lot of options today for getting more out of your internet hosting. However, if you don’t do your due diligence, you could end up in a spot where you’re unable to reach tech support at all.
If possible, make a switch to a reputable web host. Today. We’ll wait. The right host will value customer support, and they know challenges pop up for webmasters from time to time. Not only will they have experience solving problems, but they can take a proactive approach.
Use Online Documentation
Before you skip to using tech support, see if you’re able to take some steps first to mitigate the problem. Most web hosts have extensive online documentation to help you solve the problem on your own. This documentation will help you discover the problem and take preliminary steps to solve it. Only if you’re unable to find any success with this method should you move on to the next step.
Find Online Tutorials (or Host’s Knowledge base )
If you’re experiencing a problem, odds are you aren’t the first one. Your host might already be equipped with online tutorials and solutions to walk you through this situation. If you can’t find any through your host, all hope still isn’t lost.
Try a simple Google or YouTube search. Searching “your host + problem” usually will yield a few hundred results with similar problems. There might even be YouTube videos showing you the solution in a step-by-step manner.
Use LiveChat
Online chat is a great resource. We all hate sitting on the phone waiting for the next tech support rep to become available, so why not take advantage of a modern solution. Live chat allows you to talk to your tech support agent in your browser. You can see your messages in real-time and even share supporting documents and images as needed.
Offering online chat is a great option for web hosts, so make sure yours has a chat feature.
Document Your Problem
Finally, make sure you’re ready to actually present your problem clearly and articulately to your host tech support. One of the most common problems is that the webmaster isn’t able to properly explain the problem, so the tech support agent doesn’t know how to solve your concern.
To document the problem, consider including screenshots, written documentation, or error reports. The more information you can compile, the better equipped your tech support team will be to provide the right recommendation. In some cases, these agents might be able to step in and solve the problem for you.
Contacting your web host’s customer support doesn’t have to be an unpleasant experience. Most companies are starting to catch on to the fact that making existing customers happy will actually help you sell more than finding new customers from scratch.
If you’re in need of help from tech support, be sure you properly document the problem first. From there, you’ll be in a better spot to succeed with your communications.
