The look of modern customer support is changing rapidly, right along with customer service expectations and needs. In the modern business landscape, it is essential for companies to optimize customer communications and provide the best customer experience possible in order to succeed. One way to facilitate a seamless customer experience is to use a specific knowledge management system called a customer support portal.
What is a Knowledge Management System?
Simply put, a knowledge management system is any system that can store and retrieve knowledge and information about a specific organization.
These systems can be company-facing, customer-facing, or both.
Company-facing is a system used by employees, while customer-facing is for customers and clients.
Knowledge management systems use knowledge sharing to help users. They help employees find the information needed to perform tasks or solve problems.
These are some, but not all, examples of knowledge management systems:
- Case studies
- FAQs
- Tutorials and “How-to” content
- Training programs
- Forums and community features
- Webinars
- Certificates
What is a Customer Support Portal?
A customer support portal is one of the best examples of a customer-facing knowledge management solution.
In 2018 a study found that 88 per cent of respondents expect organizations to offer a self-service customer support portal.
In order to meet customer expectations, a customer support portal is a good place to start.
These portals act like information hubs where customers can find things like relevant content, knowledge base articles, support ticket statuses, and much more. They combine several self-service functions in one convenient location that can be accessed on your company’s website or a mobile app.
These portals can be combined with other systems which allow customers to access and edit their account details. These features empower users and help them manage their relationship with your company at a glance.
Put Knowledge Management to Work For Your Company
Knowledge management systems can help you provide an end-to-end customer experience that’s sure to impress clients old and new.
Utilizing a customer support portal with a knowledge management system will improve your customer success ROI, decrease your support costs, increase customer satisfaction, and boost your customer’s overall experience.
Portals give customers a DIY option for customer service and provide answers to their questions in real-time.
Providing all your knowledge-based resources in one easy-to-access location frees up more time for your employees as well, so they do not have to focus on answering simple questions over and over.
You can present consistent results for your customers with self-service options that increase user satisfaction and confidence.
Customer support portals help your company continue to improve and evolve. You can identify gaps in your organization’s knowledge base, track usage, and get inspiration for new content.
Customer support portals also allow you to access customer feedback which is priceless information for any company to obtain. These portals can act as market research surveys to keep your finger on the consumer’s pulse.
You can use customer support portals to advertise and promote products and services to your customers based on their buying history and preferences.
What to Look for in a Customer Support Portal
Below you will find some common features found in most modern customer support portals. Look for them when comparing and analyzing customer portal options.
Collaboration
Even though customer portals are all about self-service, it’s imperative that your employees and customer support agents can still interact with each other and the customers as well.
Customers will still have requests and concerns that need to be addressed quickly and effectively. Support agents need to have access to requests and support tickets or get help from other agents instantly.
Brand Customization
Whatever portal software you choose, you want to ensure that it is customizable for your brand and your company’s aesthetic.
Suitable client portal software will always let you control the overall look, style, design, and layout of your portal.
Billing
The best customer support portals let you upload invoices to customers so they can view and pay them.
Instead of hunting for bills and receipts in their inboxes, your customers can access payment information in the blink of an eye with a customer support portal.
Security Features
Any customer data stored needs to be totally safe and secure. You never want that data to be compromised.
The best support portals act as an extra layer of cyber security and come built-in with security measures that keep your customers’ information private and secure.
Your Big Takeaways
If you’re looking to implement improvements and save your customer’s time, a customer support portal could be the solution you need.
Implementing a customer support portal might seem daunting at first, but with a little change management and a lot of patience, your company can start reaping the benefits sooner than you think.
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Jonathan is a technocrat and an avid outdoor enthusiast. He is a community manager and a committed team member. When he isn’t working to make the internet a better place, Jonathan can be found exploring the great outdoors and beautiful coastlines with his sidekick, Zen, a very energetic Weimaraner.