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Greetings!
This week, we continue our multi-part series on network troubleshooting with a discussion of technical support. Many people cheat themselves out of the benefits of tech support, by never calling in the first place. Read on to learn how tech support can be the best way to fix your problem and get back to work. |
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Use Your Cash To Build Your Business
Lease Your Network...
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Do you have a small business--even one with five employees or less? Are you tired of limping along on used computer equipment, with substandard service, just because you can't afford the IT budget bigger companies enjoy? If you could make your computer problems vanish with a simple, affordable, reliable solution, would you do it in an instant? Of course you would!That's why PerAspera is pleased to introduce the Turn-Key Network Lease!Get all of this: - Workstations
- Server
- Multifunction Printer, Scanner, Copier, Fax
- Software
- Professional, Reliable Service and Support
For one low monthly payment. Stop throwing money away by purchasing equipment outright--equipment that will just be obsolete in two or three years. Keep your cash in the bank, not tied up in your computer system. Put your capital into the parts of your business that will generate revenue directly, while you still enjoy the advantages of a state-of-the-art information system. Call PerAspera and ask us about the Turn-Key Network Lease today! |
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Benefit From the Full Power
of Microsoft Outlook
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It's the computer program you use more than any other.
You open it several times a day. You could not run your business without it.
Microsoft Outlook--it's
a vital part of your business communication strategy. You may use email
more than you use your cell phone, more than you meet your customers
face-to-face.
How much do you really know about Outlook?
Certainly, you know how to create and reply to messages...but that is only the beginning.
How familiar are you with benefits such as:
- Rules
- Alerts
- Contacts
- Distribution Lists
- Appointments
- Tasks
- Archiving
- Distribution Lists
Outlook may be the most powerful tool you have--and you are leaving most of its potential untapped.
By utilizing the full capabilities of a program you already own, you can significantly decrease the amount of time your job requires, and significantly increase the number of new opportunities you are able to pursue.
PerAspera Consulting is pleased to announce the introduction of training classes for Microsoft Outlook, as well as Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft Busienss Contact Manager.
Don't let the competition roll over you because they know software secrets you don't.
Call PerAspera at 913-385-7102, Option 1, and ask about our Business Productivity Training Classes today! |
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 Network Troubleshooting:
Don't Hesitate To Call Tech Support
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Let's face it. Tech support has a bad reputation. A really bad reputation.
Users hate
to call tech support. Complaints range from "I will be on hold
forever," to "They are just going to ask me if my computer is plugged
in," to "I won't be able to understand what they are saying."
And there is a point to each of these complaints.
But that doesn't change the fact that calling tech support may be the most effective method for resolving your problem.
I highly encourage you to make calling technical support a central part of your troubleshooting plan.
As
soon as you realize you have a technical problem, and that you are
going to have to troubleshoot it yourself, determine your tech support
options. Equipment less than a year old is probably covered by a
manufacturer's warranty, and tech support may be freely available. The
same is true of software. Tech support should also be available if you
have purchased software maintenance, or an extended hardware warranty.
Make
sure you have the telephone number for tech support readily available.
If you do not, you can probably locate it by looking up the
manufacturer on the Web.
If you do not have a current tech
support agreement, and you are not covered by warranty, you probably
have access to incident-based technical support. Call the manufacturer,
or look on the Web, to determine pricing.
Collect all of this
information before you proceed with trying to fix the problem, so you
won't have to stop and look for a phone number in the middle of the
troubleshooting process.
If tech support is available at no additional charge, I suggest that you spend no more than 30 minutes working on the issue yourself. Why re-invent the wheel when you have an expert readily available?
This is a good rule, even for people with computer experience. I have seen technicians waste hours
because they wanted to "figure it out for themselves," when a call to
tech support could have resolved the problem in 45 minutes. I have done
it myself.
For inexperienced users, the result is often the
same, although the reason is different. Non-technicians often fail to
call tech support because they are intimidated by the thought of
explaining a technical problem to someone over the phone, or because
they think it will take too much time. Don't make this mistake. Broken
computers waste time. Tech support is a resource. Use it!
True,
you may have to wait on hold when you call. Plan for this. Have a
head-set for your phone ready, so you can free up your hands and save
your neck. Utilize this time to do the things you would have to do
anyway if you didn't call tech support. Hold time is
a great opportunity to research error messages on Google Groups. If you
resolve the problem while you are on hold, so much the better. If not,
you are that much closer so someone picking up the phone with an answer.
A
growing number of manufacturers are also providing tech support via
live-chat, on the Web. I encourage you to try this--not only may the
response time be quicker (fewer people may be using the chat system
than the phones,) communication may be better, because both you and the
technician will be putting your thoughts in writing.
The
support technician my ask what you consider to be elementary, or even
stupid, questions ("is your computer plugged in.) Don't argue or
complain--just answer and move on. A support help desk uses systems and
procedures designed to allow the technician to find the correct
answer. This is why you are calling. Because he or she is helping you
over the phone, the technician does not know everything about your
system, or your level of knowledge--so he or she walks you through a
process that covers all the bases. The technician can't skip steps, or
he or she runs the risk of missing a vital piece of information. Just
remember that the system is also designed with speed in mind--the
manufacturer doesn't want to pay someone to spend all day working on
your problem. Where speed conflicts with thoroughness, however, the
system is designed to be thorough.
If you are talking on the phone,
rather than using live chat, you may also have a problem with the
accent of your support technician. With the rise of globalization, and
the low labor rates in foreign countries, many (perhaps most)
manufacturers now outsource at least part of their tech support. If you
have difficulty understanding a foreign accent, the only thing I can
suggest is to see if there is someone else in your office who can
understand better, and to turn the call over to them. Personally, I am
often relieved to hear an Indian accent, because in my experience,
first-level tech support based in India often employs more
knowledgeable technicians than first-level tech support based in the
United States. Again, the differential in labor rates is at work. The
result is that my problem may be fixed more quickly by an India-based
technician, because the manufacturer is getting a higher skill-level
for a lower rate of pay.
Also, you should be aware that
companies often keep second-level tech support in-house--so if you can
make it through the initial round of the support process, and your
problem has still not been resolved, your issue will probably be
escalated to someone who not only knows more, but whom you can also
better understand.
Finally, if your problem is not resolved on the first call, always
get an incident number from the support technician before you hang up.
This is your shortcut when you call back. The support technician has
probably made comprehensive notes about your problem, and referring to
the incident number should keep you from having to walk through the
tech support process all over again from the beginning.
While
this may seem like a complicated process, remember that the purpose is
to put you in direct contact with someone who has an answer to your
problem. Don't overlook the value of talking to the experts when you
want to put your computer troubles behind you, so you can get back to
work.
Next Week: Write It Down! |
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With a simple phone call, tech support can put an expert in your corner, working to resolve your problem.
Take advantage of this resource. You're in business to do business--not to work on your computers...
Sincerely,
Brian Pauls
PerAspera Consulting, LLC |
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Mission
Our mission is to enable organizations and individuals to make good
technology decisions by providing them with complete and accurate
information, as well as reliable products and services, at a reasonable
price.
We hold ourselves responsible for delivering what the client expects within an agreed-upon time-frame.
Earning our clients' continued trust through honesty and integrity is the foundation of our business.
We aspire to be the most accurate, reliable, honest, and trustworthy computer consulting firm in the Kansas City area. |
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