In a consumer-centered landscape, OEMs are rapidly looking to adopt efficient means of collaboration to align with evolving engagement expectations. Even if you provide the most in-demand aftermarket product or service, the experience of your customers and stakeholders will perpetually impact the growth of your business.
Being the core of the aftermarket domain, renowned original equipment manufacturers are required to maintain a multi-dimensional presence among a vast pool of dealers, distributors, and service managers. Apart from the sales cycle, technical support and the resolution of errors are other crucial aspects that define the prominence of OEMs in this equation.
When it comes to properly resolving these issues, many challenges that manufacturers face substantially affect the cost of operations. However, the adoption of an automated system can help OEMs save costs while addressing numerous technical shortcomings far more effectively.
In this blog, we will help you understand how the automation of technical support can help aftermarket ventures minimize overhead costs and boost engagement easily:
Advantages of Technical Support Automation
Transparent Status Tracking
In a specific region, four different dealers reach out to service managers for a complaint. If the issue is more critical, service managers will pass it on to the back office team which again reviews the problem and tries to solve it as soon as possible. Complex issues that can’t be tackled by service managers and back office teams then go to the supplier.
This resolution cycle turns into a structural hierarchy, making it difficult for dealers and service managers to know whether the issue has been resolved or not. However, when OEMs automate the process with the help of technical support software, dealers can track the status themselves instead of trying to connect with service managers or a back office team.
Centralized Knowledge Base (Forum)
When a technical issue arises, dealers reach out to service managers and the process leads on. But what if there is a similar problem that has occurred before? Clearly, now dealers don’t need to follow the same circle again and they can work it out based on previous experience.
Many aftermarket software tools usually consist of in-built knowledge base modules. The information available in these modules empowers dealers to solve minor technical issues on their own.
Timely Resolution of Complaints
There have been many cases in which the technical issue didn’t reach the back office or supplier in time. Now imagine the impact of an unresolved technical problem that was left unreported for days. Such instances not only affect dealers’ experience but also put brand credibility in a bad light.
By implementing technical support software, OEMs can equip their network of dealers and service managers with an end-to-end overview of the resolution cycle. If the issue can’t be resolved by service managers or the back office, it will be transferred to the supplier. In fact, some escalation cases are directed to the OEM and marked ‘urgent’ to be fixed within an agreed-upon timeline.
Enhanced Communication Cycle
These automated technical support help desks have a system for lodging requests and sending those to the concerned team. If the issue has been reported directly to service managers by dealers, then it is registered as a technical assistance request or a TAR. If there is any unresolved TAR report, it is submitted to the back office by service managers as an FTR or field technical report.
The classification of roles in a transparent ecosystem leads to enhanced communication between various people involved in the resolution process.
Prevention of Recurring Issues
Technical issues in the aftermarket sector are prevalent. Therefore, OEMs need a robust system to not only address these issues timely but also ensure that those errors don’t occur again. In hindsight, these automation tools lay down a vivid scope for OEMs to upscale the quality of their products while building a stronger relationship with dealers.
How to Find the Best Help Desk Software for Optimized Technical Support
As we can see and evaluate from the above-mentioned advantages, the automation of support systems can benefit OEMs and dealers in many ways. While your network of dealers gets a more comprehensive platform for tackling recurring issues, you can optimize the help desk to keep a close watch on the quality of your products.
But, how will you choose the best help desk software to attain efficiency and maximum dealer engagement? It’s simple! You can list the top providers for aftermarket software solutions and schedule a demo. These demonstrations will help you identify useful functionalities and make the right decision.
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