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Social Web Directory :: Social Network Directory :: Ning Tips and Ning Support

How Do You Deal With Support or General Questions? Do You Act All Superior?!

How Do You Deal With Support or General Questions?

When a member of your Social Network asks you a question, how do you handle your answer?

Do you answer them at all?
Do you answer them in a timely manner?
Do you think it through, before you answer?
And most importantly, if you do answer them, do you talk to them like they’re an idiot? Are you condescending or dismissive?

I ask a Support Question. I receive an answer. The Support Person assumes that I know nothing. From the overall "best practices" of a help desk, this is actually okay. Because it means the Support Person is covering all bases, regardless of the knowledge level of the person asking the question.

What’s not okay? And, this is a huge pet peeve of mine. If they answer you and make suggestions as if:

You should know the answer.
You shouldn't ask such a dumb question in the first place.
You don’t have a brain and never thought of their awesome suggestion.
You don’t know how to turn on a computer.
You are 10 years old.
Or the worst - - you're too old to breath their Technologically Enhanced Air. After all, they were conceived over a web-cam. This one is absurd, but so true. Some younger Support People assume everyone who asks a question, must be old and living in a cave. So, Help Desk Managers if you're reading this, watch for this issue.

Get the drift? When you answer a support question, stop and think before you hit the reply button.

Let’s give some examples:

Support Question: My Profile Page is flickering, and I can’t do anything. What’s wrong?

WRONG Answer: I could help you better if you had sent me a screen shot of your profile page. Let me show you how to do this. Here’s a link that will provide step-by-step instructions on how to capture a screen and save to an image file. Link provided here. helplink.com

====== Your signature is also important! This example uses "Cheers". Excuse me? Cheers? Are we at a New Year's Eve Party? LOL, actually Cheers is great for more personal conversation. But not great for Support Desk dialogue. ======

Cheers,
Your Name
Title when appropriate

CORRECT Answer: I’m sorry to hear you are experiencing these issues. I could assist you better if I had a screen shot of your Profile Page. If you could, please send an image with a screen shot. Just in case you’ve never done this, here are the instructions. Link provided here. helplink.com
Please let me know if you have any questions. I look forward to us reaching a resolution to your issue.

Best Regards, (or Sincerely, Thank you, etc...)
Your Name
Title when appropriate

Get the idea?

You have answered your member’s question, or at least gotten the conversation moving towards a solution to the issue at hand.
You haven’t insulted their intelligence, just in case they know how to capture a screen.
And, they’ll feel you’re on top of things, and moving forward to help them with a resolution.
A friend on Ning's Creator site brought up an excellent point, and I totally agree. I think in most cases, the person answering the question has no idea they have possibly insulted or seemed condescending to the person who asked. This is why we all need to stop and think, before clicking SEND.

I've actually used a "real" example I experienced, with the screen capture answer. My answer is sure not perfect, just wanted to give an example. In fact, I can guarantee you, I have messed up more than once. Sometimes I receive so many questions, it can become overwhelming. So, if I've ever answered your question the "wrong" way, please accept my apology. ;-)

Couple of more thoughts... Since I can sure relate to this one. This is especially for Social Network Creators: I'm not suggesting you answer all questions. Sometimes it's simply not possible. And, I'm not suggesting you answer questions for free, that have nothing to do with your member's experience on your site. I'm just suggesting that when you are able to answer a question - - be professional, polite, and think it through, before clicking reply.

Join the Conversation: Please share your experiences and how you think your question should have been answered.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Friends of Angela Lansbury - Bet on May 21, 2010 at 2:53pm

I usually try and help.

Permalink Reply by JenSocial on May 21, 2010 at 3:35pm

Thanks Beth!

Permalink Reply by Friends of Angela Lansbury - Bet on May 21, 2010 at 3:36pm

You are welcome.

Permalink Reply by Carny Town on May 21, 2010 at 3:33pm

I answer ALL support questions, in one way or another.
Normally I ask them to try a few steps first to ascertain if there really is a problem. These steps normally involve trying a different browser, clearing their history and caches and advising them on free downloads that can help stabilize their computer.
Some times the question involve speed and then I try to first take their critique to heart and after that find out if there is any way for them to cheaply maximize their connection.
The only time I stand completely firm is if they are using dial up. Our network is not designed for dial up and there really is nothing I can do to help them.
Ironically most support questions are about speed and navigation and are pretty basic across the board.

Permalink Reply by JenSocial on May 21, 2010 at 3:35pm

Thank you for your input! Sounds like you are wonderful at answering questions for your members, no joke.
Best to you,
Jen

Permalink Reply by Neuerotica on May 21, 2010 at 11:44pm

my sister joined my site a few months back and had questions. her problem is that she was totally unfamiliar with the internet and social networking and was afraid to attempt to "touch" anything on my network without knowing what it does. i tell all of my members (and even inexperienced nc's) to experiment first before asking questions. usually people won't try things, but i let them know they can't "break" the site. i find experience is the best teacher, and practically every issue a member has had with my network was because they didn't click on this or that to find out what this or that does. legitimate issues i can figure out quick, so i work to rectify it and inform the member i'm working on it and give them an approximation as to how soon the problem will be fixed.

when necessary, i will provide links to tutorials or help posts (ning for dummies and this site actually).

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