Introduction
In today's fast-paced world, customer support is more important than ever. With the rise of remote work, businesses are turning to virtual communication tools to provide efficient and effective customer support. One such tool is Microsoft Teams, a communication and collaboration platform that allows teams to communicate and work together seamlessly. In this tutorial, we will guide you through the basics of using Microsoft Teams for customer support.
Start with Microsoft Teams
Before you can start using Microsoft Teams for customer support, you will need to create an account. If you already have a Microsoft account, you can simply log in to Teams using your existing credentials. If not, you can easily create a new account by following the prompts on the Microsoft Teams website.
Once you have logged in, you will be greeted with the Microsoft Teams interface. Take some time to familiarize yourself with the layout and features, such as the chat function, channels, and files tab.
Setting Up a Team for Customer Support
Teams and their channels are a great way to organize your customer support conversations. You can create different channels for different types of support, such as technical issues, billing inquiries, or general questions. To create a new channel, click on the "Teams" tab and then click on the "Join or create a team" button. From there, you can create a new team and add channels as needed.
Using Chat for internal communication
One of Microsoft Teams's most useful customer support features is the chat function. This allows you to have real-time conversations with your colleagues, making it easier to address their concerns and provide quick solutions. To start a chat, simply click on the "Chat" tab and select the person or channel you want to chat with. You can also use the "@" symbol to mention specific team members in a chat, making it easier to collaborate as a team.
SignalZen integration
Once done with Microsoft Teams setup, the time comes to set up your Live Chat widget and Email integration. By doing that, you will start receiving Customer Support conversations directly to your desired Team channel. Find more information on how to install it easily on a WordPress website in just 5 minutes here.
How do the Teams for Customer Support look like?
Let's have a look at how chat notifications will look after the integration. A notification is the foundation of Teams integration with Customer Support entry points. Your entry point will be the Live Chat widget placed on your website and/or your mailbox.
Notifications will include control buttons that your support agents (teammates) will use to solve customer questions or problems. Make you your response times are adequate depending on the origin of the request.
Anyway, let's look at a sample notification and analyze what controls over notifications you will have.
#1 Full visitor information
By clicking the button "Get Full Info" you will see a popup. It will contain a table of essential and all possible information about your client or lead at the time. Technically you can supply more information to the Live Chat widget from your website, like account ID and other attributes.
#2 Assign teammates
The "Assign" button will open a popup where you can choose assignees to the conversation. Once submitted, they will receive private chat messages with a link to the conversation. It's a great way to push ownership of requests.
#3 Close the conversation
Closing conversations ultimately will give you and your customers a better personal experience. The button will activate the Customer Satisfaction rating request and will mark the chat as closed. If your client or lead messages again, you will get a re-opening of the conversation notification. Also, if the user rates your service, you will see that on the Statistics page on the Console.
#4 Block
This is the button to silence all spammers or weird requests.
#5 Enable Copilot
This button will turn on your Chatbot based on ChatGPT technology. You can disable it at any point too.
#6 Send a Reply
This button will open a popup where you will need to type a reply for your client or lead. This is the most important button!
However, you can avoid this button if you click a reply link on the thread and type your reply. Please note, that you will need to tag the SignalZen bot at the beginning of the reply text.
Customer support for large organizations
Microsoft Teams for Customer Service makes your communication processes work on a single platform - Microsoft Teams. If you have a large organization and a lot of requests, you might want to split the workload across multiple departments.
SignalZen supports the Smart Routing feature which enables us to do the split. By asking your website visitors department with which they would like to talk, you can route your conversations to different departments.
Integrating Other Tools for Enhanced Support
Microsoft Teams also allows you to integrate other tools and apps to enhance your customer support experience. For example, you can integrate your customer relationship management (CRM) system to access customer information and history directly from Teams. You can also integrate project management tools to keep track of support tickets and tasks.
By following these simple steps, you can effectively use Microsoft Teams for customer support and provide a seamless and efficient experience for your customers. Try using Microsoft Teams for customer support and find out if this works for your organization.
