Why Your Business Needs a Knowledge Base
Up to 42% of self-start up companies are doomed to fail within their first year because their managers simply do not interact on a personal basis with their new customers; this is a big problem, and when managers do not have any level of interaction with customers to their fledgling business, it can seldom take flight. When dealing with a new business it is very important you establish communication with your customers and your customers with you; this interpersonal relationship is absolutely fundamental to the success and longevity of your business or company.
When your business begins to grow exponentially, however, having an interpersonal dialogue with your customers can prove difficult to maintain and you can find yourself having to sacrifice your dialogue and replace it with the use of a self-service knowledge base. Customers will ultimately need to be able to communicate and establish a dialogue with your company, and while you cannot anymore, you will need to ensure that they still can, otherwise, the likelihood is they will go elsewhere and find a company for which they can familiarize themselves with and build a rapport which can last for many, many years. Here is why your business needs a knowledge-based system.
Why Do I Need a Knowledge Base?
Having a knowledge based system can be hugely beneficial to your business and can seriously cut down on costs of employing people to handle the phones and manage emails and calls. By having your own knowledge base you will enable your resources to be better spent in places that require more attention, for example: improving your product or service. A self service knowledge base works by offering your customers answers to questions they may frequently ask.
Taking up phone lines to ask questions that can be answered simply on a knowledge base can be a huge waste of money and you can find yourself spending a lot of money on staff to manage said phones unnecessarily. With customer service knowledge base programs like Document360 you can find there is an unlimited number of possibilities for your company. It will be impossible for you to find a single multinational or large corporation that does not have a knowledge based system established already.
You can create them rather easily by simply compiling a list of potential questions that might be asked; or, compile a list of questions that are frequently called into your call centre and providing a list of answers for those corresponding questions.
Knowledge Bases Don’t Lessen Human Interaction
Having a system of knowledge does not mean that you will have no personal interaction with your customers, or at least that they will not be able to contact a member of your staff, rather it just puts a barrier between needless questions and members of staff; they will still be able to contact your members of staff and still be able to establish a line of dialogue with them. Perhaps the best way to do this is with a ticket system. A ticket system will enable your staff to manage multiple queries at once without having to stop their work or defer people.
By having customers calling into your phone lines you can end up having them waiting and spending precious money on their phone bill. By establishing a ticket and live chat system, your customers will be treated appropriately and fairly when their ticket is pulled which is a fantastic way to establish a rapport, and they will be relieved to be able to get human contact. It can be quite disconcerting to deal with Q&A pages all of the time, and quite a relief when you are put through to a member of staff on live chat who can answer all of your queries.
Will a Knowledge Base Cut Costs?
For all of the reasons listed above, yes, a knowledge based system will cut costs; you will no longer have to hire a bunch of workers to answer endless, needless phone calls. You can employ a smaller team that can both manage the live chat systems and the phone calls, thus distributing their work evenly and fairly, meaning they are not overworked, nor are your customers underwhelmed with the experience of having to flick from page to page to no avail.
Knowledge Bases Can be Very Economic
The initial service costs can be very low, too, depending of course on how you get the knowledge based system constructed. You can hire a web designer to do it which can be expensive, or you can learn to do it yourself, which can be costless – but take a while. If you have time on your hands then by all means learn to code and create your own questions and answer page and live service, but the easiest way would be to hire a web designer. Shop comparatively and find a web designer who is well-reviewed and knowledgeable, so he does not ruin your web page or slow it down.
When creating a Q&A page you should endeavour to ascertain all potential questions are answered and that you are able to meet the demands of your customers so that they do not hold your website contemptuously.
