by Rob Addy | September 9, 2012 | 3 Comments
Traditional managed service provider’s that fail to adapt to the changing marketplace are in danger of becoming an endangered species. Many of them don’t realize this. But that doesn’t make it untrue. Much of the activity that used to be core to outsourcing engagements is now being delivered under the auspices of support contracts. The [...]
Category: Support Strategy Tags: Outsourcing, Support Value Chain, TRKFAM, Value Proposition, where does support fit in?
by Rob Addy | August 9, 2012 | 2 Comments
A while back I brutalized a Kipling classic in the name of Product Support. Well, now it’s Wordsworth’s turn. “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” gets a revamp in aid of the myriad of knowledge marketplaces and developer exchanges that are now prevalent across the globe… Talent and expertise are no respecters of creed, geography [...]
Category: Support Strategy Technologies Underpinning Support Tags: Alternative Support Providers, competitive advantage, Processes and Methodologies, Strategic Planning, Support Technologies, TRKFAM
by Rob Addy | August 6, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Most support providers suddenly get squeamish when I ask them what they are doing to actively reduce the internal IT operations labour requirement for their customers. They stare at their feet, start mumbling into their coffee cups and generally do anything to avoid making eye contact. I’m not saying they need a “Sack a Sys [...]
Category: Support Messaging Support Strategy Support Value Tags: crash diets vs. lifestyle changes, Gartner Product Support Maturity Scale, Processes and Methodologies, support as a weapon, TCoS, Total Cost of Support, TRKFAM, Value Proposition, where does support fit in?
by Rob Addy | July 9, 2012 | 4 Comments
Damn, it was stiff. He applied some lubrication to aid his entry. Muscles twitching from the strain, he grunted from his exertions. She was being difficult. But her resistance only made his resolve harder. A cold bead of sweat trickled down his back. It was hellishly hot. She was hotter still. But he had a [...]
Category: Customer Experience Support Value Tags: Gartner Product Support Maturity Scale, Market Perceptions, Market Trends, Predictive, Proactive, TRKFAM
by Rob Addy | May 25, 2012 | Submit a Comment
After watching the two Eurovision semi finals this week I am struck by many thoughts. Why didn’t Austria’s rapper with his pole dancing dominatrix accompaniment get through? Is there a small animal curled up on the top of the Albanian singer’s head pretending to be a hairstyle? Are the rumours true that the Spanish contestant [...]
Category: Customer Experience Tags: Customer Constituencies, Customer Experience, Processes and Methodologies, Support Consumers, TRKFAM
by Rob Addy | May 10, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Game theory and the desire to realize short term competitive advantage suggest that someone will eventually break open the support black box as a means to differentiate themselves. A Gartner poll of over a hundred practitioners showed that 73% of product managers and marketers in technology providers are “concerned” or “very concerned” about their competitors [...]
Category: Support Strategy Tags: Strategic Planning, support as a weapon, TRKFAM, Value Proposition
by Rob Addy | May 6, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Support related reporting packs MUST evolve from backward looking accounts of provider and product failure to include as much detail about what went right as well as what went wrong. Focusing solely on the negatives is best left for those with sadomasochistic tendencies and a love for Leonard Cohen albums. If you regularly present your [...]
Category: Customer Experience Support Value Technologies Underpinning Support Tags: Dashboards, Processes and Methodologies, Reporting and Metrics, TRKFAM, Value Demonstration, Value Proposition
by Rob Addy | April 27, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Premium support offerings should deliver, and be seen to deliver, premium value. Unfortunately, many don’t. The product support service value proposition is based on 4 foundational elements: Mitigation of the impact of failures i.e. productivity loss minimization Increased availability, improved stability and reliability i.e. reduced risk Achieving a greater return from the technology investment i.e. [...]
Category: Support Strategy Support Value Tags: Gartner Product Support Maturity Scale, Support Value Chain, TRKFAM, Value Proposition
by Rob Addy | April 18, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Products are lifeless inanimate things. How they are used determines the amount of business value that they deliver. Helping customers to use their products better is essential if they are to appreciate them and the organizations that manufacture and/or support them fully. Support providers have historically shied away from product usage related guidance and focused [...]
Category: Support Processes Support Value Tags: Customer Perceptions, Customer Service, Gartner Product Support Maturity Scale, Processes and Methodologies, Support Quality, Support Value Chain, TRKFAM, Value Proposition
by Rob Addy | April 13, 2012 | 1 Comment
Mobile support apps aren’t necessarily bad or pointless; it’s just that we haven’t seen any examples of good ones yet. Many support providers have put the need to “go mobile” at the top of their investment list for 2012. And this is why I have an issue with them (mobile support apps and the providers [...]
Category: Customer Experience Technologies Underpinning Support Tags: Customer Experience, mobile apps, mobility, Product Support, support apps, TRKFAM, Value Proposition
