If your answering service is growing quickly, but you don’t have in-house IT support, then you should designate an ‘nCall Expert‘.
nCall is a deep and highly configurable software product. Your processes and settings probably don’t align with any other user of nCall, nevermind a non-nCall using answering service. Therefore, it is important to have well documented training and business continuity plans. We recommend this is done through choosing a member of your team to be what we call the ‘nCall Expert‘.
Suggested responsibilities for your nCall Expert
- Be the main port of call for all support queries and liaison with the nSolve team
When all support queries are directed to your nCall Expert you may find that issues are resolved more quickly. Your nCall Expert may have experienced the issue before and know a quick fix. Or, they could efficiently troubleshoot the issue to narrow down the possible points of failure; this will hasten the nSolve team’s ability to spot where the issue could be.
- Write a user manual for any custom processes bespoke to your business
nCall already contains a useful help manual to cover all the major features of nCall. It is constantly updated to keep up with new updates and features, but what it can’t do is document how your business uses nCall.
For example, if you have a specific billing procedure, backup process or method of creating custom forms, then it is imperative you document these tasks so that in an emergency any member of your team can pick up where the previous person left off. This helps account for holidays, sickness and sudden leaves of absence.
- Write a tutorial that guides new staff members through the basics of nCall
Training new staff can be a drain on resources, and leave you short-staffed in crunch times. Instead, you should have a quick video tutorial, or written guide on using nCall according to the work flow of your business. This could cover logging in and out, answering and transferring calls, and taking messages. Any areas that require additional attention can be covered in more personalised training.
- Ensuring backup procedures are completed correctly
It’s imperative that you backup your nCall Database. Whether you do it every minute, hour, day or week, you will (or should!) have a process of how and where the copy is stored. Having an nCall Expert in charge of this procedure will allow for consistent and reliable backups, should the worst happen…
- Update all devices with the latest versions of nCall and debrief the team on changes
New nCall updates and features can drastically change your internal processes, or enable you to offer a new service to your clients, so it is important that changes are presented to each operator in exactly the same way. This can be done through quick meetings/presentations, or possibly via a regular internal newsletter.
Furthermore, your nCall Expert can manage your PCs to ensure each is running the correct version of the software. (Top Tip: you can check your current version by going to View > System Information)
- Audit client information for irregularities or redundant data
For many users, nCall acts as a form of CRM tool (see how to use nCall as a CRM tool here). It’s therefore important to keep on top of your data and ensure everything is up to date and relevant. With recent governmental data policy changes (such as GDPR), it’s more important than ever to ensure you are transparent and consistent with your treatment of customer data.
Having a system for handling current and historical client data can be a job for your nCall Expert. They can also implement processes for checking information is up to date and correct.
Hopefully this will encourage you to designate an nCall Expert in your team. The nSolve team also offers refresher training and advanced training sessions should you wish to fully equip a member of your staff. Contact us for further information.
