This is a guest post from Desiree de la Rosa of Videopath.
Video is an excellent self-service tool. It offers a unique way for customers to learn about and get the most from your product or service. Interactive video takes things to the next level – by giving your customers a complete support experience in one.
So how can interactive video fit into your self-service support offering? Read on to find out!
Why use video in self-service support?
Self-service as a support channel is hugely beneficial to both customers and companies, and video has become a key part of self-service package. Rather than reaching out to the company to solve their problem, customers can now find the solution themselves.
In fact, 68% of users prefer to watch a video that explains how to solve the problem than call the support team when they are having difficulty with an app or product.
Self-service has become so commonplace that today that more than 90% of all consumers expect brands and organizations to offer a self-service customer support portal or FAQ knowledge base. Already, 57% of customers check a company’s website before contacting support.
Self-service support is beneficial for businesses as well as customers. It’s a huge cost saver – not investing in self service could mean turning a $.25 question that could be answered by self service to over $2 for a live agent on a call or email.
It’s also helpful for reducing the burden on support teams – something that’s only likely to become worse over time. Already 73% of customer support professionals struggle to manage time and workload, so self-service goes a long way to reduce burnout.
Today’s consumers expect video in self-service support. It’s a medium they’re familiar with, and often find it easier to understand, quicker to consume, and more engaging than text or images.
It’s clear that using videos in your self-service support portal satisfies customers. But why just satisfy when you can satisfy, inform and please your customers? This is where interactive video comes in.
What’s the deal with interactive video?
In spite of the popularity of videos, it’s still hard to get people to watch to the end. According to a Microsoft study, the attention span of today’s consumers is shorter than a goldfish – only eight seconds! How can you get people to engage with your self-service videos and not switch off?
Interactivity helps keep your viewers engaged. It breaks videos up into smaller chunks – perfect for our short attention spans. Then, it engages viewers by encouraging their curiosity. This can be done with clickable content such as images, sound clips, websites and social streams.
1. Explain your service or product
The best way to teach someone how to use something is to show them. Here you can put your demo or a step-by-step tutorial. Remember to keep it simple!
2. Showcase different use cases
Can your product or service be used for something special that makes it stand out from other competitors? This could be out-of-the-box ways to use your model of blender or the different modes of your copy machine.
3. Troubleshooting and FAQs
Add links to your FAQ page as well as common problems and solutions. Do you have a service page? Embed the status page directly into the video so all the viewer has to do is simply click to see if your server is down.
4. Tips and best practices
You want to set up your customer for success, so be sure to show off case studies or examples of of other customers being successful with your product or service.
5. Contact details
One of the most frustrating things for a customer is when they’re having issues with your product and are unable to contact you. Don’t forget to plug in your contact info at the end of the video, so they can still contact you if none of the solutions help their problem.
The takeaway:
By using interactive video, you can combine various channels and media into one rich content package. This makes your video more time efficient and your customer will get more value in a shorter period of time. When a customer is already frustrated enough to look for online support, make it easy for them to fix their problem.
By using interactive video in your support portal, you can provide a one-stop shop for your customer to learn about your product, how to use it, how to troubleshoot, how to make the best out of your product or service, and of course, contact you.
This new viewing experience for your customer will enable and engage them, as well as keep them active and interested instead of browsing for hours and scrolling to various pages on your website to solve their issue.
