Many business leaders wonder if it’s better to handle IT help desk services in-house or to outsource IT. The following is a look at the benefits of outsourcing your IT help desk, plus a discussion of what types of businesses should and shouldn’t outsource their IT help desks.
Benefits of IT Help Desk Outsourcing
Useful reporting tools. Because they specialize in providing IT outsourcing, many IT help desk service providers offer reporting tools that your business may find useful. For example, your marketing department might appreciate knowing which products customers refer to most often when they call your IT help desk. Some companies even offer full transcripts and records of every customer call they answer.
Additional administrative controls for your network. Setting up outsourced IT help desk services often means adding new IT structures to enable your outsourcing partner to better help customers. In this way, outsourcing your IT help desk makes your entire network more controllable and dependable.
Better communication with the user. Because IT help desk providers are specialists in helping customers, outsourcing their help desk services often results in better communication with users.
Lower costs. The final benefit of outsourcing IT help desk services is that it generally saves companies money.
When it makes sense to outsource your IT help desk services
Outsourcing IT help desk services is especially smart in the following situations:
1. When your users tend to have common questions. If your clients tend to ask the same questions over and over again, IT outsourcing is a great idea. This makes it easy for your outsourcing partner to answer customer questions consistently.
2. When you need more time to focus on core business processes. If your workers spend too much time answering IT questions and not enough time building the heart of your business, it may be the perfect time to outsource IT.
3. If you can’t afford to create an internal IT help desk. Setting up an IT help desk can be a lot of work, and many companies simply can’t afford to purchase the infrastructure needed to create an in-house call center.
When not to outsource your IT help desk services
IT outsourcing for help desk services is less beneficial to businesses in the following circumstances:
1. Your company uses proprietary and complicated IT solutions. If your technology is new, proprietary, or largely unknown to the outside world, your employees will likely be better equipped to answer customer questions.
2. Your company has fewer than 200 employees. If your business has fewer than 200 employees, you probably won’t see a high volume of calls from customers with questions, and therefore it may make more sense to keep your IT help desk in-house.
3. You see a negative reaction from customers for outsourced IT services. If there is any negative customer reaction to IT outsourcing, you should switch to a new IT support provider or have employees answer questions internally.
By following the tips above, you can find an IT help desk situation that saves your business money and keeps your customers engaged.
