How many have you signed up with a hosting company just because they had a phone number available for sales or support? How important is phone support for you?
No, phone support is not my 1 priority
In my opinion phone support should be the last option for technical support. However customers still feel more comfortable when they see a toll free number available
Being able to talk to some one in the company before signing up puts more confidence in a customer I guess.
Most definitely. I think a hosting company would do much better at sales if there was direct phone to company management. A lot more customers would be impressed with the fact they can call and speak with the VP or the owner of a company and see what state the company is in. Certainly not for support issues, but its a great way to connect with customers.
I think that phone support and telephone sales are very important for any hosting companies.
I can't say that phone support is very important for me. Definitely not. I prefer ticket system, live chat and e-mail.
many times the customer may feel neglected by the phone support as opening a ticket will be the right way and sometimes they fail to understand that but when the question comes on the smaller issues which can be solved in an instant by the phone support and which doesn’t need a ticket to be opened; that time phone support is quite useful and quick in making the customer satisfied with their service.
I think that phone support is the bes deal to ask pre-salles questions.
There are a couple of reasons why I both don't require phone support nor do I offer it:
1. Logging. – This is the number one thing for me. I like to have records of communication both as a client and as a host in everything I do. Nine times out of ten, I prefer email and/or helpdesk. On the company side of things, I am able to log communications so when we're blamed for something, I can look back and prove that we did our part or can see where we made a mistake.
2. Perception of instant support. – As stated above, some think that one phone call should resolve the issue. I'd rather not have someone yelling in our ear why we simultaneously try and resolve the problem or setup the appropriate measures that need to be taken.
3. Cost. – True phone support costs money and it's not really worth it until a company has a substantial client base, IMHO.
My experience pretty much agrees with the poll, though it is a small number right now (the poll). Most people don't require phone support. There are those that do, and that's fine. Good email/helpdesk support does the job.
phone support can be a cool thing to have but it can be more annoying than help. there may be the possibility that the person doesn't understand, then gets frustrated. I would rather choose a host that has 24/7 tech support with or without the toll free number
