Service is easy to overlook in a price-driven world. However, our workplace survey results found that two-thirds of IT professionals voted “ease of doing business” as a most important factor when working with a vendor. So while product quality, features and price are important, it is equally important to examine the level of service you’re receiving from your vendors.
Why prioritize service?
When service is overlooked, you may experience hidden costs such as:
- Slow response times
- Ineffective support
- Poor purchase recommendations
- Paying for services you don’t need
While getting the lowest price may seem like the best value up front, high-quality service can provide value well down the road, often saving more money in the long run. Having the support your company requires is also critical over the life of the equipment. You need assurance that when time-sensitive matters arise, you can rely on your vendor to provide solutions in a timely and efficient manner. Having that trustworthy resource at your disposal helps to minimize downtime and sustain productivity.
Services such as support contracts can also carry a daunting amount of unnecessary costs. Of course, some products rely on these service agreements to perform necessary functions. Having the confidence in your vendors to provide alternative economic solutions wherever possible saves you time and money. This may be in the form of a warranty, third party support contract, or in some cases nothing at all. You should trust that your vendors won’t sell you anything you don’t need.
Evaluate your current service
It’s a good practice to evaluate the service you’re receiving from your vendors, even if you’ve been doing business together for a long time. Familiarity can be beneficial provided they still value the partnership, are available when you need them, and can provide the support and products your company needs with clear pricing and no surprises.
After evaluating the service offered by your current and prospective vendors, identify what steps you can take to ensure you receive the highest level of service possible. Having open and consistent communication with your vendors can give them a better understanding of the inner workings of your company, allowing them to provide solutions catered to your specific needs. Giving your vendors an opportunity to correct mistakes will help achieve efficiency for both parties. But they still need to be held accountable. If the same problems persist, this may be an indicator that it’s time to look at alternative vendors.
For more than 25 years, we’ve been listening to our customers’ feedback to provide the highest quality service possible. As a result, we’ve compiled our strategies on how to provide the best service standards into a quick reference guide.
Our free, downloadable ebook covers:
- Hidden costs of low-quality service
- Best questions for evaluating vendors
- Tips to receive better service
Get Our Latest eBook!
We give some insight on what we’ve learned about the value of service in a technology vendor.
