Why Microsoft MSPs Need Customer Self-Service Portals

Microsoft CSPs Need Customer Self-Service Portals

Why Customer Self Service Portal

As enterprises undergo digital transformation, they rely on Managed Service providers (MSPs) to manage and support their cloud subscriptions. Microsoft offers one of the most popular MSP programs that have helped IT service providers to become cloud partners and create an extra revenue stream for their business.

As MSP programs gain popularity, the only way to become a differentiator is to adopt customer-centricity. Enterprises like the white-glove treatment they receive from MSPs, but they also prefer autonomy in controlling aspects such as the cost and usage. They want minimal intervention from the MSPs in managing their licenses and subscriptions. This is also beneficial for MSPs as they can focus on other areas that require more attention.

To create a unique experience for customers and to improve their services, MSPs can consider including a customer self-service portal as a way to serve their customers. In fact, according to Microsoft’s State of Global Customer Service report, 66% of customers prefer self-service to resolve their issues related to services and products before engaging with an agent.

Read more about why use customer self-service portal?

So, how can a customer self-service portal benefit the enterprise, and how will it help MSPs grow and scale their business? Let’s explore these questions below.

With a Self-Service Portal, MSPs can

Empower customers to manage their licenses:
Enterprise needs change as per business requirements. They may want to adjust their subscriptions based on the situation. Instead of relying on MSPs to adjust the licenses, enterprises can self-manage those through a self-service portal. Using the self-service option, they can easily and instantly add or remove licenses from the portal without calling or emailing the MSP requirement. Enterprises get complete control over their licenses and keep track of the renewal dates, procurement details, etc., through the portal.
Establish transparency and trust:
Microsoft’s Azure offers plenty of cloud services, each of which is priced differently. Sometimes this leads to mistrust among enterprises who have limited visibility on the pricing. MSPs can give enterprises access to self-service portals, wherein they can monitor the pricing of different cloud services they use and find out how their budget is being spent. This will enable them to manage their budgets more efficiently. Access to the self-service portal will allow enterprises to trust their MSP more.
Allow customers to keep track of their cloud usage:
As we discuss transparency, the other benefit of a self-service portal is that it gives the enterprise clear visibility of the products and services that deliver the most value. They can keep track of their subscriptions’ consumption and usage data and decide how to optimize their usage to gain maximum benefits.
Simplify billing and invoicing: With self-service portals,
enterprises no longer need to rely on MSPs for bills and invoices. They can easily view, download, and manage them through self-service portals. This will help them to get visibility on their billing issues and get them resolved in time. They can also adjust their licenses and subscriptions to optimize and manage their bills better.

Self-Service for CSPs and MSPs

10 Stats And Reasons That Prove That Microsoft CSPs Need Self-Service TODAY

Self-Service Portal – Many Benefits for MSPs

Get more time to focus on core responsibilities:
Sometimes, MSPs spend much time solving customer issues that could easily be addressed through videos, step-by-step guides, and FAQs. This leaves the MSPs with very little time to solve other complex problems or find innovative ways to improve customer service. Self-service portals contain extensive resources such as how-to-videos, guides, and FAQs that provide solutions to all the basic queries that enterprises have about their subscriptions. Also, given that 85% of customer relationships will happen without human interaction (we are already witnessing it due to the pandemic), self-service is an obvious solution to solving their issues without depending upon MSPs. Reduced dependency will enable MSPs to focus more on other complex responsibilities such as increasing customer retention, generating more revenue through cross-selling and upselling. Productivity will improve, and enterprises will be able to find answers to their problem quickly.
Reduce customer churn:
If not addressed on time, customer churn can severely impact the bottom line and profits. Hence, MSPs need to prioritize customer retention and find ways to reduce churn. They need to be more responsive and proactive in addressing customer queries. One way to do it is by setting up a self-service portal. A self-service portal will empower enterprises to be self-reliant and get help quickly without depending on customer support. To ensure customer retention, MSPs must focus on building a user-friendly portal that provides answers to all questions immediately. Ensure that the portal is well-structured to reduce the time and efforts of the customers. It will help in retaining them.
Provide faster resolution to queries:
Customers demand quick service. They prefer to engage with MSPs that can solve their problems within a short turnaround time. A self-service portal can be an effective tool to address this problem. What may take hours to solve can be resolved in few minutes by giving customers access to self-service portals. Customers will not have to wait on calls or await email responses. They can directly log in to the portal to solve their fundamental problems, such as raising billing requests or managing subscriptions. They can also view videos or go through the help guides on the portal to seek solutions easily. It is that one-stop shop where enterprises can find all the relevant resources related to their subscriptions and depend less on MSPs to solve their problem.

Several reports show that customers prefer to pay additionally for unique experiences. Self-service can help MSPs to build that unique experience. It also makes business sense to build a self-service portal as 83% of customers naturally go to the company’s website for information before solving their problem. The customer will not hesitate to reach out to the competitor if they do not receive an immediate solution to their problem. A Customer self service portal of Microsoft MSP should support:

Consumption and usage
Invoice history
Support and incidents
Knowledge base
Managed services
Document sharing
License management

And much more!

At Work 365, we enable Microsoft MSPs to create powerful customer self-service portals to serve their customers better. We offer end-to-end self-service setup such as: