As we move into 2021, service providers across every industry are grappling with how to continue providing service excellence for customers while addressing the significant safety concerns related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. According to the January 2021 mid-pandemic survey, 65% of consumers agree that they would rather avoid technician visits unless absolutely necessary and two-thirds (64%) would be more loyal to companies that take extra technical support safety precautions. Going forward, field service organizations are implementing innovative solutions that help them serve their customers without requiring direct person-to-person contact – a model known as contactless service.
Remote AR assistance enhances remote support
In the current environment, remote support has moved from a nice-to-have tool to a must-have solution across industries. The same survey indicates that the demand for remote assistance is high, with 52% of consumers willing to use remote guidance to resolve issues themselves due to safety considerations. While organizations have long been attempting to resolve customer’s issues remotely in order to boost overall effectiveness, more recently, the focus on enhancing remote support capabilities has been increasing with the emergence of new technologies such as IoT diagnostics, video, AR, and computer vision AI. Remote visual assistance brings the concept of remote support to a new level, enabling a greater number of use cases and ultimately a higher ROI.
The division between sales and service activities has become blurred. Field service has become a source of revenue generation – and technicians have become a valuable resource for strengthening customer loyalty. To ensure customer expectations are met, technicians are now expected to empathize and engage with their customers, and to upsell additional products or services or recommend value-adds.
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