Customer support links the web hosting service provider and the customer. They offer technical assistance to the customer and help explain web hosting services. Although most of the customers who sign up for web hosting in Kenya know a thing or two about the service, other activities need the customer service’s direct input. We will discuss the importance of customer support in web hosting in Kenya and its significance.
How Customer Support Helps Web Hosting in Kenya
- Help setting up
- Troubleshooting
- Back up
- Updating server and other web hosting settings
- Process complaints
- Administrative Support
Help Setting Up
The process of purchasing and customising web hosting is only conversant to some. It entails matching web hosting and domain registration, and activating the domain name. You can purchase the two services from the same provider but might need assistance operationalising them.
Customer service comes in 2 forms; direct and indirect. Indirect customer service is the frequently asked question and knowledgebase segment. You have every detail you need on operationalising web hosting written down for better understanding.
The direct approach is calling the customer service centre and getting the customer attendant to guide you. It should only apply if the indirect approach is not giving you the expected results. There might be a technological change to warrant the inactivity of the written-down procedure, or the customer must have missed a step when setting up. The customer support representative will help you complete the onboarding process.
Trouble Shooting
Each web hosting package is housed in a pocket that stores all the files. In case of an issue, customer support is on standby to help solve it. Troubleshooting can be caused by the following:
- Slow speed – it is a function of the disc usage; the more files you have, the slower the speed.
- Unresponsive SSL – there might be an issue with website security, affecting SSL auto-update.
- Offline websites – the main cause is improper set-up which might be blocking the website from appearing online.
Customers do not have the troubleshooting ability from their cPanel and will rely on customer service for solutions.
Back-Up
A few years back, there were no mechanisms to store data in case of a system attack. It meant that customer service was mandated to perform offline data saving physically. A good number of web hosting service providers in Kenya still use this system to manage their customers. It might not be sustainable, but it helped save the customer’s data for a rainy day.
Currently, there are mechanisms to auto-store data offline. Some are weekly, while others are daily, depending on the technology used. If there is anything wrong with website data, customer service is the first point of call.
Updating Server and Other Web Hosting Settings
The last decade has seen improvement in web hosting technology to respond to market needs. These upgrades might tamper with a client’s hosting setting. Sometimes, the web hosting company might move their server to a new aggregator, affecting the client’s settings. You need customer service to help you configure the web hosting settings.
For scheduled maintenance, they pass the information out so that customers can plan. All this is done in earnest to improve the web hosting services.
Process Complaints
There are several issues raised day in, day out. They range from downtime, to website malfunctioning and ISP, among others. Although some do not directly relate to web hosting, customer service should have the industry knowledge to help solve them. That is why hiring resourceful customer service is an added advantage to any web hosting company.
The main work of customer support in web hosting is to solve issues or point the customer in the right direction. However, they can refer to the manager for solutions if the problem is administrative.
Administrative Support
These are technical and non-technical issues that may hinder the operationalisation of web hosting services. They include, among others:
- Processing payments – sometimes the auto-push notification from the payments service provider might malfunction, which requires human intervention to restore the service.
- Adding storage space – all web hosting packages have a predefined space. If the customer needs extra space, they must call customer service for assistance.
- Understanding contemporary web hosting issues – with technology, such as AI, being deployed to every aspect of human interaction, questions might arise on how it affects web hosting. You need someone conversant to spell it out.