By: Kristen Gray • 13 May 2025

3 simple steps to provide more effective customer support

No one likes waiting on hold.

With many consumer services accessible immediately at our fingertips – think Uber, DoorDash, Airbnb – we’ve become conditioned to not have to wait for service.Self-service options have become the norm, and for good reason. Consumers are comfortable using text and video instructions to guide themselves through installations, repairs, and more.But what about those issues that still require expert supervision?

The evolution of service appointments

Call centers create frustrating experiences for both customers and employees. To combat this, many companies started offering online bookings so customers can schedule virtual appointments that fit their needs and schedules.When customers are able to set their own appointments, they feel more in control of the process. Research shows that a known wait time feels much better to a customer than an unknown wait time or a long service window.Giving customers the opportunity to book their own appointment and submit information about the problem prior to their appointment reduces the manual input required from the customer support agent.Completing a video session automatically captures significant contextual data about the customer’s issue and experience that would have been otherwise lost.This takes the strain off of the customer support agent and allows them to focus more on the customer and the issue at hand.

Scheduling apps make online booking easy

User-friendly apps like Acuity and Calendly make it simple for companies to implement a custom online booking system. For example, Acuity gives companies the ability to embed a booking page on their website with automated, customizable reminder emails and intake forms.Automating the data capture and booking process helps contact center agents to a more personalized experience for their customers, without all of the manual data input.Their customers enjoy the convenience of booking a quick appointment online rather than waiting on hold for an hour to schedule a service window.

Automate data capture with virtual service

It’s hard to debate that virtual-first service is the norm these days – after all, why would customers want to wait days for a triage they can do in minutes over video?This has added flexibility for customer support agents and made the experience more enjoyable for customers to boot.But the biggest perk? Automated data capture.Service experts no longer have to juggle answering questions, taking notes, making recommendations, fixing issues, and capturing the next steps. Instead, an AI-powered visual assistance platform can capture and analyze customer data automatically in the background.There are many tasks that are best suited for a (human) expert, but when it comes to data analysis, artificial intelligence is way faster and more accurate than human intelligence. Now, experts can let go of some of those mundane, repetitive tasks, and focus on providing a superior customer experience in the moment.

Auto-generate personalized follow-ups

Taking notes during a customer appointment can be anywhere from inconvenient to impossible. Not only does the quality of notes suffer, but the expert ends up distracted while trying to capture important information, both of which can be detrimental to customer experiences now and in the future.With a smart visual assistance platform, companies can be certain their customer data is not only being captured but categorized. Their categorized data provides a jumping-off point for personalized follow-ups including auto-generated summaries, quotes, and areas to review.

The future of customer support

New technology is going to continue empowering customer service reps and give them the tools they need to succeed in their role. A streamlined customer support process will reduce points of friction and eliminate repetitive, time-consuming tasks, enabling support agents to provide the above-and-beyond customer service they want to.