Top 5 Customer Support Tips for Online Educators

Customer care is integral to creating a positive experience among students. The following five tips would help you get better at providing support to them:

1. Be Responsive and Available

The response time is of the essence. You must try to acknowledge the queries of the students within 24 hours and resolve them ASAP. Clearly stated expectations over response time build trust and reduce frustration on the part of the students.

Tip: Configure system acknowledgement emails to intimate the students when the queries have been received and when they can expect to hear back.

2. Create an Informational FAQ Section

Anticipate frequently asked questions, providing fast solutions through clear and tidy FAQs. This would save time in the students' quest for answers and decrease calls for support, ultimately improving the student experience.

Tip: Keep your course FAQ fresh by updating it with new course information or frequent issues.

3. Offer a Choice of Support

Not every student will have the same preference for communicating with an instructor. This email, live chat, and community forums ensure that students can reach you through a method with which they're most comfortable.

Tip: Integrate AI-powered chatbots for quick answers to common queries and route the more complex issues to you.

4. Be Empathetic and Patient

Handle each student inquiry with empathy. Show that the students do have problems and often reply in such a manner that you are equally concerned and interested in their learning journey.

Hint: Be more personal in your responses to express real concern and avoid general or mechanical responses.

5. Follow Up After Resolution

Once the problem has been resolved, check in to ensure the students are satisfied with the resolution and ask if they have further questions. This extra step helps to reinforce the fact that you care about their experience beyond just rectifying the current issue at hand. 

Tip: Oftentimes a simple follow-up email helps build a continued positive relationship with your students.

These can help improve customer support and gain student trust, thereby making students more successful in their learning environment.