How to get your support team ready for a big launch

Every company goes through many product launches in its lifetime. During these launches, the team has to be ready to handle a spike in the incoming user traffic and usually it’s Support who’s on the front line. I’ve been part of a few major launches and below is a list of steps that have helped us in the past to handle ten times our usual volume of tickets. While the list is definitely not an exhaustive one, it is a good starting point for any support team who is approaching a major launch.

• Update FAQs — Whenever there is a huge update, more often than not, there are new features added to the product. In such cases, put yourselves in the shoes of your users and anticipate the kind of questions you would ask. Now all you need to do is answer these questions and add them to your list of FAQs. Properly stocked set of FAQs will even reduce the number of tickets that you would receive.
• Saved Replies — Every team have a set of saved replies or template replies which come in handy in dealing with repetitive questions that you know will be asked. Always frame saved replies in simple language which can be understood by anyone.
• Screenshots and GIFs — I hate using cliched quotes but sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. Have screenshots and GIFs ready which can help your users understand and use new features easily.
• Social readiness — In addition to tickets, a support team also needs to manage responses on social channels. Providing support over social channels is different when compared to providing support via email. On a social channel, there are restrictions like character limit. Also, it is not always possible to ask information which can help us in debugging the issue on a social platform. Ahead of a major launch, a support team needs to be very clear about the issues that needs to be redirected to your support mailbox and the issues that can be sorted over a social channel.
• Effective internal communication — With the launch of new features, it is very important that all the feedback is considered and acknowledged. It is also important to make sure that all the issues are addressed. The only way for this to happen is with effective internal communication across different teams. This also helps in ‘All hands on deck’ situations where every member of your team can pitch in to help your support team manage your Help desk.

Do you have any other points or tips which can help a support team be ready for a big launch? Comment below and join the discussion.