Interscale Content Hub – All businesses need a strong IT help desk to run smoothly and keep users happy. So, how to start an IT help desk from scratch?
Starting an IT help desk involves planning, allocating resources and understanding the tools and processes needed.
Let’s look at how to start an IT help desk from scratch.
The Role of an IT Help Desk
The IT help desk is the main point of contact for users with technical problems. Its job is to fix IT problems quickly and easily.
This can include resetting passwords, installing software, diagnosing hardware problems and providing network support. A good help desk makes users more productive and satisfied.
If you want to get a better understanding of how to improve your IT help desk, you can read “How to Measure IT Help Desk Improvement: A Non-Techie’s Guide“
Planning Your IT Help Desk
It’s a good idea to define the scope of your help desk’s services, taking into account the specific needs of your organisation.
Will you be able to help with hardware, software, network issues, or a combination of these?
Set out clearly what you’ll be offering, including opening times and the ways you’ll be available to help, such as phone, email and chat.
This all-encompassing approach ensures that all potential issues are covered and that users have plenty of ways to access support, which makes their overall experience better and more satisfying.
Next, you need to work out how much money you’ve got to spend on your help desk.
Make sure you have a budget that covers staffing, tools, and infrastructure. It’s a good idea to think about hiring more staff than you need right now to avoid being understaffed during busy periods or in case someone leaves.
Hiring in advance can help you manage your workload effectively and avoid service delays.
Make sure you have the right tools and tech to make things run smoothly and efficiently. This will help your help desk deal with a high volume of requests without any problems.
Having the right people on your help desk is key. You’ll need people who know their way around tech and who can communicate well.
So please make sure all your staff get proper training so they know your systems and processes inside out.
Tools and Technologies
Now, when you’re setting up your IT help desk, it’s so important to choose the right tools and technologies to help you succeed.
Just because someone else recommends a tool doesn’t mean it’s right for you. Yes, definitely.
It’s a good idea to look for a tool that offers a free trial and plenty of other features so you can adapt it to suit your needs and goals.
Some popular options are Zendesk, Freshdesk, and ServiceNow. These platforms have all the essential features you need, like ticket management, automation, and comprehensive reporting capabilities.
These tools not only make things easier for you, but they also help you work more efficiently by automating tasks and giving you useful insights through detailed reports.
Then think about setting up a knowledge base for your IT help desk.
A good knowledge base lets users find answers to common questions and sort out issues without having to ask for help.
Tools like Document360 and Zendesk Guide make it easier for users to create and manage FAQs, troubleshooting guides, and how-to articles.
Also, make sure that email, phone, live chat, and social media are all part of a modern help desk.
Integrating these tools means users can get support through the channels they prefer, which makes them happier and more efficient.
How to Start an IT Helpdesk
Training Your Help Desk Team
Make sure your team knows all the systems and processes inside out – it’s the key to success for your IT help desk.
Start with a comprehensive onboarding programme that covers both technical skills and customer service practices.
New hires should get to grips with the help desk software, company culture and product knowledge through a structured training programme that usually lasts four to six weeks.
The team should get together regularly to learn about the latest tools and best practices. This helps them solve problems better and work more efficiently.
Implementing IT Help Desk Software
Finding the right help desk software is really important. The software should fit your needs and budget, and it should also offer essential features like ticket management, workflow automation, and reporting capabilities.
Popular options like Zendesk, Freshdesk, and ServiceNow work great with other tools your company uses, making operations easier and more efficient.
Deskpro is another option that provides a centralized customer data and support requests system, which can be really useful for managing large volumes of tickets effectively.
Creating a Knowledge Base
If you can help users to resolve common issues themselves, you’ll reduce the number of support requests you get. This repository should include FAQs, troubleshooting guides and how-to articles.
Tools like Document360 and Zendesk Guide make it easy to create and manage this content, so it’s always there when users need it.
A well-organised knowledge base gives users the power to find the answers they need, and lets your support team focus on more complex issues.
Launching Your IT Help Desk
Once you’ve trained your team and got your tools in place, it’s time to launch your help desk.
Start off with a soft launch to test everything out. This trial phase is a great way to identify and address any issues before you go live.
Let your colleagues know when the help desk is up and running. Make sure they know how to get in touch and what kind of issues they can expect to see.
If people know where to go for help and what to expect, they’ll be more likely to use it.
Measuring and Improving Performance
Measuring how well your help desk is doing on a regular basis is really important if you want to keep making improvements.
You should keep an eye on key metrics like response time, resolution time and customer satisfaction.
Use this data to spot areas for improvement and make any necessary changes to your processes and training programmes.
If response times are slow, it might be worth thinking about additional training or process optimisation.
Keeping an eye on how your help desk is doing helps you make sure it’s always efficient and effective, and that users are happy with it.
For useful reference you can read “How to Improve IT Help Desk Performance: Simple Tweaks for Big Impact“
Best Practices
Hiring in advance is a key part of keeping an IT help desk running smoothly, especially during busy periods.
Proactively hiring means there’ll always be enough staff to handle the increased workload during busy periods, so there won’t be any delays in service and we can keep our high standards of support.
So, regular training sessions help employees stay up to date with the latest tools and techniques.
This ongoing training not only makes your team more technically proficient, but also improves their customer service skills, so they can handle a wide range of issues effectively.
If your human factors are already pretty solid, don’t forget to collect and analyse user feedback to make sure the service is as good as it can be.
This info helps you make data-driven decisions that make the user experience better overall.
And it’s also vital to keep your knowledge base up to date, so you can support users and help desk staff.
A good knowledge base should include FAQs, troubleshooting guides and how-to articles. This helps users to solve issues themselves, which reduces the number of support tickets.
Keeping an eye on the key performance indicators (KPIs) is a must if you want to keep improving your help desk operations.
Metrics like response time, resolution time, and customer satisfaction can give you a good idea of how efficient and effective your help desk is.
By regularly reviewing these metrics, you can spot trends and areas for improvement. This means your help desk can adapt and optimize its processes to better serve users.
How Interscale Can Be Your IT Helpdesk Supporting System
As you can see, setting up an IT help desk from scratch to become a hero is a long process that requires a lot of effort.
Often, businesses need a consultant or supervisor to keep an eye on things, make sure everything’s going well, and keep the process on track.
That’s why we at Interscale offer customized solutions for IT help desk management, so your help desk can run smoothly and efficiently.
At Interscale, we take a multi-faceted approach to IT support. Our service desk achievements show how committed we are to getting things right.
Over the past year, we’ve closed 8,553 tickets and our help desk wait time was just one minute on average.
This speedy response is our commitment to keeping you happy and making sure everything runs smoothly.
But don’t just take our word for it. Our clients, including Waverly Tax, Kapitol Group, and Davey Water Products, have seen first-hand how our solutions make IT support easier, boost productivity, and improve overall user satisfaction.
Why not just get in touch with us today for a chat? We’ll put together a support package that’s just right for your business.
In Closing
This guide is all about making sure you focus on the user experience while you’re fixing technical issues.
Keep on top of your processes and adapt to changing demands to make sure your IT help desk is a valuable asset to your organisation.
So, how to start an IT help desk from scratch? Using those strategies and making the most of Interscale support.
