Requesting support is sometimes tricky, especially in the heat of the moment when you have a critical issue. However, the more information you provide in your support request, the quicker it will be resolved. To coin a phrase ‘Help me to help you!’ Thanks Tom …
– identify the problem accurately
– Use existing resources at hand to find the answer to your issue eg. FAQ, manual, forums, blogs, web searches, etc.
– use a start-to-end linear process to check each aspect of the problematic system and proceed logically
– do not make assumptions as to the cause of an issue; check every aspect
– who, what, when?
When sending a support email
- use meaningful, issue-specific subject lines
- make it easy to reply
- write in clear, grammatically correct, correctly spelled and concise language
- limit each request to one specific subject rather than asking numerous unrelated questions
- if a request for configuration changes, provide all information including IP addressing, login information and any other specifics
- explain the steps you took to reach the problematic outcome
- if you have error messages, send these in text or image format; if images, use jpg or png ( not MS Word or Excel)
- send attachments in accessible and standard formats ( eg. PDF or text )
- be precise and informative about your issue
- describe the symptoms not your guesses
- describe your symptoms in chronological order
- provide documentation relating to your system
- courtesy never hurts, and always helps
- supply a solution if you’ve found one
- use proper email etiquette
- don’t use uppercase excessively
- don’t repeat
- check your spelling/grammar
- don’t cc addresses that are not directly related to the email and other recipients ( use bcc )
- use text email where possible ( instead of rich text or html )