Shared E-Mail Account Tracking Program for a Call Center

We are using FrontApp (https://frontapp.com) and I find it to be delightful.

We're currently using HelpScout (https://www.helpscout.net) to manage our email customer service operation.  Our Audience Services (primarily phone team) was primarily using Outlook to manage this and it got very cumbersome before the switch.  The reporting functionality is very robust and allows for the team to really stay on top of emails. It does have many integrations (including an open API that could connect to Tessitura, but we haven't crossed that bridge yet).  

Also - we've integrated our contact form on the website to populate a CSI on their account with their question/concern.  The team then either responds via email or phone if it is pressing.   

I'd be glad to share any additional info that you may need.       

Hi Anwar,

Thank you for your quick reply. I am so happy to hear that your are using HelpScout since this was a company that we had found on-line and really like based on the information we saw. What Organization are you from and where are you located?

I have some follow up questions about HelpScout if you have some time:

How many different e-mail accounts does your team oversee?

How many staff are using the e-mail program at one time?

What is the average amount of e-mails your team handles per day?

I know that there is the function to assign e-mails to specific users but what happens if everyone is responsible for all e-mails and specific assignment isn't necessary? Would it show that a specific user opened and responded to the e-mail even if it wasn't assigned to them?

Did your team find the tranistion from outlook to HelpScout easy and are they happy with it?

Did the system end up not doing something taht maybe you expected it to? Any surprises?

Switching our shared accounts to Outlook is an option for us as well but I feel that we would run into the same issues that your team did and I don't like that there is not a good audit trail in place in Outlook.

Thank you so much for connecting!

Best,

Amy Germaine

Museum of Science

Boston, MA

Hi Nick,

Thank you for your quick reply. What Organization are you from and where are you located?

I have some  questions about frontapp as well as your daily operation if you have some time:

How many different e-mail accounts does your team oversee?

How many staff are using the e-mail program at one time?

What is the average amount of e-mails your team handles per day?

I know that there is the function to assign e-mails to specific users but what happens if everyone is responsible for all e-mails and specific assignment isn't necessary? Would it show that a specific user opened and responded to the e-mail even if it wasn't assigned to them?

Does it show the e-mail as "locked" when it is in use?

Did your team find the transition from the system you were using before easy and are they happy with it?

What e-mail system did you use before?

Did the system end up not doing something that maybe you expected it to? Any surprises?

I just watched a short introductory video about frontapp--I did not see any mention of reporting (maybe I missed it?) If there is reporting capabilities have you utilized it and if so, how do you like it?

Thank you so much for connecting!

Best,

Amy Germaine

Museum of Science

Boston, MA

Our operation isn't particularly large. We currently have two incoming email addresses, and about 4 people who are regularly managing them with FrontApp. Previously we just used email clients synced to the same account over IMAP. The transition to front was very easy — it basically behaves like an email client with "multiplayer" capabilities, so you don't have to shift your thinking into something different like a traditional support ticket system.

At the inbox level, you can set a preference for "assign conversation on first reply" on or off. Everyone can see a conversation's assignee, so in your case you might have users assign a new email to themselves if they see it and want to handle it but can't draft a response right away. Users can see when a response to a conversation is being drafted by another user. It doesn't "lock" the conversation, so your team can still add internal comments in realtime, but reliably prevents response "collisions".

No surprises. I have pretty high personal standards for software quality and have no complaints whatsoever. Their support team is also excellent. Reporting and analytics capabilities are available at the "Premium" pricing tier. One of the main value propositions of Front that is worth noting is that it can be a unified platform for all of your customer contact channels, not just email. Website chat widgets, twitter, facebook, SMS, etc., can all appear in Front as just another inbox.

How many different e-mail accounts does your team oversee?

• The team currently manages three accounts. One for each of our two venues (public facing) and the 3rd for internal organizational communication with the supervisor team.  This inbox is used for anyone inside the organization that needs to communicate with the supervisors for specific follow-up on a patron concern/issue.  It helps to track issues and know exactly which supervisor is working on what issue. 

How many staff are using the e-mail program at one time?

• We currently have 15 users using the program to cover 7 days a week.  At one time, there can be up to 10 per day.  

What is the average amount of e-mails your team handles per day?

• On average we're between 50-100 new conversations per day.   With replies and follow-up, that number can double. 

I know that there is the function to assign e-mails to specific users but what happens if everyone is responsible for all e-mails and specific assignment isn't necessary? Would it show that a specific user opened and responded to the e-mail even if it wasn't assigned to them?

• When an email comes in, it is an unassigned status.  Emails do not need to be assigned.  I ask the user to assign it upon completion. If a patron responds, it goes back to that person.  Feedback has shown that patrons like to feel like they are dealing with one representative.  We have a workflow setup that if an assigned email is not responded to within 24 hours (on average, our response rate is within 12 hours), it is automatically moved into unassigned and active.  This ensures that messages don't go stale sitting in someone's assigned folder.
• To answer the second question - Yes.  Once an email has been responded to, you have the option to mark it as closed or pending if you are awaiting a response even without assigning it.  It will show who last made an update to it.  Users can also add internal notes to conversations so other users know the status of the email.        

Did your team find the transition from outlook to HelpScout easy and are they happy with it?

• Yes.  This was incredibly easy for the team to adopt.  They like being able to know who is working on what and what the status of the conversation is.  They also have the ability to easily see previous communication with the patron without even leaving the conversation they're currently working on.  They also love the ability to use saved replies for answering our top FAQs.  They can also borrow best practices from each other.

Did the system end up not doing something that maybe you expected it to? Any surprises?

• The system performs as expected.  We've had essentially zero downtime and it has really transformed the way we do email customer service.  I would like to see better management of tags in Help Scout (how we categorize the type of emails, e.g. - complaints, login issues, website feedback, etc.) but it is still manageable.  We've been live since February and as we go into the quieter months, we're looking into expanding into some of the integration to take it a step further.      

Switching our shared accounts to Outlook is an option for us as well but I feel that we would run into the same issues that your team did and I don't like that there is not a good audit trail in place in Outlook.

• I recognize this isn't a question, but I would encourage you to get out of Outlook no matter which system you choose.  The lack of audit trail and reporting options sealed the deal for me.  With a few clicks, I know who's pulling their weight, what our response time is, and what questions are coming up repeatedly.  

Hopefully, this helps.

Best,

Anwar

Thank you again, Nick! This is very helpful information.

Out of curiosity, what organization are you with and where are you located?

Best,

Amy

Thank you again, Anwar. This information is so very helpful!

I'm curious, what organization are you with and where are you located?

Best,

Amy