[NT] - What if? A General Poll..

[Virtual Managed Solutions]

This is a "what if" scenario - What if you had us for Technical Support and you knew we supported the different kinds of tax prep software (ie, Lacerte, TaxWorks, Drake, ProSeries, and so on..) - We knew the ins and outs of the software and we could provide you the same level of support as we did with ATX - Would you call our Technical Support, or would you call the software provider's Technical Support?

[NECPA in NEBRASKA]

I would call their technical support first, unless they were a pain to deal with.

[wendybooth]

I would not pay for technical support unless the software could not fix the problem.

[Dan]

I would call the software technical support first.

I do like this unofficial community board.

[jainen]

>>What if ... We knew the ins and outs of the software<<

This is an odd proposition; I'm kind of uncomfortable and even a little bit offended by it. I think it shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the relationship between professional software and its users.

If you were offering TRAINING, I would consider it unlikely but at least possible that you could do a better job communicating than the original publishers. I might take a look at your materials.

I only call tech support when something goes wrong, and I need to get as close to the source as quickly as possible. Most often it is an unexpected result of a recent update or change. Because everybody else calls the same place, they usually have a patch or workaround already figured out. I can't imagine how in the world a third party could help in such a situation.

[TAXBILLY]

I guess I don't understand the question. Would I prefer to go to the software company's support first or you first?

Why would I want to pay you if the software company provides support as part of the price?

taxbilly

[BulldogTom]

I think what he is getting at is the old problem that always happens when you call tech support - they blame it on hardware and tell you to call your tech. Your tech cannot find a problem with the hardware, and says it must be the software. You are now stuck in the middle of the blame game trying to get each side to work on your problems while the time slips away.

Wouldn't it be nice to have an expert on BOTH the hardware AND software available to you?

I think that is what Kyle is asking - would you be willing to pay for support if it was for BOTH sides of the equation.

Interesting concept, but as always, price is the over riding concern.

As billy said, why would I pay for support that is included in my software.

On the other hand, it might make me decide to use a certain hardware tech if I knew they were competent in my software applications.

Tom

Lodi, CA

[JRS]

ATX support is built into the price we pay. If they can't solve my problem, with the software, then I need to move on to something else. I have never had a major problem with ATX, other than password and the "blue screen" lockout. I have a very small practice geared to investors and don't deal with the complex problems the majority of ATX users deal with. No 940"s, w-2's or 1099's, but some partnerships. If I have problems with my computer that I can't solve, I call our local "Nerds on call" and they fix the problem, usually the same day. I demo'd Drake last year and had a problem and their tech support, which answered my phone call immediately, tapped into my computer and fixed the problem. BUT, I never knew what was wrong and did not like the idea of anyone "taking over" my computer.

[mcb39]

I would go first to this board to see if someone else has encountered the same problem and solved it. Then I would go to ATX KB; and finally to tech support. Knock on wood, I have only had to actually call tech support about 3 times in all the years that I have used their products. Generally, the answer is here, first.

[David1980]

I think one area for expansion would be to partner with the tax software companies themselves. Not sure how open they are to that. If you became a preferred support partner willing to do the tech jobs the company wasn't you could get into a nice position if they were willing to send people your way. Of course the companies would probably prefer just the opposite. Instead of telling customers the benefits of someone else's software pretend it didn't exist.

Then again, maybe the software companies are not willing to get into that sort of agreement anyway in which case it wouldn't matter.

[Virtual Managed Solutions]

I want to thank everyone for their responses as they were very helpful - A few I would like to focus on (using the "rchinchilla" method)..

@BulldogTom - That is exactly what I was trying to say. I should have thought the question out a little more, before typing it out so quickly. It was a thought I had all day yesterday and I thought asking the question would be more appropriate than racking my brain for answers I didn't have. Very well said Tom! Too many times being an ATX Rep, did that happen with our customers. Some of the times it was us saying that, because it was our policy. If we got to the point were we concluded it wasn't a software issue, we were supposed to end the call. I personally used to feel horrible, because I could sense the frustration / "let down" in the speakers voice. This is why VMSUS offers the support we do.

@jainen - I totally understand this issue. Being with ATX for so many years, we've bonded with many tax professionals and empathize where you are coming from. This is not only my thinking, but my co-workers as well. Those critical 3 months are your life blood. You have unforseen circumstances, stressful deadlines, late nights, and the list could go on. I was thinking "what if" we could take that extra step to make it a little easier for you. Find a way to make things less stressful. Less demanding. Maybe, learning all the top software out there isn't the way to do it, but it was a thought. You're point did hit home and I'll take it to heart, but please know that we do miss all our relationships with you guys.

@JRS - Essentially, taking over your computer is how we fix things as well. But I want to stress the fact that we don't take it over completely. You have complete control the whole time. Once the connection between our computer and your computer has taken place, you are able to sit there and watch our every move. If you feel we are getting too close to sensitive information, all you do is move your mouse and it disconnects us from you. We tell you what we are doing before every move. We understand the type of information we are being entrusted with and we take that into the highest regard. Once the connection has been terminated, it's done. We cannot connect again without you being involved.

@David1980 - I'm glad you brought that up, because that is a path we would like to continue down. As it is right now, we are offering software support for a couple different (not tax) software providers, but we all started out in tax software support and that is where our ties remain. Quite frankly, we miss it and would like to find a way back in.

[jainen]

>>I thought asking the question would be more appropriate than racking my brain for answers<<

@virtual [love this format, like "comin' at ya!"] This was well-said. You had me fooled for a while. Heck, I thought you were serious. Of course this is my preferred approach too, and I'm sure it accounts for the vast majority of tech support calls.

So I'm no longer offended, but I'm still uncomfortable. With business as usual, how are you going to gain my confidence that you really want to enhance my experience with a competitor's product?

Okay, so you know the concerns but still want some positive hook. Think about this--Quickbooks. It's another Intuit financial product, but there is a Brobdingnagian network of third party Quickbooks support. Maybe you can find some inspiration in that sort of model.

[taxxcpa]

I use Drake and they have excellent support. If I have a concern, I post it on the forum and Adam Drake or someone who works for Drake has always answered every question promptly. If it can't be answered on the forum, they call and walk me through the solution. I can't imagine someone who did not work for Drake would be able to provide better support.

[Virtual Managed Solutions]

@jainen - That's the thing - We would not be competing. We do not offer a tax program, we only offer technical support and other managed services geared toward the tax professional. Supporting a tax product (such as ATX) is something we miss and something we loved doing. Creating a relationship with our customer, knowing they can call anytime and get the help they need, becoming friends in a sense. Right now we have ATX, ProSeries, TaxWise, TaxWorks and Drake customers who call in for technical support with the program. We are familiar with the product, but are not experienced with it. We give our "Best Effort" in all software matters. I was thinking that if we are already getting calls in regard to tax prep software, why not learn them all? Get versed in everything and be able to provide the best customer service out there. There's no competition - only gaining the confidence you can trust us.

@taxxcpa - I understand, because just like this forum, you can get all the help you need. There's really no need for technical support at all when you have a community such as this. I have heard great things about Drake support and understand them to be top notch. We wouldn't want to replace the actual support for the program, but we could be another route if we decided to go that way. It's not about working for the tech team, it's all about experience. I remember ATX hiring 40 techs 2 weeks before tax season and getting them "trained" in the software. Who would think that 2 weeks before the season starts you would be able to learn the product. But after you see how we did the training and the level of expertise behind these technicians, you get a better sense of who we really were. It wasn't about us, in the end it was all about you guys. That's what we miss.