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Published on: March 2005
Type of content: ANALYST REPORT
Format: Adobe Acrobat (.pdf)
Price: FREE

Overview:
Support is undergoing a quiet revolution. During the recent technology downturn, it was service and support revenue that sustained many companies. The awareness of support's financial contribution has never been greater. As service contributions surpass product revenue many companies are evaluating the need to transform product centric practices to develop and sell new products and acquire new customers to customer centric practices focused on customer retention and loyalty.

Support remains a major customer touch point and has a profound impact on customer relations. With this power comes responsibility and opportunity . Expectations of support are increasing from customers and from the business. More is being expected of support in the form of better service, more efficient delivery channels, increased customer satisfaction and financial performance. Increased expectations and contribution have not been met with increased funding levels for support operations. Support is well positioned to positively affect the future relationship with current customers. The opportunity exists to capitalize on the full benefits of well defined and executed support business practices.

Quantifying the value of the support's contribution is critical for justifying the resources necessary to maximize the profitability of existing customer relationships. Timely benchmark data is a vital element in creating and executing a comprehensive support plan. This plan must create a link between corporate and support operational strategy and address customer expectations. It also needs to establish success factors and key metrics.

This report presents top level benchmarks of the key metrics used in determining support success. Understanding these metrics, applying them to your individual situation and creating support operational strategies will facilitate the creation of a comprehensive support operational plan which is competitive, attainable and justifiable.