Ticket management is at the foundation of an MSP company, but it can get messy very quickly without a clean, streamlined, and efficient approach. To move tickets through your workflows easily and keep customers happy, create a strategy for how you’ll prioritize tickets and categorize them based on urgency. To continue to keep everything moving smoothly, MSP technicians need an easy way to diligently track statuses and keep customers informed. It can also help to lean into automation to maximize efficiency and free up technician time. Use template messages whenever possible and invest in a professional services automation (PSA) solution that automates ticketing.
5. Sort out billing ahead of time
MSPs can make their jobs easier and shave days off the billing cycle at the end of each month by finding better ways to bill. Look for a ticket management solution that attaches a time tracker to each ticket so technicians can automatically log how much time they spend resolving issues. When it comes time to bill your clients, MSP billing software makes it possible to easily export each invoice based on the time tracker, batch invoice, and even integrate it all with your existing accounting software—no more billing disputes or complicated invoices.
6. Encourage self-service
One of the best things you can do to make managing your company easier is realize you don’t have to handle everything yourself. Often, your technicians will come across the same common issues again and again. Repeatedly solving small issues can be tedious for your techs, and customers will dislike waiting for a tech to solve a problem that they could’ve fixed themselves.
You can make troubleshooting faster and easier for everyone by giving your customers the resources to resolve their own technical difficulties. Build a robust (and searchable) knowledge database, offer a customer portal, and publish accessible answers to frequently asked questions. Making all these things available to your customers will make your job much easier and help keep your customers satisfied.
Choosing the right managed services solutions
These six tips can help take your MSP business to the next level, but making sure you implement them all properly can feel like a second job. SolarWinds® MSP Manager is a powerful, scalable, and affordable PSA solution that will make managing an MSP business look effortless. This software includes the capabilities you need to provide prompt, high-quality service to your clients without bogging you down in the minutiae.
The software has a built-in scheduling tool that makes it easy to keep everyone in your workforce on the same page about upcoming customer services. You can add appointments to your calendar and fill in pertinent details with just a few clicks, and the appointment will automatically populate in iCal. You can then export that appointment to Outlook, Google Calendar, or whichever scheduling platform your technicians use. All appointments are up front and accessible in MSP Manager’s clear interface, as well as mobile app. For recurring site visits and tickets, you can automatically schedule them in MSP Manager so nothing falls through the cracks.
MSP Manager seamlessly integrates with SolarWinds RMM and top accounting software so you can create the remote monitoring and PSA product suite that suits your business’ unique needs. To learn more about MSP Manager and dig into its ticketing, billing, or scheduling features, try it free here for 14 days.
