What is an IT helpdesk? An IT helpdesk is a support resource meant to offer support to the end user or client of an organization or company’s online products and services. It can also be called the Information Technology Service Desk. This support resource allows a business or an organization to maintain, troubleshoot, upgrade, and even install its online products and services on the Internet.
An IT help desk may not be a full-fledged phone support center.
Rather it is more of a computer support center that handles the technical issues and queries related to computers, servers, software, and hardware, networks, security, applications, telecommunications, workstations, peripherals, web applications, and emails etc. The main objective behind having an IT helpdesk is to give quick access to competent technical experts for giving advice on how to solve problems.
As compared to the traditional ‘offline’ technical support method, the modern ‘omni-channel ‘support method relies heavily on telephonic customer service. Telephones become the means and mode through which IT helpdesk employees give answers to customers’ queries and help them solve their problems. They are given the responsibility to call up a client by simply pushing a few buttons and greeting them in an efficient manner. It helps an IT helpdesk department to expand its clientele and thereby boost its revenue by providing better customer service.
An IT helpdesk is usually provided by an IT company or a network provider. IT companies can provide an IT helpdesk through telephonic as well as online customer support. It is a good idea to opt for a telephonic help desk when your company has a small staff. The advantage of using an IT helpdesk is that there are no long distance charges involved. These companies also help you to increase your customer base within your organization.
An IT helpdesk can be broadly divided into two types: the desktop IT helpdesk and the paldesk. The desk that we use at work is the usual desktop IT helpdesk. These are generally provided with telephones and access to the internet with the use of routers. These systems can be maintained in a highly automated way, using various software programs such as e-maintenance, troubleshooting, database, etc.
A PC user, on the other hand, cannot be served via a telephone.
This calls for the need for an IT helpdesk software, which can be used on a laptop. The laptop is plugged into a network and the service desk software downloads and configures the PC to answer calls. The PC user can either speak to the technical support personnel or use the helpdesk software to have technical support sent by email. This eliminates the need for both parties to physically visit the PC user’s office, in case the need arises.
- IT help desk software programs can be used to provide both desktop and laptop support.
- Telephones can be connected to the PC using a broadband connection
- Various e-mail services can be set up on the PC to send information back to the IT helpdesk.
The knowledge base that comes with the desk support package helps the IT personnel to store all the information that is related to the company, including knowledge base articles, product manuals, user guides, FAQs, technical articles, etc. It also allows the user to search the database for any new article or piece of information and to retrieve any older articles that they may have forgotten to include in their knowledge base.
On the other hand, a traditional IT helpdesk is equipped with telephones, computers and a network of people who can be called upon to solve problems. Telephones are connected to the helpdesk via a POTS (plain old telephone service) line, or a T1 line, which is a type of high-speed phone line. Sometimes network wiring is required for IP telephones, and these services may be provided by the service provider. Networks typically use a wide area network (WAN), which can include hundreds of local phone lines connected to the IT helpdesk. Many companies use a virtual private network (VPN), which only involves the use of a single IP address for all the PCs and telephones linked to it. Using an IT helpdesk service is much more cost-effective than having IT professionals provide both sides of an important work problem.
