Remote operations
Marc Prempain
15 April 2024
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Video conferencing and visual assistance are the two types of technologies that at first glance seem to be rivals, but in reality, when it comes to understanding what each of them was designed for, it becomes clear that they serve different needs. The world of business is now impossible to imagine without video conferencing that is used for meetings and remote presentations. With the accelerated role of remote work in recent years, Zoom calls, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams have become household names for most employees in the last couple of years.
Remote visual support was created with operational needs in mind and is now used across many industries and sectors, including oil and gas, retail, field service management, and so on. Video assistance takes service management and after-sales assistance to the next level. Companies can provide their customers with the best practices that can solve complex queries that on any other day would require an expert’s displacement but now can be resolved thanks to remote visual assistance tools.
Powered by AR, visual support allows interlocutors to solve problems without having to travel on-site. By getting an immersive view of the client’s environment, an expert or an agent can assess the situation and guide the client through needed to resolve the problem. There are several ways remote visual support can be used to boost remote collaboration, and in this article, we will discuss some of the main ones.
Maintaining sophisticated equipment is not an easy task, and having a tool that could help conduct reactive maintenance in case of malfunctions and save not only the time for experts but also prevent the complete breakdown of the machines would be a game-changer. Different level of expertise also makes it complicated to find the right person who could investigate the encountered issue quickly. When using ViiBE, a video-assistance tool that requires no download, technicians no longer need to worry that their query can reach the wrong expert. In just one click, the exert received access to the technician’s camera and can examine the situation without having to meet the technician face-to-face.
Every reactive maintenance has its contractural deadlines that must be respected and with ViiBE, both parties will have time-coded proof that the intervention has taken place and a summary of the established diagnosis. The video recording of the sessions will be stored in the ticket archives and can be consulted with later on in case further investigation is required or there is a need for training materials and the encountered cases can serve as an example.
If the problem with the equipment is reoccurring, the video recordings can be sent to R&D departments where the dedicated teams can use them to advance on product improvements.
The expertise of the field technicians is one of the key components that ensure flawless operational flows, therefore, it is essential to preserve the knowaldge, and ensure that the new specialists receive up-to-date training and onboarding materials. No matter how efficiently you manage the business end of your company, your success ultimately depends upon how well your workers are executing the job in the field.
Regardless of what EAM system a company uses, ViiBE can be seamlessly integrated with it. As mentioned, the stored information will be stored both on ViiBE and EAM systems making it easier for the employees to access it. Users can find specific information by searching for specific keywords and reviewing the recorded customer interaction to learn or alternate best practices. The end result is that existing tickets form an internal knowledge base at the disposal of all support agents, who can search for information when it suits them. By empowering employees with access to knowledge, they will gain new skills and feel increasingly confident to succeed at their job.
Apart from training field technicians, visual support can also be a great help for service delivery as it enables you to involve the customers in the process. To ensure the best quality of field service, it is important to assign the right technicians and provide them with the right tools and equipment to get the job done well in the first go. However, this could be a challenge when you don’t know what the job is all about.
In that case, if you can communicate with the customer and get them on a video session, where you can see for yourself what the issue is all about. This way, you can decide at once which technician is best suited for the job and what items they need to carry while visiting the job site.
All that is left to do is enter the information on your database using field service software and assign the technician for the work order. This also cuts time in terms of inspection and diagnosis, avoids displacement, reduces CO2 emissions, and most importantly, makes the best use of your resources.
The struggle of being overwhelmed with tickets and yet having to address customer queries fast and efficiently is the nightmare of every technician. With ViiBE Call the encountered problem can be escalated to real-life assistance, but ViibE does not stop there. Having recognized the need for asynchronous collaboration, ViiBE has introduced ViiBE Video Report which allows customers and experts to work asynchronously. Suppose an expert is not available, there are time and language constraints, or the customer is simply not in front of the problem. The expert can send the client a link through which a video recording interface can be accessed. With ViiBE Video Report, the customer can share as much data as needed without limit in size and capacity in contrast to email attachments.
ViiBE is integrated with any CRM or EAM system, meaning that users will not have to change their habits and try to get accustomed to new solutions. Everything is embedded in their failiar interfaces.
When experts are at ease with remote visual assistance, they take their customers’ experiences to the next level. Thanks to the synchronous collaboration, the customer feels as if the expert is next to them and it is a crucial factor when building long-lasting relationships with customers and maintaining their loyalty.
Here we explore the usage of visual support in CRM in more detail.
Remote visual support empowers your remote teams to diversify and scale up remote collaboration. With this technology, you can have fully functional teams communicate with each other no matter where they are located.
The visual aspect increases the effectiveness of communication, thus encouraging knowledge sharing among team members. This could be instrumental for better productivity as well as fostering great organizational culture.
In ViiBE you are in the driver’s seat deciding who you share the archives with. When the problem is too complex, several experts can participate in resolving it.
In today’s world, remote visual support has become a necessity for business success. It simplifies workforce management by establishing a direct line of communication with your field teams. Especially for remote collaboration, visual assistance has become indispensable, for it preserves the essence of face-to-face interaction between colleagues. This is crucial when people are working from different job sites, even when located in different parts of the world.
To facilitate the best visual support, however, you need to choose the right tools for your workers. While there are dedicated video conferencing tools available, you might consider dedicated mobile apps for field service technicians that include video conferencing features. This way, you save money because you have only to pay for one digital solution.
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