Harris Interactive Research indicates that 97 percent of people use the phone for contacting customer service representatives, and one of the industries experiencing the most consistent growth over the past several years has been the help desk industry.

Help desks are intended to be a single point of contact for customers who need help solving issues encountered with their product or service. Many businesses are looking for ways to cut costs while still maintaining a high quality level for their help desk. What are several solutions available for creating a good customer call in service, while saving money?

1. Web based help desk

Web help desks do not completely replace help desks, but rather, they complement them. They not only increase the efficiency of help desk employees, but they also increase accuracy, since the technology can be used to track requests and ensure that questions are delivered to the right location. This software can help you cut back on the number of employees you need to hire, since less time will be spent on manual tasks.

2. Treat Your Employees Well

Employ qualified individuals for your help desk positions so that you will be providing the best help for your customers. Help desk institutes give degrees and certifications to individuals specifically trained for the industry. Did you know that the average IT help desk employee receives a 40,000 dollar salary? Although you are trying to cut costs, make sure that you treat the employees you do have well enough that they will not take their skills to a job that is better paying, or has better benefits. Because help desk jobs are numerous, employers will want to keep hold of employees that do perform well.

3. Outsource help desks

As with many services, outsourcing help desks has become a norm for some businesses. The benefits here are that you can hire people to only work while your company is receiving calls. This is an advantage especially for smaller companies, who would otherwise have to hire someone to answer calls that might be intermittent. This can also help with providing support in multiple languages, as well as around the clock help. It is important to ensure that any company you outsource from is quick, courteous, and competent in how they handle your customer calls. For most businesses, outsource help desks allow them to concentrate on their core business and keep overhead costs down.