5 Things Your IT Guy Wants You To Know & Understand

 From The Helpdesk for November 6 2012 - When calling the helpdesk, there are a few key things your IT guy wants you to know and understand, and having an understanding of the basics can go a long way to improving your results when calling for help. 

#1 - Know why it is you are calling - A lot of people call in for IT support and simply state "it's not working" and expect us to magically know what it is that isn't working, and how to fix it too. Knowing what exactly isn't working before calling can make a huge difference when contacting your locale IT guy (IE: my browser loads slowly, or i am getting this specific error message when I'm trying to do this)

#2 - Getting a grasp of the basics - You don't need to understand each and every piece of equipment and technical term inside and out, however having a basic understanding of the equipment you have can lower the frustration level of the tech you are speaking with, and speed you along to be repaired that much quicker. For example, a router is a router....not a modem. A router broadcasts your internet connection on a wireless frequency ... your modem typically does not.  In some cases an ISP may issue you a modem with a wireless router built in, but not all ISP's do and when speaking to a technician it helps to know which device is the one that you are referring to.(It's better than just saying "that box thingy)

#3 - Grin and bear it - You may, or may not like the answers you get when calling for IT support. Please don't argue with the technician, if we do not know what the problem is we will tell you , or at the very least point you in a direction to look into it further. We don't like arguing with people, and if you claim to know more about the problem than the technician you are calling, maybe you shouldn't be calling for help in the first place. 

#4 - Business & Residential level services ... There is a difference - If you are using your residential internet service to run your home business, and it turns out you need a technician to come out to your place  ... do be understanding when it comes to having to wait for a service call. It's when people start freaking out about having to wait 1, 2, 5 days  or what ever it is for a technician to come out to fix your problem that really bugs us. Yes you thought you were so smart and are using your residential internet connection for your business in an effort to save a few bucks.... but you know what? Most companies pay for a business level connection for a reason... yes it's more money but in the end you get what you pay for and if you value your business only so much as to purchase a residential connection then you shouldn't scream and complain that "I'm trying to run a business here".

#5 - Tech's are people too - To you they maybe just a voice on the other end of the phone, the guy/gal that fixes it... But we are people, and being insulting, abrasive or even down right rude won't get you the 5 star service you are expecting. If you go to a restaurant you wouldn't insult the waiter right? That would end up with your food being dropped or maybe something worse.... So treating & speaking to your IT guy like he/she is a piece of crap will get your problem filled under IDFC (I Don't F______ Care)... You can probably guess how quickly your problem will get resolved filed there.