Tech Support: Roll the Web Cams, not the Trucks

URC coming to the market with a webcam would be a joke. They can’t even get their RF working 50% as well as RTI.

I would never expect my customers to pan over their rack with a wireless camera. It is worth the truck roll a few times just to show them that you are there to support the system - not just install, program, and hit the road.

I have to agree with dan on this issue.  Why would we put more pressure on the client in any situation? You were paid to do the install and your cost for post install follow-up, training, troubleshooting etc. should already be accounted for.  Do the right thing here.. Make a house call.

What about the times that the clients need support after hours? How about the clients who live over an hour from you? I can assume that the advice here is to repalce standard customer service, but to aid the over the phone support. I can think of many reasons to use this to make support more efficient.

Not a bad idea for a system outside your local market, a clients second home perhaps. Depends on how that particular client may perceive this technique of getting them involved hands on.

Me? I’d love the option. I can’t stand having to describe what’s happening on my TV or other blinking devices when I need tech support.

Plus, typical homeowners can’t describe poor video quality (for example)—snowy, artifacts, etc.

And if it’s the difference between a cheap 15-minute call right away vs. a $125 visit in two days, I’m all for it.

I know several dealers who plant Web cams in equipment rooms to aid in tech support.

the client with the $100,000 system doesn’t want and shouldn’t have to be in his equipment room videoing whats going on. there are already too many bad AV dealers making a bad name for all of us.

would a plumber ask you to video a leak, just because you can’t properly and accurately describe what’s going on over the phone? how about an electrician asking you to videotape yourself plugging in a device, and seeing the breaker trip?

yet another excuse/tool for sub-par customer service I’m afraid.

No different than taking a digital picture of a drawer handle and matching it to the right replacement part at Home Depot or Lowes. Any time we can use technology to simplify things what’s wrong with that?

Theory versus reality.

What is it exactly that the webcam would see? Are we going to have the client point the cam at something or rotate to a rack control monitor? 

If I was a customer who had payed a high dollar for a system, the last place you are going to find me is digging around in a rack.

Secondly, we are of course also assuming the webcam is going to be locating in the potential problem area of the system.

The time spent T shooting on a camera or in real life is going to be the same minus the travel time and could potentially result in higher frustration and time consumption in the event the problem is not solved remotely.

While it may appear to be a good idea, practicality and experience prove that its most likely a sales point more then a realistic tool.

yeah..Robert…its me.. Mel.

Are some of you guys also opposed to having the customer be able to press the reset button on the front of the directv box if it locks up?  Would you rather have them be without TV for a day until you can get there?  WHICH do you think reflects better service and a happier customer?!

As for hifiguy he is evidently unaware that such a thing as wireless webcams exist.

I am routinely able to fix issues over the phone in minutes with customers and they LOVE it.  And having a webcam there is just one more tool, just like having remote access to the system.  And if you can’t fix it remotely, you send someone out.

Gee, let’s think about this.  Imagine yourself as the customer.  Your system goes down.  5 minutes later you’ve fixed it with a phone call.  Or you can wait and pay for a service tech to come out to be able to use your system.  Which makes you happier?

the client with the $100,000 system doesn’t want and shouldn’t have to be in his equipment room videoing whats going on. there are already too many bad AV dealers making a bad name for all of us.

My house costs considerably more than that amount, but if the builder asks me to aim a Web cam into the attic so he can diagnose a problem remotely ... I’ll happily do it.

Also, are doctors providing poor service if they engage in telemedicine? I’d gladly strap on my own blood pressure cuff if it means the doctor can see me right away.

i had said $100,000 system, not $100,000 house.

medicine is quite different than audio/video, julie. its ridiculous you just tried to make that comparison.

and for you, john - why is a customer messing around with their gear, since they paid for you to install and service it? why would their hdmi cable get pulled out? if you have a reputable company put your system in, you don’t have loose connections, you don’t have these small issues that require an over the phone fix. you put a rock solid system in and that’s that. they pay you for service, so they never have to mess with their gear. if they need to reboot a directv box, cable modem, router, etc - that is easy enough to guide a customer through on the phone. but guess what - under no circumstance do i ever want a client attempting to plug something in or take something out of their system without me being there to do it for them. and i certainly dont want them trying to hold a webcam all while attempting to remedy their system.

I have experience in digging in racks and troubleshooting systems dating back to the early 90s and I am well aware of web cam applications and capabilities.

If you were looking at your webcam without the eyes of the customer you would be dead in the water. If this was a simple as just getting TV who needs a webcam to do that?

A top end system can be remotely monitored with status and someone who knows what they are doing sure doesn’t need a web cam.

There are new concerns in the industry with clients being concerned about the security of their network as well as their personal privacy. 

Real life experience doing this sort of stuff year in year out says half of the time or more I am not going to be near a PC needed to see the camera anyway.

Lastly, Mr Durbin and I worked together way back in his automation days which he will recall. We worked together under the man who is managing the 20 Million dollar job being written about here in CEPRo. I happen to disagree on the point of a camera and most complex systems, the camera would be useless.

apologies, i see you were making the point of the builder asking you to help him troubleshoot. but what exactly is the builder going to see with the webcam? 90% of the time, he will still need to be there to diagnose what needs to really be done. the webcam would just give him a ballpark idea of what’s happening, prior to a visit he is going to have to make regardlessly.

in some small cases, this would save time. in most cases, i could see it being a headache.

our clients here in chicago would not stand for this at all - as they pay us to do that. they usually have more than 3 satellite boxes and televisions in their house, so in the worst case scenario they had to watch a television show in another room for one night - it wouldn’t be an issue to them.

Dan, why would you help them over the phone?  After all, they “paid you to install and service it”.  So a phone is OK, but a webcam in combination with the phone is bad.  Got it.

Here’s another idea that will really scare you.  If you output the audio and video into an IP encoder you can actually test a customers system right over the internet in real time.  Just one more way when a customer calls to be able to quickly figure out what is going on.

You also seem to be making all sorts of assumptions.  Ever done a system in another country?  That webcam might come in handy not only with the homeowner but the local company or engineer who is tasked with maintaining the system, no?  But thanks for telling me what customers with $100,000 systems want.  If I do a system that small I’ll try and remember that.

yes, asking a customer to press a button over the phone is OK. asking them to bring a webcam over and try and mess with connections, NOT OK. that’s the kind of thing that makes for more problems.

a guy that calls $100,000 systems small, putting in wireless webcams for other contractors and homeowners to troubleshoot his own shoddy work. hilarious.