Sage News and Discussion

Dear Acuity Solutions: Sage is conducting a customer pilot of a free online chat support feature for customers. Based on extensive customer interviews, online chat is one of the services that our customers have highlighted as valuable to their business. You have been identified as the business partner for one or more of the customers included in this limited pilot. As a courtesy, we would like to make you aware of this outreach that will be taking place over the next few weeks. Thanks for your continued support as a Sage Business Partner. Sincerely, Paul Chen Customer Support Specialist Sage 100 ERP Customer Support 6561 Irvine Center Drive Irvine, CA 92618 Office: (800) 854-3415 tools.na@sage.com I read this as: our previous effort to capture your service revenues have failed. We're going to take another crack at it.

Anyone up for starting our own chat service? My experience with web chat is that it tends to attract 85% people who have no support plan or ability to pay. I am serious about starting our own chat if anyone is interested. Mind if I completely anonymize and post to LinkedIN ?

Do you know if this is aimed at a particular product line -- Sage 100? 50? Sage One?

In all likelihood, this is a Sage 100 ERP customer. Based on the products that we are the reseller of record for, there is a remote chance that it is for Fixed Assets or HRMS. ""My experience with web chat is that it tends to attract 85% people who have no support plan or ability to pay."" This is why I'm not certain if I should be more upset or if rolling my eyes is a sufficient reaction. Let's take it to LinkedIn.

>Let's take it to LinkedIn. Do you want to or should I? The one concern I would have is if Sage adds the chat as a menu item or hangs it off Sage Advisor. I'll be interested to see exactly how they implement it. If it's just a web link that's not as dangerous as if it is a desktop full time link.

Given your journalistic angle, I think it would be best if you posted it to LinkedIn.

I put it on the Sage 100 group and asked if anyone else has encountered this or had the chat installed.

I sent a cheerful reply asking which customers were included in the pilot and what invitation/announcements were sent but I doubt that information will be forthcoming. It seems too easy to post it as an eternally active chat window. I don't understand why they wouldn't do it that way (particularly during a pilot).

Paul did reply and shared the customer name and said specifically that this was for Sage 100 ERP. He didn't (yet) share any of the program details.

The latest response from Paul: Customers are able to access a specific web page that includes chat buttons and links to articles of interest on our support web site (trending issues being discussed on Sage City, some articles written by experts in the field, etc.) They can click on a chat button and begin chatting with our support personnel, just as customers currently can if they were to log onto the Customer Portal. However, pilot program participants' access will be priority. The install, if they choose to install, creates a short-cut on their Desktop that can, if clicked, merely opens up that specific web page. We ask customers not to share the link with others outside their company, as resources devoted to supporting this pilot are limited at this time. (You are welcome to sit beside them to observe as they use the features.) The questions they can ask are generally the same as those that can be asked via the chat feature on the Customer Portal, and if there is a need to go more in-depth, they are encouraged to call and a support ticket can be created. I do not know at this time how long this pilot program will run. That is the same answer I give to customers who ask.

Initial response in the office: they're trying to crowd-source end-user support (from other end-users and partners on Sage City)

This is worth paying some attention to. While I don't think Sage will make any more headway than they have in the past - why chance it.

SIA uses a ""chat"" on their systems. The issue I see with chat is the manpower required to staff it and I don't think that Sage has enough unless they outsource it.

I won't argue that point, @MoiraGoggin . It sounds like the chat will only be a part of the service. The rest will be a page that compiles information from (and re-directs users to) Sage City and the support pages (when they're available, one presumes).