Customer support as a source of usability insight: why users call support after visiting self-service websites

Abstract

Though customer support is argued to be a useful source of usability insight, how to benefit from customer support in usability evaluation is hardly made the subject of scientific research. In this paper, we present an approach to gather usability insight from users when they call customer support. We also present a case implementation of this approach: an evaluation of a telecom operator's customer website. We find that the proposed approach provides insight in usability problems, technical issues, and issues of strategic character. Though the majority of the website users called customer support because they were obstructed in their attempt to use available self-service support options, a substantial proportion of the users called customer support as a planned part of their task. On the basis of the study findings we present practical implications and suggest future research.