Category Archives: Tech Support

FNGi COVID-19 Response

To: All FNGi Customers
Re: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Readiness/Planning

With the current uncertainties, I want you and all of our valued clients to be certain and confident that First Network Group is here to serve your needs and those of your customers. To that end, I want to update you on our status and planning.

Please know that while all things Coronavirus (COVID-19) remain fluid and subject to change, at the present time, our departments remain open on our regular 24/7 schedules, we are actively monitoring and managing your network and server infrastructure. All DHCPatriot work continues as normal in upgrades and support. As well as providing end-user technical support, call center service, and Lawful Intercepts to your customers, and we stand ready to be there for you.

We have escalated internal policies and procedures that minimize the risk of exposure to our employees and their families as we are confident that you have too. Departments that are well suited to work-at-home have already begun the transition as practicable. 

In addition and at this juncture, we have no plans to close our offices, but if the need for that arises we will also migrate all call center services to a telecommuting model. That transition should be seamless for you and your customers.

Again, we see no need for those alternate operations at this time. 

We are honored to be at your service, and as always, feel free to call or write as questions arise. 

Respectfully,
Stephen C. Walter
Founder, President & CEO

Calix Cloud Support

Does your company use Calix Support Cloud (or Compass) to manage end-user services? Our End-User Technical Support team is fully trained in this system and ready to assist your customers 24 hours a day!

If you haven’t already set up our access for your customers, contact us today to get started!

Remote Help

Did you know that part of the End-User Technical Support services you already receive from us, includes our remote assistance feature for free?

We’ve always known that helping a user directly is the best way to correct an issue, so in 2010 we designed and deployed our remote assistance software. This secure and lightweight software is any easy to download and run for any user and allows us to view and manipulate the customer’s computer with them in real time.

The biggest surprise of using this tool was not the ease and speed of resolving a customer’s issue, but using it as a way to educate customers to features of their computer or websites one-on-one and at their own pace.

This tool has been invaluable in helping us reach our recent one million call milestone!

First Network Group, Inc. Proudly Completes One Million Support Calls

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

First Network Group, Inc. Proudly Completes One Million Support Calls

Handling their first support call over 20 years ago, First Network Group, Inc. reaches another  major milestone by making their One Millionth support call!

Wapakoneta, OH (July 2017)

First Network Group, Inc. is proud to announce a major milestone in the history of the company– their one millionth call produced by their Technical Support and Customer Care Call Center.

Small businesses are judged by longevity and First Network Group has already proven their mettle in that area by surpassing 20 years in business in July 2016. However very few companies can claim the benchmark of one million support calls. If you think you’re on the phone a lot, making one million calls adds up to nearly 400 days of non-stop talk time!

The past one million calls have been made been made at First Network Group’s home office, in the small town of Wapakoneta, Ohio. Each one of these calls has focused on providing the special type of warmth and neighborly approach that can only be found in a small Midwestern town.

First Network Group has always maintained a customer first attitude, which explains why they’ve been so successful. “We’ve always said, we could support Internet, TV, telephone or whatever, but at the heart of it all was the desire to help make someone’s life easier and more enjoyable through the use of technology,” states Cory Lykins, Vice President of Tech Services.

Small town values, a customer-friendly and focused approach and dedication to bringing technology in reach of everyone– it’s clear to see why First Network Group has enjoyed so much  success through the years.

About First Network Group, Inc.

First Network Group Inc. is a specialist in building and maintaining Internet Service Provider Networks. Based in Ohio, it provides Server Administration, Network Engineering, and 24×7 emergency monitoring to reduce ISP/NSP downtime. FNGi developed and sells the DHCPatriot– a DHCP accounting and authentication server appliance. FNGi has a flexible and robust Call Center that provides multi-product End-user Technical Support Services and Customer Care options 24/7/365.

www.network1.net

Press and Media Inquiries
Cory Lykins
First Network Group, Inc.
P: +1-800-578-6381
E: info@network1.net

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Remote Assistance

“This direct control allows the technician to check several things faster than the caller.” Contacting technical support can take many forms, from support websites to simple email interaction all the way to talking to a live person via the telephone any time of the a day or night.

Each form of support provides a different level of interaction appropriate to the level of need of the customer. Some customers simply need to know if the SMTP server supports authentication and will find that via a non-interactive means such as your support website. Other users have a unique situation or need and require a bit more interaction so they will seek online chat, email or telephone support.

Then there are times when a customer needs even deeper immersion and interaction than that. In this case our Remote Presence utility is the pinnacle of support and interaction. This technical support feature is a totally secure remote support solution that allows us to directly interact with and view the customers computer. This tool helps when it’s hard for the customer to accurately describe a problem that needs to be visualized to be understood.

The software is small, downloads quickly and can be fully customized with your company’s logo and credentials. When the software is opened it provides the customer with a way for our technicians to securely connect and view and control their computer. Each session and connection is unique and secured with AES-256 bit encryption.

This direct control allows the technician to check several things faster than the caller. It is also a unique way to show customers how to get the most of out of their computer and online experience. Our Remote Presence software is completely free of charge and is yet another of our support tools that create the best technical support your customers can experience. Unlike some other support centers, we do not charge extra for the feature-rich improvements to our process.

Contact us today for a price quote and evaluation, to find out what others have known for nearly two decades, that First Network Group Technical Support is the leader in value and service. Contact Cory Lykins, VP of Tech Services at 1-800-578-6381, option 6, to find out more.

PARENTAL CONTROLS ARE BUILT IN

Keeping your children safe online has always been an issue, but never before has this task been so easy. Both Microsoft Windows 7 and Apple OSX feature built-in parental controls to help you with this task. Now there is no need for third-party applications that can be easy to circumvent or require costly monthly fees to maintain.

Proud-parents

On Apple OSX platform you can accomplish this by creating an account for your child with his/her own username and password (done via Accounts in System Preferences). Make sure this account is set to Standard. Select this account and check “Enable Parental controls” and then click the “Open Parental Controls” button.

In Parental Controls you will have options to limit what specific applications the account is allowed to use on the “System” section. To control web browsing, select “Content” at the top and enable the “Website Restrictions” option of your choice. You can even choose specific websites to be blocked. Other options include limiting chat and email to specific contacts and setting online time limits.

On Microsoft Windows 7 & 8 platforms you can accomplish this by creating an account for your child via “User Accounts” in the Control Panel or by opening Start and typing “User”. To access the Parental Controls, open Start and simply type “Parental” and you will see the Parental Controls option appear in the “Control Panel” section of the results. With Windows you can select what times of day and how long your child can use the computer.

You can also select age appropriate limits on the computer games installed on the computer or block specific programs. To greatly expand your options you can download “Windows Live Family Safety”, part of the Windows Live suite of free programs. By default this enables basic filtering of websites as well as specific websites. A Microsoft Windows Live ID is required for this service such as a Hotmail or Live account.

First Network Group employees are happy to help your users setup the various Parental Control options they may have on their operating system. If you are already use us to provide your End-User technical support, this process is included in the service. If you aren’t currently using our End-User technical support services to provide your customers with the best 24×7 service options, contact us today to find out how a solution from First Network Group can help. Contact Cory Lykins, VP of Tech Services at 1-800-578-6381, option 6, to find out more.

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

xboxps4The 2013 holiday season will be huge for gaming. Microsoft and Sony have both announced their newest consoles, the XBOX One and the PlayStation 4. And while the previous consoles, the Microsoft XBOX 360 and the Sony PlayStation 3 aren’t leaving the entertainment space, the new gaming consoles are poised to dominate this holiday buying season. This will mean even more expansion of Internet usage in today’s digital living rooms. We have seen Smart TV sales surge, but nothing trumps the undisputed king of online access in the living room – the video game console. The XBOX 360 and PlayStation 3 boast more than 70 million active online users combined. According to Microsoft, XBOX 360 users spend an average of 40 hours a week on the service. Our own internal tracking puts game console calls in the top 20 of systems for help requests.

This means more and more customers are not only seeking faster Internet speeds but also a vast array of assistance to consume and enjoy this content. In addition, it’s not all just fun and games. Over the past year, the amount of time spent watching TV or a movie on a video game console has grown 157 percent! It also means that customers will want to expand their current local networking options in their homes: this means new routers, new connection practices, network keys and new security concerns. First Network Group’s Technical Support department has your customers completely covered in all these respects. We can easily guide any level of user thru the unboxing and setup of a wireless router, and connecting any gaming console out there. We take our time and explain each step of the way so the customer understands the benefits of
different setups and best practices in wireless security standards.

If you are already providing superior customer service and technical support to your customers by using First Network Group Technical Support, then you can rest assured that this explosive demographic of customer is completely supported from beginning to end. If you have not yet had a chance to find out how our technical support service can provide total support coverage, give us a call and find out just how we can make sure your customers are getting the most out of your product.

A Better Way

We have all seen the jokes online, on TV shows and in movies about a bewildered customer needing assistance and calling their technical support only to find the person on the other end is unintelligible and incapable of helping them.

The key to running a healthy call center is efficiency; however, perceived “efficiencies” can erode true customer service. The “shotgun approach” defines efficiency as moving the employees from call-to-call as fast as possible while trying to fix only the most common problems. Typically, this approach does not get to the heart of the customer’s problem or provide a good customer service experience.

Our call center’s focus is to be quick and efficient, by making sure we have available staff for every caller in a timely manner, but how we get there is a little different from other places. We actually train our employees. We do not use one-size fits all scripts nor do we rely on software alone to provide automated guidance.

To achieve this model we maintain a vast Knowledge Base of solutions and information. Our employees are taught how to quickly get at the root of a problem with deductive reasoning and then to apply information from our Knowledge Base, not because they are told to, but because they understand that is the correct course. If an employee does not understand a concept or construct about the situation, they escalate the call to a more senior technician and, after the call, they discuss the remedy so they can gain that knowledge. Our call center approach builds problem solvers, not drones.

This approach creates an efficient environment because there is little to no wasted time with an employee wandering off in the wrong direction or wasting time redoing steps repeatedly. Knowledge is the key, not scripts, not hand holding but knowledge that can be built and expanded upon. While we are focused on making sure our time to first contact is as low as possible (current average is: 1.26 minutes) we are flexible enough to make sure that customers requiring special attention or have larger needs are also taken care of correctly. Striking that balance is not easy but it is imperative to run a successful call center and support network. Join the First Network Group family today and offer your Internet customers – broadband and dial-up – cellular, CATV/IPTV and landline, our outstanding technical service.

Contact us today to find out more information about this incredibly useful service. Ask for me directly, Cory Lykins , V.P. – Technical Support: coryl@network1.net or call me at 1-800-578-6381, option 6