Omni Core · Customer Support · Module
Escalation
What happens when the first line cannot resolve it — where most of the memorable failures occur, because the customer repeats themselves and waits.
The idea
How it works
The escalated case is where a moderate problem becomes a memorable one. The customer explains again, waits longer, and frequently has to chase.
Two things make escalation work: the context travels with the case, and there is a time limit after which someone is accountable for it not having moved.
Working with it
In practice
- 01
Send the context, not the ticket
What has been tried, what the customer has already said, and what they were promised. The receiving side should not need to ask.
- 02
Keep the customer with one person
A named contact through the escalation, even if the work happens elsewhere. Repetition is what they remember.
- 03
Set a time limit
After which the case is reviewed by someone senior. Escalated cases disappear otherwise.
- 04
Feed escalations back to prevention
A category escalating repeatedly is a product or process problem being handled as a support problem.
One level in
The components of escalation
A component is something that exists afterwards which did not exist before — a deliverable or a mechanism, not an intention.
A category that escalates repeatedly is a product problem being handled as a support problem.
The other modules in customer support
Getting help
How customers reach support, how easily, and whether the route matches the urgency of what they need.
LearnResolution
Whether the problem actually went away — measured properly, rather than through closure rates that can be met without solving anything.
LearnSelf-service and knowledge
What customers can resolve without contact, and whether the material is good enough that they would choose to.
Learn