Handle Customer Support for Online Course Business | Examples

As Tony Hsieh, the founder of Zappos, put it, "Customer service should not be a department. It should be the entire company." And if you are a solo course creator handling all the aspects of your course business alone, this applies to you quite literally. 

You are not just the course author. You are the support team, the marketer, and the accountant. 

In all seriousness, great customer support is crucial for keeping students engaged, happy, and coming back for more. 

To help you set up an effective support system, I have collected some best practices that will help you handle customer support for your course business. Plus, real-life examples from other course creators who have figured it out. By the end, you can find useful tools that make handling student inquiries easier. 

How great customer support benefits your course business 

Customer support is not just answering some emails and handling inquiries the students send you. In fact, it is a tool that can become a part of your unique selling point. So, how does good support help to improve your course business?

First, having a system in place helps you reduce dropout rates. Because your students do not enroll in the course just for the information. They are looking to get experience and have someone who can guide them and make sure they succeed. 

Take Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, for example. He once said, 

"We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It is our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better."

 

 Jeff Bezos 

That applies to your online course, too. Because you are hosting an experience, not just selling a course. This way, strong customer support builds trust and credibility. If students know they can reach you when they need help, they are more likely to recommend your course and enroll in another of your programs. It is what turns first-time students into long-term customers.

And, most importantly, you get direct feedback on your course. The questions students ask tell you where your content is unclear, what is missing, and what needs improvement.

So, how can you set up a customer support system that makes your students feel heard, valued, and bonded? 

How to manage your students’ inquiries easily 

To make sure you spend your time wisely, you need to have a customer support system in place. What you need to pay attention to is where you provide support, how you communicate, and how you can make better use of your time as an entrepreneur-creator. Let’s break this down. 

Set up your channels for support 

When it comes to providing the best experience for your students, it is always better to have multiple channels for support. You may think emails work just fine, but here are other options that can make the connection more personal. 

• Email 

With AI technologies being present, email is still considered the most reliable channel to provide support. In fact, 47% of people prefer email support over any other channel, even social media. What is great about it is that there is no rush to answer, unlike with live chat, so you can take your time providing detailed answers to your students' questions. 

However, email is also not one of the fastest ways to communicate. That is why most course creators and coaches include a call option on their websites for faster responses.  

• Live chat 

Live chat support with an AI assistant is another popular option. According to statistics, live chat satisfaction rate is 82% on average, which is higher than that of email. 

Though, not many of the existing students use live chat when you provide your social media accounts, email, and phone. Still, you can introduce it to people who are new to your course website and would like to learn more about your course and programs and see if that is what they are looking for. 

Besides, live chat can help you get new leads. Here is how Michael Lang, who is a creator at Uteach, uses live chat to support his students. On his website, Michael offers courses for English learners who want to prepare for an IELTS examination. 

As you visit his website, the live chat assistant window pops up, asking if they need any help with IELTS preparation. This way, not only existing students but also site visitors will be able to receive support. 

• Q&A calls 

Sometimes, text-based communication takes too much time, especially if you host live cohort courses. So, perhaps email and live chat are not enough. In that case, you can set office hours and schedule group calls with your students. 

This is what Jan Keck, a virtual assistant and creator, prefers for his cohort courses. In an interview with me, Jan mentioned he prefers to run open sessions on specific days of the week. This is how he answers all the students' questions, especially for the new cohorts. 

“I even have a separate session that is just answering questions. Those office hours I called them sometimes were almost as valuable, if not more valuable than the planned content that I had  because the questions are just super tangible”. 

 

Jan Keck

Virtual facilitator, Learning Experience Designer

• Messages within your course platform 

Your platform is where your students spend more time. So, it is so much easier to include a contact form where your students can ask questions and you can get back to them any time you need. 

If you are running your courses on a platform like Uteach, you have the opportunity to add the “Contact us” form on your page, and then you can access all their messages from your dashboard. 

The system collects all your messages and responses, and you can get back to them via email. 

You can set up a page like one of our creators below, including all the necessary fields of the form with pre-built options. On this page, you can share your contact information and all the other channels you would like your students to use to connect with you. 

What is great about this approach is that your messages do not get lost in your email inbox. You can easily track them from your dashboard and keep the necessary records in your CRM. 

• Use your community 

As you offer community support, you solve two problems at once. First, there is no need to always be there and respond to countless messages. Your students can simply ask in a post, and their peers can respond and discuss for you. If you have other admins on the team, they can facilitate the responses as well. 

The second benefit of community support is that you are able to keep students motivated and connected. You provide that sense of “we are in this together”, which makes a huge difference. In fact, 76.6% of people wish their favorite brands had a community.

This implies that community support can enhance student loyalty.

If you run your courses on a course platform like Uteach, you can set up paid and free communities for all of your courses. You can manage the community permissions in a way that the students can post, comment, and engage. 

This is what posting in your community can look like when students need help. 

• Use your mobile chat

The most genuine way to provide instant support for your students? It is using the chat functionality within your own mobile app. With the mobile chat, your students know they can reach you any time, and it builds trust. 

For example, with Uteach, you can get your branded app on marketplaces like Google Play and the App Store. Within the app, you can create different group chats on various topics. 

So, you can make one about support and questions, and the other chat members can respond to the questions, too. 

Maintain clear communication 

Now that you have established where you want your students to reach out for support, make sure you communicate that clearly. 

• Mention your support channels

If you create a policy on how you provide support for your students, make sure you make it accessible to them. You can especially describe the level of support you offer on your

• Course landing page
• About us page
• Contact us page
• Your social media accounts

For example, Marie Forleo, who is a popular creator and entrepreneur, explain how students people can reach out to her in one of her blog articles. 

She created an interactive form where people can submit their questions via video and voicemail. As they record and send the questions, Marie promises to pick those and provide answers in her podcast, Marie TV. 

This is a great way to build connections and relationships with your audience and provide them the support they need to succeed. 

If you prefer your students to contact you via social media, do not forget to include the relevant icons and links on your course website. 

• Set clear response times 

Having clarity on the response schedule is beneficial for both you and your students. For you, you do not have to spend days in your email inbox trying to respond to all general inquiries. On the other hand, you are able to manage the students’ expectations. 

If you say you will respond in 24 hours, do it. Because trust is built on consistency. If you need more time, send a quick update so students know you have not forgotten them.

As we were discussing the strategies you need to sell online courses in an interview with Angel Rodriguez, he highlighted the importance of delivering your promises. Angel is a creator at Uteach who offers courses on licensed security training. He believes consistency is what is important when it comes to supporting your students. 

“I have a very simple philosophy, which is that you always have to deliver. If you make a promise, you deliver on that promise. If I tell my students I'm going to get their certificate to them within 24 hours, they're going to have it well within that time period. Because you don't want to overcommit and then underdeliver.”

 

Angel Rodriguez

Course creator at Uteach

• Set up auto-replies when you are away 

You will not always be available for the students. But, at the same time, you do not want them to feel ignored. That is why it is always a great idea to set up the old and good “away messages.” 

So, when students contact you via email or chat, have an automated message that confirms their request was received and reminds them of your response time. Something like:

“Thanks for reaching out! I will get back to you within 5 business days. In the meantime, check our FAQ for quick answers.”

• Create an FAQ page 

Speaking of FAQ, make sure you give all the answers to the potential questions on your landing pages. FAQ is a good practice to use, especially on your course and policy pages to clear all the doubts. 

For example, Katie Campbell, who offers a social media course, has a dedicated section of questions about her program. One of them regards the support the students will receive. As for Katie, she provides support via live calls and by sending questions. She also runs a Slack community. 

• Have a CRM system in place

As you receive many requests, you would need to integrate a CRM system. It will help you keep track of every conversation, question, and issue so that nothing falls through the cracks.

First, it helps you stay organized. If you are managing support manually, like through emails, social media DMs, or random notes, you will lose track of who asked what. A CRM keeps everything in one place, so you always know who needs a follow-up and what has already been answered.

Plus, you can access all the information about your student for more personalized support. 

Some course platforms come with CRM features to keep track of student data. With Uteach, for example, you can add any field you want to track and keep it in the student records. For instance, once the students answer a question in your survey, the information is tracked in the corresponding field.

Delegate customer support tasks 

And if you feel like you cannot handle support along with managing the course content and marketing, you can always get a team. 

In an interview with me, Jessica Koch, who is a sales consultant, emphasized the importance of hiring a team. Jessica has a virtual assistant to help with support-related tasks. 

“Avoid doing it all by yourself. Have a team, you know, because anybody can afford a team at this point. There are lots of affordable options, but you also have people that collaborate with you. So, look at the networking groups that you're in. Look at your other the people that you've made friendships within the business space”. 

 

Jessica Koch

Sales Consultant

• Hire a virtual assistant 

You can focus on improving your course while your VA handles the day-to-day support. For example, you can hire an assistant from platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, OnlineJobs.ph, or specialized VA agencies.

The average salary of a virtual assistant in the UK is £12/hour. 

• Use helpdesk tools

However, if you are not ready to get a team but still need to handle lots of inquiries daily, it is a great idea to integrate a helpdesk assistant. Helpdesk platforms will also help you prioritize and track issues.

For example, if a student has a technical problem, you can tag it as urgent. If another just needs a general question answered, you can handle it later. Plus, help desks allow you to set up automated responses for common questions, saving you from typing the same thing 20 times a day. Some of the most popular platforms include the following. 

• Zendesk

Zendesk is a customer support platform that helps you manage student inquiries, automate responses, and keep all communication in one place. It lets you handle emails, live chat, and even social media messages from a single dashboard. You can set up a knowledge base for FAQs, use AI chatbots to handle common questions and assign tickets to team members if you have a VA or support staff. It also gives you reports on response times and student issues, helping you improve your course experience.

• Help Scout 

Unlike traditional help desks, Help Scout feels more like a personal email rather than a ticketing system, making interactions more human. Plus, it offers automation, saved replies, and reports to track common issues. It works like a shared inbox, so you and your team (or VA) can manage student emails

• Freshdesk

What makes Freshdesk unique is its AI-powered chatbot, which can handle FAQs automatically. It also has a ticketing system that prioritizes urgent student issues. Unlike some help desks, Freshdesk offers multichannel support, meaning you can manage emails, live chat, social media messages, and even WhatsApp in one place. Plus, it has gamification features. You can turn support into a fun competition if you have a team. 

Provide the best customer experience with Uteach 

Strong customer support helps you keep students engaged, reduce dropout rates, and improve your courses based on real feedback. Whether it is setting clear support channels, using a CRM, or automating with helpdesk tools, having a system in place saves you time and ensures students get the help they need.

If you are looking for a course platform that can help you provide students with the best experience possible, you can start with Uteach. Here, you can create and sell your online courses, live courses, coaching, digital products, and so much more. 

Uteach allows you to make the student experience more engaging with the mobile app, multi-format courses and quizzes, and community options.  Start your free trial today and make the most out of your online course business.