Are support and service synonymous in your organization? You would be among good company if it were. Many organizations view these business functions as the same. Of the ones that do differentiate, few actually leverage them for the opportunity they offer. Let’s look at the differences.

Support is what product manufacturers do to keep the product running as advertised. It involves repair, maintenance, parts, and all the other work required to keep the machine performing its intended function. Most manufacturers have founded their warranty and contract business on support.

Service is work done for others as an occupation or business. Think of it as anything over and above “keeping the machine running as advertised.” We can call them “Value-added” services.

Many manufacturers confuse the two. I argue their differences are distinct.

Comparing support to service

By thinking about them separately, the doors to opportunity and growth swing open and many more possibilities exist. Achieving this understanding is the first step to uncovering the strategic potential remote technologies offer.

Let’s illustrate with an example. Are remote software updates a value-added service? Maybe to the manufacturer - it turns out updating software and firmware is a major support cost. But to the customer, it is something they view necessary to keep the equipment running properly. They might even say, “for us much as we paid for this thing, it shouldn’t need any patches.”

I would put remote software updates in the “service efficiency” category under support.

Here is a different example. Let’s say the industry is regulated where the equipment is being used. Let’s say there are laws that require the equipment owner to keep certain records of their operations and these records determine whether they are in compliance or not.

Let’s also say that every once in a while, the “Man” comes and audits those records to ensure compliance. Of course the “man” gives little or no notice of when he is coming. Rude, isn’t he?

For years and years, the equipment owner has made records management a part of daily operations of the business - for better or worse. Consider it a cost of doing business. When the “Man” comes by, everyone drops what they are doing and goes to the basement to sift through years of illegible paperwork hoping they can connect the dots and get out of the audit alive. Meanwhile, the day to day operations get thrown out the window and their customers suffer for it.

Can you smell that? Yep, that’s the smell of opportunity.

Along comes a young enterprising lad and approaches the equipment owner. He says, “Mister, let me take that burden of records management off your shoulders and I’ll make sure you’re ready for all your inspections from here on out.” The equipment owner is intrigued. “In fact”, he says in somewhat cocky manner, “We’ll keep an eye on things and if we see something that could lead to a compliance problem, we’ll let you know about it before it is a reportable problem.”

Ahh, the beginning of a valuable partnership.

At this point, the equipment owner is seeing visions of actually focusing on customers (patients in this case), operational excellence, quality assurance, being able to do more with less, trumpets, angels, and doves…all the makings of a value-added service.

You might be asking yourself at this point, “What does this have to do with remote service?” Well, as it turns out in this case, and this case happens to be the health care industry, many of the records necessary for regulatory compliance can be remotely monitored and stored by the equipment manufacturer. And, they can be stored is such a way that they are within fingertip reach if the “Man” happens to stop by.

If you are an equipment manufacturer, I bet you wish you were having these kinds of conversations with your customers (if you’re not already).

Support is vital to the services story. In most cases, remote support will be the way a manufacturer gets their foot in the door so they can be in a position to sell Services. Keeping the concepts separated, and that means how you package and offer them, is how you can make double word score in the market. That is, achieve both the cost savings potential of remote support and the revenue generation of remote service.

Now there you have it - the difference between support and service.