Comprehensive Support

What if a problem arose with your application that stopped you working even for a few hours? Would things grind to a halt, and would this be costing you valuable time and money?

If the answer is YES, then it would be prudent to have a support contract in place to deal with any problems and get you up and running as soon as possible.

Hero Solutions can provide comprehensive support for your bespoke system for peace of mind that there is somebody available either to simply answer questions or deal with any unexpected issues, with a guaranteed response time of just 10 minutes. We’ll also guarantee that any critical issue is dealt with immediately.

Do I need a support contract?

People often say that a well written software shouldn’t need a lot of support. This is a fair assumption, but unexpected things can happen, caused by both internal and external factors, which can result in problems with a system.

Here are some examples of issues we’ve had to deal with for customers:

A server upgrade which required us to upgrade and test the database
New antivirus software being installed on a server which interfered with the database. Once the software had been installed correctly the problem was resolved.
Users entering data incorrectly and double running some routines which caused errors in the data that we had to investigate and then correct.
An account had not been disabled after a member of staff was dismissed, and the user then maliciously deleted data as they had remote access. We restored the data and disabled the account.
The connections to the system failing because new software had been loaded onto the server and there was not enough memory to cope with the new software. We identified the problem which was then fixed by adding more memory.

Some clients, for whom the software is not business critical, prefer a pay as you go service where they only pay for the time as they use it rather than on a monthly contract. They still get all their problems solved but understand they have to pay for all our time (at a higher rate than when on a support contract) and that they may have to wait a little longer while we schedule them in.

However, for total piece of mind we recommend you consider taking out a support contract.

What does a support contract include?

Our standard support package offers a simple one-stop solution to your support needs, which includes:

Support for technical and end-user queries. This includes phone support during office hours (09:00 – 17:30 Mon-Fri) and email support, with a guaranteed response time of just 10 minutes.
Issues classed as critical will be dealt with immediately.
An annual SQL Server Health Check, which ensures the SQL Server is operating in optimum condition, and includes testing backups to ensure they restore correctly, running traces to identify bottlenecks and improve efficiency etc.
Customers signed up to a support contract are also entitled to a 10% discount on our standard daily rate for any additional development work on the system (e.g. ongoing tweaks and improvements).
Queries must only come from up to two nominated personnel (not directly from end-users), although we can offer direct end-user support as well if required.
Up to 2 hours support per month, which from experience we find is adequate for most clients. However, should you go over this in a month you pay a flat rate of £80 + VAT per hour (compared to £120 + VAT per hour without a support contract).
Access to your own dedicated Solution Management Portal to keep track of your support usage.

As well as the standard package, we can also provide out of hours support (e.g. weekends), direct support to end-users and more frequent SQL Server health checks if required.

So how much will it cost?

The cost of a standard support package is just £185 + VAT per month, with payments taken either on an annual or bi-annual basis. Costs for optional extras (e.g. out of hours support) will vary depending upon your requirements, and we are happy to provide a quotation based on your individual needs.

A FREE 3 month support subscription is included with all bespoke solutions developed by Hero.

I thought you offered a lifetime bug warranty - is that not support?

Our bug warranty states that any issues with the system caused as a direct result of our work will be fixed free of charge. However, a support contract covers much more than this - issues such as connection problems, server issues, end-user queries, fixing issues caused by user error etc.

And, whilst we always aim to respond to bug reports as quickly as possible, there is no service level agreement with the standard bug warranty (i.e. how long until the bug will be fixed).

Above all, a support contract gives you piece of mind that your system is looked after and your problems will be dealt with quickly. It also works out around 50% cheaper when we are asked to deal with problems not covered by the warranty when covered by a support contract.

I already have a database system - can you support it?

In most cases yes we can, and so long as we have the right access to the servers and system then there should be no problems. If there is no technical documentation of any kind then we would look to compile this ourselves this in order to provide the necessary level of support, as well as any user manuals if these are also missing.

Taking on an existing system will incur additional charges as we have to spend the time getting to know the system and training our staff on it. Also charges would be incurred for writing technical documentation, but this documentation would also be provided to you which is invaluable for the long-term support and development of the system.

What do I do next?

Phone 0845 6120620 and ask to speak to one of our sales consultants. As well as the support service, we can also provide a user manual and bespoke training on applications developed by Hero.

Support FAQs - frequently asked questions about our support contracts.
Solution Management - your free tool for the ongoing management of your application. Try it out for yourself.
Contact Details - contact us for a free no-obligation quote.