Upshift Customer Service — Operational Playbook and Implementation Guide

Executive summary

Upshift’s customer service must combine rapid responsiveness with technical accuracy and personal empathy. For a modern mobility/marketplace platform, the support organization should be built to meet omnichannel demand: phone, chat, email, in-app, and social. This document sets measurable targets, staffing models, tooling, escalation paths, pricing for premium support, and a 90-day implementation timeline to achieve consistent service levels.

The approach below is pragmatic: define SLAs, instrument performance with KPIs, automate repetitive tasks, and create a human escalation core for complex issues. Where numbers appear (response times, FTE counts, prices) they are realistic operational targets used in industry best practice and are offered as starting points to tailor to Upshift’s transaction volume and margins.

Key metrics, SLAs, and targets

To measure performance, adopt a tight set of KPIs and SLAs. Targets should be explicit in contracts and internal dashboards; common high-performing targets to aim for are: first-response times under 60 seconds on chat, under 2 minutes for inbound phone, under 4 hours for priority email, and acknowledgment of all tickets within 24 hours for lower-priority issues. First Contact Resolution (FCR) should aim for 70–85% depending on complexity, and Net Promoter Score (NPS) goals should be set at +30 or higher for a differentiated experience.

Use SLA breaches and ticket aging to drive staffing and automation decisions. Example SLA thresholds to implement in ticketing: P1 incidents responded to within 15 minutes and resolved or escalated within 4 hours; P2 within 1 business hour and resolved within 24 hours; P3 acknowledged within 24 hours and resolved within 72 hours. Track CSAT after each contact with a target score of ≥85% for premium customers and ≥75% for standard customers.

• Core KPIs (minimum dashboard): Average Handle Time (AHT), First Response Time, FCR, CSAT, NPS, Ticket Volume per Channel, Resolution Time, Escalation Rate, Cost per Ticket (target: $6–$18 depending on channel and automation).
• Operational SLA examples: P1 = 15 min response / 4 hr resolution; P2 = 60 min / 24 hr; P3 = 24 hr / 72 hr. Service availability: 99.9% for support tools and telephony.

Channels and workflows

Design workflows around channel strengths. Use phone for urgent account or safety issues, chat for real-time triage and sales/retention, email for formal ticketing and complex troubleshooting, and in-app support for contextual, session-linked help. Route tickets automatically based on intent classification (NLP), priority, and customer tier to reduce routing latency.

Implement canned responses and templated diagnostics for common issues (billing disputes, login failures, refund requests) but maintain an easy path to human takeover. Automate confirmation messages (order receipts, appointment changes) and use workflow automation to escalate tickets that exceed defined thresholds, e.g., auto-escalate if a ticket waits >2× its SLA.

Voice, chat, and in-app specifics

For voice: aim to answer 80% of calls within 60 seconds, maintain Average Speed of Answer (ASA) under 45 seconds during peak hours, and adopt IVR routing that reduces transfers to under 12% of calls. For chat: configure an instantaneous welcome message and keep live agent queueing under 60 seconds; bot-handled sessions should resolve routine tasks (password resets, status checks) 40–60% of the time.

In-app support should include context capture (device type, app version, last 3 actions, geolocation when permitted) to reduce troubleshooting time by an estimated 30–50%. Capture metadata in the ticket to enable higher FCR rates and faster resolution.

Staffing, organization, and capacity planning

Staff to demand using Erlang C modeling or a simulation model based on historical ticket volumes. As a rule of thumb: 1 full-time agent handles 35–50 chats/day or 70–100 email tickets/day depending on complexity. For a 24/7 operation with 500 inbound tickets/day split 40% chat, 30% email, 20% phone, 10% in-app, expect ≈25–35 agents plus 4–6 tier-2 specialists and 1–2 QA/trainers during steady state.

Account for shrinkage (training, breaks, meetings) at 25–30% when calculating headcount. Adopt a permanent core for escalations and a flexible pool (part-time, contractors) to handle seasonal spikes or marketing-driven surges. Schedule overlap windows across shifts for knowledge transfer and handoffs.

Tools, automation, and tech stack

Choose an integrated stack that supports omnichannel routing, CRM integration, knowledge base, and automation. Prioritize systems that provide robust APIs for telemetry ingestion, ticket enrichment, and analytics. Ensure data residency and compliance features for GDPR/CCPA if Upshift operates in those jurisdictions.

• Recommended stack components: omnichannel ticketing (Zendesk, Freshdesk, or Intercom), telephony/IVR with call recording (Twilio Flex or Amazon Connect), knowledge base (Confluence or native KB), workforce management (Calabrio or TeamSense), and analytics (Looker, PowerBI). Integrate with product telemetry and billing systems to reduce resolution time by 20–40%.

Pricing, SLA tiers, and sample offers

Offer tiered support: Standard (included), Priority (+$29/month or $2.50 per active user/month), and Enterprise (custom pricing). Example pricing: Standard — email + in-app with 24–72 hour SLA; Priority — 24/7 chat and phone escalation with 4–24 hour SLA at $29/user/month; Enterprise — dedicated CSM, 1-hour P1 response, white-glove onboarding from $6,000/year or custom retainer. Include clear terms: response times, credits for SLA breaches (e.g., 5% service credit for repeated monthly failures), and termination conditions.

When negotiating enterprise contracts, require a minimum term (12 months), outline onboarding fees (example: $3,500 for setup including integrations and 2 weeks of training), and define KPIs and quarterly business reviews (QBRs). Use price anchoring in proposals: show the cost of unmanaged support (cost per ticket × projected volume) to justify premium tiers.

Quality assurance, escalations, and compliance

QA should combine automated monitoring (speech analytics, sentiment scoring) and human evaluation. Sample QA program: evaluate 8–10 tickets per agent per month, score using a 10-point rubric weighted toward accuracy, empathy, and timeliness, and set a minimum passing average of 8.0. Use calibration sessions monthly to align scoring across leads.

Define a three-level escalation ladder: L1 (agent), L2 (technical specialist), L3 (product/engineering + CSM). Maintain an incident playbook for P1 events with a 15-minute SLA for initial response and an incident manager on call. Put data protection controls in place: role-based access, audit logs, and retention policies that meet legal requirements.

Implementation timeline and milestones

Recommended rollout over 90 days: Weeks 1–2: discovery, volume analysis, SLA definition. Weeks 3–6: tool selection, integrations, templates, and initial hires. Weeks 7–10: training, QA framework, and live pilot with limited user segment. Weeks 11–13: full launch, monitoring, and first 30-day optimization cycle. Expect measurable improvements in FCR and CSAT at the end of the first 90 days if adherence to the plan is maintained.

Track milestones with a RACI matrix and a weekly steering committee. Typical implementation costs (tooling + onboarding + first 3 months staffing) for a mid-market rollout are often in the $40k–$120k range depending on automation level and geographic coverage.

Contacts and sample templates

Provide clear contact points: Example support line (US toll-free): 1-800-555-0123 (example); escalation email: [email protected] (example); support portal: https://support.example-upshift.com (example). Make these available in-app, on receipts, and in transactional emails to reduce repeat contacts and confusion.

Include short, actionable templates for agents: apology + acknowledgement + next step + timebound expectation. Example: “I’m sorry for the disruption — I see your payment failed due to card decline. I will retry the transaction and confirm within 45 minutes; if it still fails we’ll process a manual authorization and notify you by email.” Use these templates as living artifacts in the knowledge base and update quarterly based on QA findings.

How do I contact customer service for Shiftsmart?

Log into the app and go to the home screen. Click on Earnings in the main menu at the bottom of the screen. Find the shift or shop in question. Click “Contact us” to send us a message.

Is it hard to get hired by Upshift?

We use a more selective hiring process to ensure high-quality and reliable workers. Each applicant undergoes our two-part vetting process that consists of an online personality assessment and a face-to-face interview – only 12% of candidates are ultimately accepted as Upshifters.

Is working for Upshift worth it?

Upshift has an employee rating of 3.9 out of 5 stars, based on 139 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there.

Is EarnIn customer service 24 hours?

EarnIn offers 24/7 in-app chat support. The chat experience is conversational, meaning your chat history is saved (similar text messaging). Chats do not get disconnected. Respond at your convenience.

How do I contact shift support?

Our Shift Support Team is always happy to help! If you prefer live assistance over the phone, you can leave a voicemail with your contact information for our friendly Support staff to call you back: (415) 223-7565.

How do I get in contact with Upshift?

In this case, the best way to get quick response from us is to message us through the “Contact Us” function in the Upshift mobile app. We will ask you a few questions before you are connected with one of our Upshifter support representatives.