FAQ on the Support Changes announced July 2021
We’ve been improving and redesigning the way we provide technical support at Seagull Scientific — you’ve been communicated these changes via a newsletter, and we wanted to expand the information available to you by means of a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section.
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As a BarTender customer, what upcoming changes are being made by Seagull to help elevate my support experience?
- A new enhanced Maintenance and Support Agreement has been created that contains more detailed information about how to contact us, when Support is available, and how to best use our Support services. Read it here.
- We’re launching an industry-first Service Level Target initiative that establishes objectives for Support deliverables such as response time and measures our performance against them. Each quarter we’ll report to you our performance against those targets.
- Support office hours in the Americas are expanding to 14 hours each business day — we’re open from 4:00 am to 6:00 pm Pacific time.
- We’re adding dedicated BarTender technicians to monitor our support forums and help answer your questions, along with new help articles and how-to videos for our knowledge base.
- With the addition of these new enhanced self-serve resources, beginning October 1, only those customers who have an active Maintenance agreement will be eligible to receive Support via email, chat, or phone (exceptions apply – see below).
Where can I find the new Maintenance and Support Agreement?
You can find the new agreement here.
Does the new Maintenance and Support Agreement apply to me?
The new Support Agreement only applies to customers who purchased or renewed their Maintenance and Support Agreement after 19th July 2021 but we will strive to offer the same level of service to all of our customers.
Where can I find the supported channels, availability, and Service Level Targets based on my support plan?
You can find them on our website here.
How do I make use of Support?
You can find instructions on our support site here.
Will I have access to the quarterly reports from Seagull Scientific Technical Services that will contain Service Level Target information?
Yes, you will. Once we create our first quarterly report, we will update this FAQ answer with a link to the report.
When will the new expanded support hours for the Americas office be effective?
These changes will be effective starting Monday 28th of July 2021.
When will the upcoming support changes for customers without an active Maintenance agreement be effective?
These changes will be effective October 1st, 2021.
What is a Free Support customer?
You are considered to be a Free Support customer if you are the registered end user of a licensed BarTender product (or their authorized Seagull Scientific partner), running a supported version of BarTender on a supported version of Windows without an active Maintenance and Support Agreement.
As a Free Support customer, what level of support will be offered via the Technical Support site?
- You will have access to existing and new enhanced self-serve resources.
- We’re adding dedicated BarTender support technicians and community specialists to monitor our support forums and help answer your questions, offer light-troubleshooting advice, or point you to the right resource.
As a Free Support customer are there any Support Exceptions?
- Yes, you will keep receiving email/web form support for any issues that relate to BarTender activation and license keys.
- If your inquiry is unrelated to activations or license keys, you will be redirected instead to the Technical Support Community Forms and Knowledge Base site.
How can I verify if my license is under an active Maintenance and Support Agreement?
You can verify this by starting BarTender, then selecting the “Help > About” dialog. The “Support Status” field will indicate if your maintenance and support is active, and when it expires.
I would like to renew or enroll a Maintenance and Support Agreement. How do I do this?
For anything related to Maintenance & Support Agreements, you can contact us here.