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Spiceworks positions itself as a place IT professionals can go for help. Practically speaking, that means they make software for running a help desk, managing projects and monitoring networks. But Spiceworks’ social network adds a personal touch, providing a forum for troubleshooting issues, researching products and professional networking.
Those personal offerings got a big boost this week, when Spiceworks announced its employees will now directly assist users with projects and vendor research for free.
The new service is staffed by what the company calls SpiceAgents, IT professionals themselves who will actually answer customers’ questions in depth and for free, and was announced the same day the company announced it would start giving away its Help Desk application for free, too.
The Help Desk app is ad supported, and the company claims its concierge service will remain free out of a commitment to make IT workers’ lives easier. Jay Hallberg, Spiceworks’ co-founder and CEO, says that’s because IT departments are underfunded at a time when their industry is growing more complex than ever.
“The new service is there to help IT professionals navigate this complexity in a way that empowers them to make the best decision for their business and get their jobs done,” he said in a statement.
Of course, the new platform benefits vendors, too. The SpiceAgents are aided in their research by providers who are ready and waiting to pitch their solutions to Spiceworks users coming in with questions and problems.
It’s a win-win for both sides: IT departments don’t have to scour the Internet to track down solutions individually, and providers have a stream of potential prospects coming to the site.
The announcements coincided with the company’s SpiceWorld conference in Austin, where the site’s users (called SpiceHeads) congregate for vendor exhibits, demos and networking.
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