Blog · IT / MSP
AI Help Desk Triage for MSPs:
Route Support Tickets Instantly
February 25, 2026 · 5 min read
An end user calls your MSP's support line: "I can't get into my email." Is this a password reset (P4—handle when available) or a compromised account (P1—escalate immediately)? The answer depends on follow-up questions that a voicemail can't ask, an answering service won't think to ask, and your L1 tech is too busy to answer right now because they're already on another call.
This is the fundamental challenge of IT support triage: the caller doesn't know the severity of their own issue, and the severity determines everything—response time, which tech handles it, whether it needs to be escalated, and whether your SLA is at risk.
The Triage Problem for MSPs
Most MSP support calls arrive as vague descriptions: "My computer is slow." "The internet is down." "Something weird is happening with my screen." The same symptom can indicate completely different severity levels:
"I can't access my files"
Could be P4: User forgot to connect to VPN — 2-minute fix
Could be P1: Ransomware encrypted the file server — all-hands incident
"My email isn't working"
Could be P3: Outlook needs to be restarted — routine fix
Could be P1: Account compromised, sending phishing emails to contacts — immediate lockdown
"The internet is slow"
Could be P3: One user's machine needs updates — scheduled maintenance
Could be P2: Firewall failing, entire office affected — urgent dispatch
The right follow-up questions turn a vague complaint into an actionable, properly prioritized ticket. Without those questions, everything either gets treated as urgent (wasting tech time on password resets) or routine (missing actual emergencies).
How AI Triage Works for IT Support
Vox for IT Companies & MSPs performs the same triage a trained L1 dispatcher would—but in under two minutes, on every call, 24/7:
Step 1: Identify the Symptom
Vox asks the caller to describe their issue. Open-ended, natural conversation. "My computer keeps showing a blue screen" or "Nobody in the office can print" or "I think someone hacked my email."
Step 2: Ask the Determining Questions
Based on the symptom, Vox asks the questions that determine priority. For "I can't access my files": "Is it just you or is anyone else in the office affected?" "Are you connected to the VPN?" "Did you see any unusual pop-ups or messages?" Each answer narrows the diagnosis. Multiple users affected + unusual messages = potential ransomware (P1). Single user + not on VPN = connectivity issue (P4).
Step 3: Classify and Route
Vox assigns a priority level based on your SLA definitions and routes accordingly:
- P1 Critical: Instant alert to on-call tech + NOC team. Ticket created with "CRITICAL" flag.
- P2 High: Urgent ticket created, notification to dispatch queue.
- P3 Normal: Standard ticket created in PSA, queued for next available tech.
- P4 Low: Ticket created. If possible, Vox walks the user through the fix in real time.
Step 4: Create the Ticket
Every call produces a structured ticket in your PSA: caller name, company, contact info, affected system/application, symptom description, follow-up answers, number of users impacted, priority level, and any troubleshooting already attempted. Your tech has full context before touching the ticket.
Self-Service Resolution for Common Issues
A significant percentage of MSP support calls are P4 issues with known resolutions. Vox can handle these end-to-end, freeing your techs for higher-value work:
Password Resets: Vox can guide the caller through self-service password reset or send a reset link. Industry data shows 20–30% of all help desk calls are password-related. Automating these saves 5–10 hours of L1 time per week.
VPN Connectivity: "Disconnect from VPN, wait 10 seconds, reconnect." Vox walks users through the steps. If it doesn't work, a ticket is created for the tech team.
Printer Issues: Restart the print spooler service. Check the printer is online. Verify you're printing to the right device. Most printer calls resolve with these three steps.
Application Restart: "Close the application completely, wait 30 seconds, and reopen it." The classic fix that resolves a surprising number of issues.
Every P4 ticket Vox resolves without a tech is 10–15 minutes of L1 time recovered. At 10 self-resolved tickets per week, that's 2+ hours/week your techs get back for higher-priority work.
Impact on SLA Compliance
SLA compliance isn't just about avoiding penalties—it's about client retention. Vox directly improves every SLA metric:
- Time to answer: Under 1 second (vs. 30–120 seconds for human help desk)
- Time to ticket creation: Under 2 minutes (vs. 5–15 minutes for manual entry)
- Time to P1 escalation: Under 2 minutes (vs. "whenever someone checks voicemail")
- After-hours coverage: 100% (vs. on-call rotation with inconsistent response)
- Simultaneous call capacity: Unlimited (vs. 1 per L1 tech)
The Financial Case
L1 Help Desk Tech
$38,000–$52,000/year + benefits
8-hour shift coverage
1 call at a time
30% annual turnover (industry avg)
2–4 week training period
Vox AI Triage ($250–$500/month)
24/7/365 coverage
Unlimited simultaneous calls
Consistent triage quality on every call
Zero turnover, zero training
Prevents 1 client churn event/year = $36K–$120K saved
Vox doesn't replace your techs. It makes them more effective. Instead of answering phones, asking intake questions, and creating tickets, your L1/L2 techs spend 100% of their time resolving issues. Every call comes with a properly prioritized, fully detailed ticket ready for action.
Get Started
Setup takes about 20 minutes. You define your priority levels, escalation rules, and PSA integration. Vox handles the rest—every support call answered, triaged, and ticketed instantly. See the full Vox IT/MSP solution →
Triage Every Ticket. Instantly.
AI help desk triage for MSPs. P1 escalation in under 2 minutes. Every call answered 24/7.