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This page is your go-to FAQ for understanding our Worry-Free Support Plans. While we aim for clarity, some gray areas are inevitable.

It’s a lot of info due to all the moving parts, so we don’t expect you to remember it all. 

Feel free to ask questions or suggest improvements; we’re flexible and handle many things case-by-case.

IMPORTANT - How do I get help? - Official Contact Methods

The three primary routes to request assistance are:

If you have an emergency that cannot wait for a response, do any of the following:

  • Send an email with the word URGENT to the above email.
  • Call us at 480-389-6596 and follow prompts to leave a voicemail on the client emergency mailbox by following the menu choices.

*Please keep in mind that emergency requests are subject to terms and conditions. See the section below labeled “Urgent Requests and Afterhours Support”

**The methods listed above are the sole recognized channels for official support. While calls and texts may be considered in specific situations, the methods mentioned above are the officially designated ones. These methods are crucial for categorizing and tracking your requests accurately.

***Email will be our primary method of communication unless a phone call is scheduled or the request falls under an emergency.

IMPORTANT - Urgent Requests and Afterhours Support

To submit an Urgent request, send an email to [email protected] with the subject including the word URGENT or call 480.389.6596 and leave a voicemail in the emergency inbox.

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Click here for a video explanation.

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If you need help that cannot wait for a response during our normal response times, during any blackout or travel dates or needs immediate resolution, you can submit an emergency request. 

_________________________

When you submit an urgent request via email, you will be asked to confirm if it’s an emergency.

Once you confirm it’s an emergency, a special alert will go out to alert us to look at your ticket ASAP, including after-hours.

If you DO NOT confirm it’s an emergency, the system will flag it as high priority and we will handle yours as soon as possible when we are available within business hours. We’ll call these Urgent, but not Emergencies

_________________________

These requests will be responded to put out any fires to get you back to working either normally or with a workaround in the quickest and most efficient manner possible.

This means we will make sure you can work, but may not handle non emergency/urgent concerns at the same time.

There are no guarantees that urgent/emergency requests will be responded to resolved immediately or after-hours, though they will be prioritized first during business hours.

Any urgent or emergency requests, text messages, calls or after-hours requests may be billed at up to two times our standard in person rate.

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Click for our blog post on urgent requests and how they are defined.

IMPORTANT - Your Responsibility

With any service, you have some responsibility as well. 

  • Ask questions if you’re not sure of something or want to utilize something with the plan.
  • Provide access to any systems or services you would like us to support at least 1 business day prior to requesting any support for the specified system or service.
  • Notify us of any potential tech changes a minimum of 3 business days prior to any chances.
  • Schedule a check-up a minimum of once per year. It gives us time to catch up and me a chance to do more pre-emptive testing to make sure you stay tip-top!
  • Keep your credit card info updated and let me know of any changes to prevent delays with future billing.
  • Make sure to pay invoices by the due date. Invoices not paid by the due date may be auto-billed to prevent late fees.
  • Make sure to keep me updated on potential tech changes so I can advise appropriately. Major changes should not be made without consultation to avoid inefficiencies.
  • To ensure standardization, no other person(s) or company should work on your equipment or support your systems in the same capacity. 
  • Keep records of training and helpful information sent to you to help reduce repeat requests. Please also keep records of important dates for contract renewal.
  • Read our emails and watch videos we send! We give away freebies and send out important information monthly to help you best utilize the service.
  • If something calls for a response, please respond in a timely manner (within 72 business hours). You want us to respond, and we expect the same. 
  • If we set something up for you, such as an account or physical tech, do not tamper with, modify, or change anything we set up.
  • Be as proactive as you can! Utilize the services, credits, and expertise for everything related to your technology!

There’s plenty of opportunity for the service to help you in your daily life. 

IMPORTANT - Support Request Guidelines
A support request is a formal request for assistance. In order to best assist you and track requests, we use a ticketing system. You can submit online or via email. 

All your tickets should include the following:

ONE
The subject line should be just that, a subject line. It should be a short preview of what your message is about. Please don’t leave blank or put everything in it.
 
TWO
Give as much detail as possible. Also, be specific using the correct terminology to the best of your knowledge. Answer the following questions in the body. What did you do? What did you expect to happen? What actually happened?
 
THREE
Give screenshots. If something isn’t working, or you’re getting an error or something you don’t recognize, take a screenshot and paste it into the body of your email. If you don’t know how to take screenshots, see here.
 
Please do not do the following:
 
ONE
Do not forward us long strings of back and forth emails unless it’s just to support what you’re writing. Make sure to convey your point of concern in the body that you write.
TWO
Do not use the same ticket for multiple subjects. There’s a caveat to this. Your main request can contain multiple requests, but after we’ve resolved your issue, please create a new ticket for a new unrelated issue.
 
BILLING - What's Included?

There are a couple tiers of support. To see what level you have, you can log in at https://ustechninja.invoicing.co/client/login and look at your yearly invoice under recurring on the left side, or you can contact us.
Worry Free Consulting Plans starting at $480/year | Business Pricing: $580/year

All Inclusive Worry Free Consulting Pricing: $600/year | Business Pricing: $700/year

Worry Free Essentials

This is our base plan and includes:

  • Unlimited email requests that take less than 15 minutes to resolve
  • 3 hours of remote support per year
    • Alternately, 1 remote hour and 1 hour in person
  • Discounts on Additional Hours
  • Backups up to 250 GB
  • Firewall and Advanced Managed Antivirus
  • Password Management
  • $280/year

Worry Free Pro

This is our midlevel tier and includes:

  • Everything in the Essentials
  • 2 Extra hours of remote support per year
  • 3 benefits of your choice from https://myaz.tech/unlimited-benefits
    • Excluding bundled services
  • Email Security for Business Email Users
  • Endpoint Detection and Response for Free Email Users
  • Concierge Services – Discounts on Daily Purchases and Travel
  • $480/year

Worry Free Consulting

This is our all-inclusive plan and includes all posted benefits at https://myaz.tech/unlimited-benefits* _______ *The unlimited page also contains additional terms for related services on lower tier plans.

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Legacy Plans, as stated on your invoice, either by the term legacy or not being one of the worry-free options not listed above, will not include bundled services, rollover hours or cyber security services. 

Note that support is handled on priority based on the plan you are on mixed with the priority of the request. 

BILLING - How does billing work?

To assist with time savings in the billing department, the plans are set up for automated recurring billing. This means that it will automatically charge and renew each year at the same time to keep your service until you cancel – you must give at least 30 days’ notice before the invoice date if you want to cancel your service. Contracts are two years in length by default and continuously auto renew. Any invoices in between your renewals for monthly items, overages or additionals with the service will be notified and also automatically billed on or around the due date. 

  • Unlimited Support
    • Any email based request that takes us less than 15 minutes to resolve will not be counted toward your included support hours – thus becoming unlimited.
    • Additional hours past the initial included hours are billed at a discounted rate.
      • At the end of each month, overage hours are automatically billed.
  • In person support
    • Any time an in person appointment is scheduled and completed, you will be billed our Worry Free In Person Rate
  • Data Backups
    • Backup overages may be billable
    • An additional backup will be billable
    • Additional computers may be billable
    • We will provide a quote before billing on anything in relation to backups
  • Cyber Protections
    • Additional computers are billable
      • We will provide a quote if you need additional computers protected
  • Concierge services
    • We will pay a portion of any bookings made through us.
      • Guaranteed savings on any items you purchase through us
    • Access to research for products, travel, or anything you need!
    • Requests that take longer than 30 mins of research or communication time will be billable if no purchase made through us by the following month. 

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Services not in the plan or determined as billable via TOS will be billed per our rates seen here. This is not an exhaustive list. 

BILLING - In Person Support

In person support is almost always billable to an extent since it requires travel time. The exception to this is the Annual Worry Free In Person visit as detailed on the inclusions page.

The price you will be billed is variable depending on how much you utilize the plan and where you live.

If you don’t utilize the plan a lot, you are less likely to be billed for an in person visit.

You can see the official rates
Your actual rate may be much less.

BILLING - Gateway Fees and Sales Tax

You may see a surcharge for online payments on your invoice. These are outlined on every invoice or quote that pricing is before surcharges. 

Why you may ask? 

At one time we just had our prices set to include surcharges without an extra line item, though this would inherently prevent ACH discounts since the price would be defaulted to the Credit Card rate. 

Would you rather pay $104.5?

Or have the option to pay $100.8

On a $100 rate in this example, if we didn’t give the option to choose, we would have advertised the price at $104.5 removing the choice to save money.

On the sales tax piece, some items purchased will include sales tax as required by law. 

BILLING - Will I be billed for anything other than the yearly fee?

Click for Video Reference
Most people are only charged the annual fee, but there are a few things that can be charged while on the plan.

  • Visits In-Person On-site visits are always billed (the one exception is explicitly scheduling your free annual in person if your plan includes it), and they may also be billed for mileage as well. These are billed at our discounted hourly rate.*
  • Overages in your plan’s time, If you exceed the time allotted in your plan, you will be billed at our discounted hourly rate.*
  • Requests for immediate assistance, requests that cannot wait until next availability, or after-hours support may be billed. **
  • Proactive Time or Add on Vendor Services as defined in our Worry Free Terms may incur additional charges. For instance, if we identify actions essential for enhancing your security or the overall effectiveness of your support plan, these may be automatically billed to you unless you explicitly opt out.
  • Failing to fulfill your responsibilities as determined by this page and the terms of service.
  • Requests in which a partner, contractor or on call technician has to assist.*
  • This list is not exhaustive; any items not included here but included in our terms or other portions of this page will also be billable.

Plan utilization can have an impact on billing, and if usage is not excessive in comparison to the typical customer, we frequently overlook slight overages.

You can see the rates page here.
*Reference the “Worry Free Service Rates” section on the rates page.
**This is also covered in the Urgent Request Section.

EXPECTATIONS - What this service is...

This solution provides you with access to expert knowledge, proactive monitoring, and management, all without the high prices typically associated with managed service providers. It offers a level of service that you won’t find from Geek Squad or similar providers. Ultimately, this solution will save you both time and money in the long run.

The goal of this service is to provide you with support, safety, and peace of mind in the long run. Think of it for those oh-crap moments where you know you have someone to go to for the following items:

  • Network Management: We will design, implement, and manage your network to ensure it is secure, scalable, and meets your current and future business needs.

  • Server Management: We will manage your servers, including hardware and software maintenance, patching, and updates, to ensure they are operating optimally and securely.

  • Desktop Management: We will manage your desktops, including software updates, security patches, and user support, to ensure your employees have the tools they need to be productive.

  • Data Backup and Disaster Recovery: We will implement and maintain a robust data backup and disaster recovery plan to protect your critical business data.

  • End-User Support: We will provide end-user support to your employees, resolving their IT issues promptly and efficiently.

We will act in the same capacity of a company IT department. Handling any and all technology and related technology requests in your life. Any systems we have access to we will take over full management of. 

EXPECTATIONS - What the service is not..

We will do our best to prioritize your needs, but this service isn’t 24/7 and may require advance scheduling. While we offer expertise and time, we can’t guarantee specific outcomes due to the complex nature of technology.

EXPECTATIONS - How the plan works for you even when you aren't submitting requests.

We’re always working on and looking for ways to improve your tech, the service and your life. Countless hours are spent on upkeep, research, daily savings and more all for you!

Even when you aren’t actively requesting help, the service is working for you! Here are a couple of ways!

  • Data Backups – Backups are running to keep your data safe. This is included, but as of 01/2020, you may need to request they be enabled. 
  • Technology Updates – I’m always looking for ways to improve your life and will monitor the news waves of important things to pass your way.
  • System Updates – System updates can be run in the background for you!
  • Security Scans – Your system and network are scanned for vulnerabilities and potential problems!
  • Plan Time Accrues – On full priced Worry Free plans, you get rollover time that can be saved for emergencies, used toward online purchases or even toward upcoming travel.

Data backups may be sent to storage you own in the cases of unused storage. You can request we send to ours.

 

EXPECTATIONS - How to get the most out of the service...

Two questions I have for you is:
1. What are a few things that are little but take a lot of time through your day? Let’s see how much of your life we can automate.

2. What do you want to achieve this year? We can help set a SMART goal that the plan can help with.

Utilize the help you have. Whether you’re looking for new tech, have a quick question, or just want to learn something new, drop us a support request! 

Remember too, you’ll find helpful info by subscribing to our postings on ustech.ninja and spyonaz.com

I’ll also send out check-ins with new things from time to time! I constantly send out deals to save you money on various things too.

Use the concierge service to save on travel and day-to-day purchases! 

You also have the option to schedule a monthly checkup where you designate a time each month and I’ll remote in and get you up to speed!

Even if you don’t make a lot of requests, that’s okay! Your service has rollover time (for those on the worry-free plan). Meaning if you don’t use it, you get time to use later. 

 I’ve got your back for security and data protection behind the scenes!

Click here for a FULL listing of what’s included with Worry-Free Consulting

 

EXPECTATIONS - Support Hours - Standard Response Time

All inquiries will be responded to by the End of Day (EoD – 5pm-7pm, varying on workloads) from Monday to Friday, excluding recognized holidays and notified travel dates. We strive to respond promptly throughout the day as availability permits, starting at 730-8am, AZ time.

Outside of these designated hours, our team dedicates time to relaxation, unwinding, and familial engagements. We respectfully request that communication be limited to our official operating hours unless circumstances are deemed absolutely necessary, as outlined in the aforementioned Urgent section.

EXPECTATIONS - Auditing and Security

Please note, due to the affordable nature of our offerings, we provide maintenance and security checks that are within reason and as explicitly outlined in the service inclusions. Our approach primarily operates on a break/fix model, except for the specific inclusions stated.

Given the time-intensive nature of thorough system and tenant reviews, it’s possible that some aspects may not be covered under the standard service plan. For comprehensive coverage beyond the included hour, we offer additional support subject to an agreed budget or authorized extra spending.

We encourage clients to explicitly specify a monthly budget to allot to manual security reviews and time spent outside the allotted time. This will be utilized as needed to maximize the security of your systems. 

OPERATIONAL - How requests are prioritized

When you submit a request, it gets put on the calendar for response based on availability for the day. Requests are checked in order of when they come in and attempted resolution time is based on severity. Contractors and Businesses will get a slight priority over Home Users. We will aim to respond and/or resolve all issues within 12-24 hours. Some requests may take longer depending on the current workload or if vendors are involved.

 

OPERATIONAL - Automated Emails

Our systems use automated emails to stay on top of requests. Some of those that you might see are as follows:

  • When you submit an email request to confirm receipt
  • If we do not hear back from you after 72 hours on a request we replied on.
  • If after the above request we still do not hear back, you will get a notice that the ticket is closed.
  • One final reminder will be sent a day later on any automatically closed tickets.
OPERATIONAL - Automatic Savings

For services such as Google Workspace or Office 365, we get a discount that we pass along. We may automatically take over billing for your Office 365 or Google account to pass these savings along. 

EXTRAS - Maximize beyond tech support!

Our Worry Free Consulting plan has a LOT included.

Not all of the things will be utilized by all people, but feel free to take advantage of anything included! Send us an email for anything you want access to.

Full benefit list is at https://myaz.tech/unlimited-benefits

EXTRAS - Bundled Services

On your request, we can bundle certain services into your support plan. This means that you will receive the services you require as part of the support plan’s price without having to pay additional fees (limit 1 without price increase).

We can bundle virtually anything in for you:

  • Office365
  • Google Managed Email
  • Manaaged Lastpass
  • Hulu
  • Netflix
  • Much more!

Please keep in mind that bundling a service may eliminate any rollover hours and can reduce the amount of free/included useable time available during the year, depending on the cost of the service you choose and your plan utilization. Additional terms and third party apply.

 

TIPS - Best Practices

Below are articles that I have curated for general best practices with technology to make your tech experience as smooth as possible. 

Printers | Scanning

Your Router – 1 | Your Router – 2

Email Management

Email Providers

Backups

Cyber Security – 2FA | Cyber Security General

TIPS - Our Phone Numbers

Our main line is 480.389.6596. 
If you do not hear back from us via a text to this number, send an email instead.


We may use phone numbers ending in the digits below. 

4520 – This is used for check ins from time to time.
Please do not save or use this number, it is only used for alerting. 


Please note that it is not allowed to opt out of communication from us. Responding “Stop or “Opt Out will be considered a contract violation and may incur fees. 

We do not typically answer incoming calls for efficiency, to request support, see the above “How do I get help”.

TIPS - What you can request and how to save money on everyday items.

Did you know you can request more or less anything you like? If we can’t help, we can help find someone who can!

You can send requests like the following. Though note, this is just an example list.

Ask away on any subject and I’ll point you in the right direction.

  • Mobile and Desk Phone Support
  • TV Support
  • Desktop/Laptop Support
  • Network Support
  • Internet Research Requests
  • Photo/Video Requests (benefit of the Worry-Free Plan)
  • Drone Imagery Requests (benefit of the Worry-Free Plan)
  • Website support
  • Server Support
  • Online Ordering and Acquisition
  • Airline and Hotel Bookings
  • Pre-Scheduled Taxi and Limo Services (via Lyft Pink and Uber VIP)
  • Literally Anything!

For our concierge service, flight and hotel search, see https://myaz.tech/concierge

 

TIPS - Reduce Plan Usage and your Bill

The plan is here to help you when you need it, but there are a few things that can drastically help you reduce overages in plan time. 

  • Take your own notes and reference back to previous emails. This can help reduce repeat requests. 
  • Be concise and to the point in email, be logical. This can cut down on the time it takes to get a resolution. Write like you’re being graded on what you’re requesting.
  • If something can wait, be patient and wait for a normal response via email. 
  • Reduce unnecessary phone calls. Calls always count toward plan time, and commonly take more time than email. With this said, If something needs a call for understanding or one on one training, by all means we encourage you to schedule one. 
  • Be responsive. The more we have to follow up, the more time is counted against you. 
  • Take your time, and follow along with videos we send you. Our goal here is to teach you to be more sufficient in some cases. It’s okay if you don’t get it right away though! 🙂
TIPS - How can I see the hours I've utilized or plan I am enrolled in?

You can register at https://ustechninja.invoicing.co/client/register or click any invoice link we have sent you in the past.

Once you are logged in:

  • Click Tasks to see recorded time. 
  • Click Invoices to see past invoices.
  • Click Recurring Invoices to see services you are enrolled in.

Note that not all time is recorded. It is your responsibility to keep an eye on your utilization or to ASK about time when you submit requests to avoid being billed for any overages past your plan’s allotted time. 

REFERRALS - Sharing our Contact Info

The best contact method to share is the [email protected], though please DO NOT post it publicly. 

 

Still need help? Want to maximize your investment? Need more out of the service?

Schedule a call with us and let’s find out how you can best utilize.

Schedule at https://myaz.tech/schedule