Not like giant companies with many layers of individuals between management and the general public, small firms typically have individuals in any respect ranges of the group interacting with clients. This one-on-one communication offers a singular alternative to construct private relationships and get direct suggestions concerning the enterprise’ services or products.
Nonetheless, there comes some extent for all rising firms when permitting clients to succeed in out to workers straight turns into problematic. E mail volumes enhance, requests fall by the cracks, and conserving observe of particular person conversations throughout a number of inboxes will get more and more troublesome.
If these rising pains sound acquainted, it is perhaps time to start out fascinated with a devoted help device — like a assist desk — in your staff.
It is a chapter in our Final Information to Setting Up a Assist Desk System. Once you’re prepared, take a look at the opposite chapters:
The 9 greatest assist desks for small companies
In case your small enterprise is able to give assist desk software program a strive, listed here are 9 choices excellent for rising firms.
Assist Scout
HappyFox
Hiver
Cayzu
Zendesk
Crisp
HelpDesk
Zoho Desk
Tidio
1. Assist Scout
All-around greatest assist desk software program for small companies.
Assist Scout is a communications platform that enables small companies to have environment friendly, impactful conversations with their clients and communities.
Get organized and enhance staff collaboration
Understanding of a shared Gmail or Outlook mailbox can impede a enterprise’ means to collaborate successfully. Assist Scout’s shared inbox makes it simple in your staff to work collectively and keep organized.
Conversations filter into one central location the place you’ll be able to assign them to the perfect particular person or staff for the job and use dialog statuses, tags, and customized fields to prepare and observe points by to completion.
Collaborative options like saved replies, collision detection, and inside notes assist your staff work collectively extra effectively than in a standard mailbox. You may even focus on buyer points throughout departments by including gentle customers to your plus or professional account at no further value. The gentle person position is ideal for workers who aren’t customer-facing however typically work along with your staff on buyer points.
Present modern, complete help and streamline your processes
In case you’re prepared to maneuver your help efforts past the e-mail inbox, Assist Scout affords native dwell chat that may be accessed from any web page in your web site utilizing the platform’s assist widget, Beacon. Handle incoming dwell chats out of your firm’s shared inbox to offer quick help.
For these apprehensive about contact volumes, Assist Scout helps information clients to the precise solutions earlier than they even attain out to your staff. Docs, Assist Scout’s data base builder, permits you to publish a custom-made assist heart that incorporates solutions to FAQs, all with out coding. The messages device helps you present proactive help, like surfacing related Docs articles if a buyer appears caught. You too can use the function to make bulletins and acquire buyer suggestions.
Past self-service channels, Assist Scout eases the burden in your staff by customized workflows. Workflows are easy “if this, then that” circumstances that allow you to automate repetitive duties like dialog tagging, assignments, and escalations.
Break down silos and again up enterprise choices with knowledge
Assist Scout is an internet assist desk that integrates with many fashionable apps and companies like CRMs, ecommerce platforms, and venture administration software program, conserving everybody in your staff within the loop. Not solely does this enhance visibility, but it surely additionally empowers your staff to offer higher buyer help, having the total image accessible to them from inside every dialog.
When you can import precious data into Assist Scout, your buyer conversations are additionally stuffed with helpful insights. The platform comes with reporting instruments that will help you maintain observe of dialog quantity, agent efficiency, and product points. Use the information to assist inform enterprise choices like hiring and product improvement, and present how help is affecting your small business’ backside line.
Whether or not you’re working a longtime enterprise or your organization is simply getting off the bottom, Assist Scout is a good selection for these searching for a assist desk and customer support software program that may develop with their staff.
Worth: Free trial accessible. Plans begin at $22/person per 30 days.
2. HappyFox
Greatest assist desk for small companies’ IT groups.
In case your small enterprise’s IT staff is in search of a service desk, HappyFox is an efficient possibility. Whereas a strong selection for any staff, IT groups profit from options like HappyFox’s asset administration device and its means to combine with distant service functions.
Past IT-specific instruments, HappyFox affords a shared inbox that you need to use to handle e mail, in addition to a data base builder. Additionally it is attainable to make use of different HappyFox merchandise with the platform, comparable to HappyFox Chat and Chatbot, however they require further subscriptions.
Key options:
E mail administration with the flexibility to handle further channels by way of integrations.
Shared inbox with collaboration instruments (ticket assignments, collision detection, and many others.)
Kanban ticket views.
Information base.
Asset administration.
Integrations with HappyFox merchandise and different fashionable platforms.
Reporting dashboards.
Worth: Free trial accessible. Plans begin at $29/agent per 30 days (5 agent minimal).
3. Hiver
Greatest assist desk for small companies that use Google Workspace.
Hiver is a Gmail-based assist desk that may be answer for groups accustomed to Google’s internet interface. Whereas it’s true that there are methods to share inboxes in Google natively, they provide a clunky expertise for each agent and buyer. Hiver elevates the Gmail help expertise and provides performance past e mail, comparable to dwell chat and self-service help channels.
Key options:
E mail assignments, statuses, and tagging.
Inner notes.
E mail templates and shared drafts.
Dwell chat.
Information base.
Automated workflows.
Pure language processing (NLP) primarily based synthetic intelligence (AI).
Integrations with fashionable software program (Salesforce, Jira, Asana, and many others.).
Reporting dashboards.
Worth: Free trial accessible. Plans begin at $15/person per 30 days.
4. Cayzu
Greatest assist desk for small companies that want multi-brand help.
The very first thing you’ll discover about Cayzu when investigating their product is their aggressive pricing — their plans begin at solely $4 per agent per 30 days! Nonetheless, organizations managing help for a number of manufacturers may wish to take a look at the Enterprise tier.
Cayzu helps the flexibility to create a number of branded self-service portals. This allows you to current a custom-made expertise to your clients whereas permitting their requests to circulate right into a single shared inbox for administration and backbone by your staff.
Key options:
E mail and social media administration.
Information base.
Self-service portal (multi-brand).
Net widget.
Rule-based automation.
Time monitoring and asset administration instruments.
Integrations with fashionable platforms.
Reporting dashboards.
Worth: Free trial accessible. Plans begin at $4/agent per 30 days.
5. Zendesk
Greatest assist desk for small companies targeted on cross-platform integrations.
One benefit of going with a legacy platform like Zendesk is that many firms and builders are producing simple methods to combine the system with different enterprise instruments.
Whereas a lot of the assist desk choices on this article supply methods to combine with different instruments, Zendesk has a library of 1,000+ pre-built apps and integrations to select from. Their lowest tier plan contains all pre-built choices, with the flexibility so as to add customized integrations restricted to dearer packages.
Key options:
Multi-channel platform (e mail, ticket varieties, dwell chat, voice, SMS, social media, self-service, neighborhood boards).
Shared inbox with collaborative options (macros, inside notes, collision detection, customized views, ticket assignments, and lightweight brokers).
Information base.
Triggers and rule-based automation.
AI instruments.
Reporting dashboards.
Library of 1,000+ pre-built apps and integrations.
Worth: Free trial accessible. Plans begin at $19/agent per 30 days.
6. Crisp
Greatest assist desk for small companies fascinated by flat fee pricing plans.
In case your small enterprise desires to roll out dwell chat help, Crisp is a good possibility. They provide a free plan that enables as much as two individuals to handle dwell chat help from a staff inbox or from iOS and Android apps once you’re on the go. In case you’re fascinated by providing further channels, Crisp may deal with e mail, messaging apps, and social media by its platform.
An interesting side of Crisp for small companies is their flat fee pricing plans. Their Limitless plan is $95 per 30 days for a workspace that features 20 agent seats — one thing that will value considerably extra on a per-agent worth mannequin.
Key options:
Multi-channel platform (dwell chat, e mail, social media, messaging, self-service).
Workforce inbox with collaboration options (canned responses, non-public notes).
Audio & video messages.
Chatbot software program.
Information base.
Integrations with CRMs and different fashionable apps.
Reporting dashboards.
Worth: Free trial and plan accessible. Paid plans begin at $25/workspace per 30 days (contains 4 seats).
7. HelpDesk
Greatest assist desk for small companies that use LiveChat.
Assist Desk is a strong ticketing system with the collaboration instruments wanted to offer wonderful e mail help. It even has some options that aren’t as typical, comparable to its display screen recording function — a device that allows you to create display screen seize movies and embody them in your buyer replies.
One downside with HelpDesk, nonetheless, is that many channels you’d anticipate finding in a assist desk — like dwell chat, chatbots, AI, or a data base — should not included. HelpDesk’s dad or mum firm, LiveChat, does make merchandise for all of those capabilities, however they require further subscriptions.
Nonetheless, in case you’re a LiveChat subscriber, it integrates seamlessly with HelpDesk, making this platform selection.
Key options:
Helps e mail and get in touch with kind channels (further channels accessible by way of integrations).
Shared inbox with collaboration instruments (ticket assignments, canned responses, non-public notes, customized views, and limitless “viewer” accounts).
Rule-based automation.
Integrations with different LiveChat merchandise and different choose instruments.
Reporting dashboards.
Worth: Free trial accessible. Plans begin at $29/agent per 30 days.
8. ZohoDesk
Greatest assist desk for small companies fascinated by neighborhood boards.
There are numerous causes to contemplate ZohoDesk, starting from its synthetic intelligence providing, Zia, to its seamless integration with different Zoho merchandise like ZohoCRM.
One function to contemplate is ZohoDesk’s Group Boards, which lets you create a central place in your clients to debate your product and firm. Boards will be nice for enabling clients to crowd-source solutions when your staff isn’t on-line and promote camaraderie round your model. These boards, mixed with integrations throughout the Zoho Suite, may also help enhance buyer satisfaction.
As cool as boards will be, these beginning a neighborhood for the primary time must be cautious. Like social media, boards are a really public communication channel, making it important to have your staff current, engaged, and able to reasonable if issues get out of hand.
Key options:
Multi-channel platform (e mail, social media, voice, dwell chat, self-service).
Shared inbox with collaboration options (ticket assignments, collision detection, sooner response snippets, and many others.).
Information base.
Group boards (included in all however the free plan).
Rule-based automation.
AI instruments.
Integrations with Zoho merchandise and different fashionable apps and platforms.
Reporting dashboards.
Worth: Free trial and plan accessible. Plans begin at $14/person per 30 days.
9. Tidio
Greatest assist desk for small companies targeted on offering chat help.
Tidio is a chat-based customer support platform. Its free plan permits you to chat with as much as 50 distinctive customers per 30 days and have chatbot conversations with as much as 100.
In case you’re a bit additional alongside along with your help efforts, Tidio’s paid tiers allow you to heart your plan round dwell chat, chatbots, or options past help, comparable to e mail advertising and marketing instruments.
One attention-grabbing side of Tidio’s dwell chat paid plans is a concentrate on proactive help instruments like Dwell Typing, a function that enables your staff to view what a buyer is typing right into a chat window earlier than they hit ship. Although it would really feel slightly creepy from the client facet, dwell typing previews can save your staff time, permitting them to get a leap begin on the client’s request.
Key options:
Dwell chat and chatbot choices.
Shared inbox that enables integrations with different channels; contains collaboration options like non-public notes and groups.
Dwell monitoring options like Dwell Typing and the Dwell Guests Record.
E mail advertising and marketing instruments.
Integrations by way of Zapier; customized integrations are additionally attainable.
Reporting dashboards.
Worth: Free trial and plan accessible. Paid plans begin at $15.83/operator per 30 days.
What’s a assist desk?
A assist desk is software program that brings your entire communications into one central location. It does this by turning every e mail, chat, telephone name, or social media message you obtain right into a ticket, which you need to use to watch the communication till it’s closed.
Assist desk software program for small companies typically comes with options that give it a leg up over conventional e mail purchasers, comparable to a shared inbox, buyer relationship administration (CRM) capabilities, and a data base answer to advertise self-service.
Whereas most individuals in all probability consider customer support as the first use case for assist desk software program, different groups may profit. For example, gross sales groups might use a assist desk to handle conversations with potential purchasers, whereas finance groups might use one to deal with billing and invoicing. Assist desks are additionally helpful for human sources and IT groups who want to trace and reply to worker requests.
Why do small companies need assistance desk software program to handle buyer help?
Small companies might fear that switching from private communication channels to assist desk software program might jeopardize the shut relationships they’ve constructed with clients. Nonetheless, the reality is that making strikes to strengthen your help system will make it simpler in your staff to offer personalised help.
Assist desk software program can enhance your staff’s:
Group: Assist desks protect your entire firm’s communications in a single place and have instruments that make it simple to look and filter by them. You may tag conversations by product, view the entire requests from a selected buyer, or simply see which staff members responded to a message.
Collaboration: Collaborating in an everyday Gmail or Outlook inbox is laborious. Assist desks supply options like e mail templates, non-public notes, ticket assignments, and ticket statuses, offering extra visibility throughout your staff.
Course of: E mail administration can contain numerous busy work — deleting spam, tagging points, assigning duties, and escalating instances that must take precedence. Assist desks streamline your help course of by automating duties that don’t require a human contact.
Reporting: There is no such thing as a actual strategy to observe your help efforts precisely in case you’re working out of private inboxes. Assist desks robotically observe metrics like ticket quantity and time to decision.
Safety: Not like a shared e mail account, the place everybody makes use of the identical login credentials, assist desks have built-in safety measures. Each person has their very own username and password, and managers can assign roles, guaranteeing that employees members solely have entry to the data wanted to do their jobs.
Accessibility: Assist desks open up new alternatives to higher serve clients. Omnichannel platforms enable groups to increase past e mail help, rolling out channels like chat, voice, SMS, social media, and self-service.
A majority of these enhancements be sure that your staff by no means misses an e mail and at all times has the data, instruments, and bandwidth to ship excellent help.
How to decide on the perfect assist desk in your small enterprise
When confronted with so many decisions, it’s simple to change into overwhelmed or intimidated by the sheer amount of assist desk options available on the market. Nonetheless, the selection doesn’t need to be troublesome. As you start your search, search for software program that meets your wants in these 4 areas:
Channels: Decide which channels are most necessary to your clients and your staff.
Priorities: Know what issues you’re attempting to unravel and select a device that has options able to serving to you meet these objectives.
Finances: There’s a device for each price range. Keep away from plans which are stuffed with options that you simply in all probability gained’t use.
Progress: Decide a system that meets your present wants but additionally has room so that you can develop.
Lastly, bear in mind to strive before you purchase. All the software program on this listing, together with Assist Scout, supply a free trial the place you’ll be able to strive the options and get a greater thought of whether or not it is going to be match in your small enterprise staff.