Last Reviewed: November 19th, 2024

Best Ticketing Software Of 2024

What is Ticketing Software?

Ticketing Software is a dedicated tool for managing and resolving customer inquiries, streamlining communication, and improving service levels. By tackling challenges such as unstructured request handling and ineffective tracking, this software plays a pivotal role in enhancing customer satisfaction and ensuring organized responses. It provides vital benefits such as automated workflows, consolidated communication channels, and efficient tracking. Key features often include issue categorization, assignment, prioritization, and resolution tracking. More contemporary functionalities incorporate AI-based auto responses and integrated knowledge bases. Industries with high customer interaction, such as IT, retail, or customer service centers, stand to gain significantly. However, the software's effectiveness might be hindered by poor integration with existing systems or inadequate staff training. In conclusion, despite potential limitations, Ticketing Software delivers an essential solution for businesses aiming to upgrade their customer support and communication mechanisms.

What Are The Key Benefits of Ticketing Software?

  • Improves customer communication
  • Streamlines service requests
  • Enhances tracking capabilities
  • Boosts customer satisfaction
  • Automates workflow processes
  • Offers efficient issue categorization
  • Helps in task prioritization
  • Facilitates request resolution
  • Integrates with AI responses
  • Supports knowledge bases
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Overall

Based on the latest available data collected by SelectHub for 40 solutions, we determined the following solutions are the best Ticketing Software overall:

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Why We Picked Zendesk

Zendesk For Service offers streamlined tools for businesses of all sizes. It excels in features like ticket management, collaboration and knowledge management. Its interface is easy to use and understand, and there are plenty of onboarding resources for new users. The platform also offers numerous integrations with programs like CRM systems, project management tools and collaboration tools like Slack.

While users praised the comprehensive features and level of customization offered by the platform, they also said that this can make the learning curve steeper. Some customers were also disappointed by the lack of advanced reporting tools, the unresponsiveness of customer support and high cost for small businesses. All in all, Zendesk is a scalable and feature-rich solution for businesses looking for an efficient ticketing and support tool.

Pros & Cons

  • Ticket Management: 83% of users who talked about Zendesk’s ticket management features had a positive experience and praised the platform.
  • Ease of Use: 64% of users who talked about their onboarding and general experience using the platform said Zendesk was easy to use and learn.
  • Integrations: 57% of reviewers who mentioned integrations were happy with the range and variety of integrations available.
  • Knowledge Management: 83% of users who mentioned using the knowledge management and help center tools said they had a positive experience.
  • Collaboration: 92% of users who talked about Zendesk’s collaboration tools said that the platform made external and internal collaboration and communication easier.
  • Reporting: 55% of users who talked about the platform’s reporting and analytics tools complained about the lack of advanced reporting tools, especially on cheaper plans.
  • Customer Support: 70% of users who talked about contacting Zendesk customer service expressed dissatisfaction with their experience.
  • Cost: 100% of users who talked about pricing said that the cost of the platform was quite high for small businesses and businesses in developing countries.

Key Features

  • Ticketing System: Offer high-quality customer support across various channels with pre-built dashboards, automation, customer ticket fields and dynamic forms. Avoid misplacing tickets, produce faster resolution and boost the bandwidth via robust tools such as CSAT ratings, routing, service-level agreements and time tracking. 
  • Omnichannel Support: Offer quick and seamless customer support through multiple channels including email, phone, chat, customized chatbots, a website, WhatsApp, messaging, Facebook and Twitter to ensure faster resolutions 
  • Messaging and Live Chat: Engage in long-term, personalized conversations with customers to deliver instant support without any repetitions. Help customers get instant answers via bots and integrated programs with the ability to turn to a live agent whenever needed. 
  • Help Center: Give customers access to knowledge base articles and automated suggestion pop-ups to enable a streamlined and efficient self-service. Convert essential issues in the community into resolvable tickets and update reusable content from help centers and articles through content blocks. 
  • Voice Support: Deliver instant support to customers with a cloud-based voice solution, plug into 90+ telephone providers. Extend voice capabilities with services including redaction, quality assurance and advanced call transcriptions. 
  • Community Forums: Create a platform for customers to collaborate, provide feedback, review the product, and answer other user’s questions. Help them reach out for the most relevant services. 
  • Reporting and Analytics: Analyze how customers use websites, products, services and various support channels. Determine ways to improve the experience by getting instant access to insights and identifying problem areas via customizable, pre-built dashboards. 
  • Knowledge Base: Help customers get to know the services and products better by creating easy-to-read articles with rich formatting and translations to 40+ languages for a localized customer experience. 
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Why We Picked Splunk

Splunk is a robust security and incident-monitoring platform for operations support. Event logs, alerts, security management and KPI tracking make it a robust enterprise solution. Search, storage and analysis are its strong points.

We referenced online reviews for the past 18 months for this synopsis.

About 92% of data workers said its incident review dashboard enables easy system monitoring. The capability to design dashboards with the option to drill down into data is an asset. Some users said they would like to have more visualizations.

It garnered high praise for real-time incident monitoring. During our research, an oft-repeated sentiment was that users would not want to revert to previous tools.

About 84% of knowledge workers reviewing functionality said the solution had substantial data collection and analysis capabilities. Around 65% of reviewers reported it was easy to use and had a readable log format.

About 96% of the users citing pricing said it was costly but praised it for delivering on its promise and worth every penny. It can be complex to learn, and there’s a significant learning curve, according to around 77% of data workers who mentioned adoption.

Slow loads and delayed responses were at the top of the minds of around 61% of users when discussing performance. According to Enlyft, mid-sized enterprises form a large chunk of the user base, and understandably so, as its steep price can deter small players.

Pros & Cons

  • Data Visualization: About 92% of users mentioning dashboards praised its rich displays and many options to create custom views.
  • Functionality: Around 84% of users reviewing capabilities praised its rich feature set.
  • Ease of Use: Almost 65% of users citing user-friendliness praised the platform for making log analytics accessible.
  • Deployment: About 61% of users reviewing deployment said the system was easy to set up.
  • Pricing: Around 96% of users mentioning cost found it expensive.
  • Learning Curve: Deep learning is required to use the platform, approximately 77% of users referencing training said.
  • Performance: About 61% of users reviewing performance said it slowed down when handling complex queries.

Key Features

  • Data Integration: Pull data from on-premise, cloud, streaming sources and machines. Include relational databases using Splunk DB, an add-on module. Splunk doesn’t support SQL databases otherwise.
  • Device Diversity: Gather user and system data from personal and network devices, servers and IoT sensors. Access reports and dashboards on a web interface from iPads, TVs and phones.
  • SPL: Search, filter and analyze data with a powerful query language. Boost adoption with natural language commands using Splunk AI.
  • Interactive Dashboards: Create custom KPI displays using the dashboard editor. Click on visualizations to link to other dashboards, drill down and run new searches.
  • Reporting: Understand data using statistics and create advanced reports using the existing BI tech stack. Calculate typical values in a dataset using averages and medians. Measure how each value differs from the mean and each other.
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Why We Picked ServiceNow

ServiceNow's Help Desk Software receives consistent praise for its intuitive interface, robust automation capabilities, and comprehensive reporting features. Users appreciate its ability to streamline workflows, improve efficiency, and provide real-time visibility into support operations. However, some reviewers note that its complex configuration and customization options can be daunting for small teams or those with limited technical expertise.

Compared to similar products, ServiceNow stands out for its scalability, enterprise-grade security, and extensive integration options. Its ability to handle large volumes of support requests and integrate seamlessly with other business systems makes it a popular choice for large organizations. However, its higher cost and steep learning curve may not be suitable for smaller businesses or those with less demanding support needs.

Overall, ServiceNow's Help Desk Software is best suited for large organizations seeking a comprehensive and scalable solution. Its strengths in automation, reporting, and integration make it a valuable tool for streamlining support operations and improving customer satisfaction.

Pros & Cons

  • Robust Ticket Management: Efficiently manage and track tickets from submission to resolution, with customizable workflows and automated notifications.
  • Seamless Integrations: Effortlessly connect with other business systems, such as CRM, ERP, and HR, for a unified view of customer interactions.
  • Comprehensive Knowledge Base: Empower users with self-service options by creating and managing a searchable knowledge base of FAQs and solutions.
  • Automated Workflows: Streamline processes by automating repetitive tasks, such as ticket assignment, escalation, and status updates.
  • Real-Time Analytics: Gain valuable insights into performance metrics, customer trends, and areas for improvement through customizable dashboards and reports.
  • Mobile Accessibility: Provide remote teams and users with access to the help desk platform anytime, anywhere, through mobile applications.
  • Enhanced Collaboration: Foster teamwork and knowledge sharing among support agents through integrated chat, forums, and collaboration tools.
  • Scalability and Flexibility: Easily adapt the platform to changing business needs, with the ability to handle large volumes of tickets and integrate with new systems as required.
  • Excellent Customer Support: Receive dedicated support from ServiceNow's team of experts to ensure smooth implementation and ongoing assistance.
  • Proven Track Record: Leverage a platform trusted by leading organizations worldwide, with a proven track record of delivering exceptional help desk solutions.
  • Steep Learning Curve: Navigating ServiceNow's complex interface and functionality requires significant training and experience, leading to slow adoption and productivity challenges.
  • Customization Limitations: While ServiceNow offers customization options, they can be restrictive and time-consuming, hindering organizations from tailoring the platform to their specific needs.
  • Costly Implementation: Implementing ServiceNow can be expensive, involving licensing fees, professional services, and ongoing maintenance costs, which may not align with all budgets.
  • Limited Reporting Capabilities: ServiceNow's built-in reporting features may fall short of providing comprehensive insights and analytics, requiring additional third-party tools or custom development.
  • Slow Performance: Users have reported instances of slow performance and responsiveness within ServiceNow, particularly during peak usage times, affecting productivity and user satisfaction.

Key Features

  • Customer Service Management: Enable the back, middle and front offices to address customer issues and automate common requests prudently. Get access to robust tools such as dashboards, cross-portal search and activity feed to enhance the customer experience and improve the team’s productivity. 
    • Communities: Connect customers with peers to solve problems, share ideas, solutions and experiences and find answers via online forums. 
    • Gamification: Encourage engagement through elements like levels, points and badges. 
    • Case Integration: Escalate unanswered questions or issues into cases manually or automatically. 
    • Harvest Knowledge: Allow moderators to turn solutions into knowledge articles.
  • Knowledge Management: Offer a customer-grade search experience to users with contextual knowledge powered by AI capabilities and machine learning. Monitor timelines, knowledge use, aging, gaps and feedback via dashboards and analytics to fine-tune processes and content. 
  • Microsoft Word Authoring: Offer a familiar writing experience to users with a Microsoft Word online integration. Create reusable knowledge articles to reduce repetition and redundancy 
  • Feedback Management: Manage feedback with exceptional automatic closed-loop processes. 
  • Performance Analytics: Solve customer issues with better insights into real-time trends and patterns. Improve team productivity and decrease repetitions and failures with dashboards, analytics hub, spotlights and KPI signals. 
  • Subscription: Allow users to subscribe to a knowledge base, articles and to receive automatic notifications about any new content. 
  • Virtual Agent: Help customers resolve issues instantly via an AI-powered chatbot. Transfer conversation history to the most appropriate agent who can resolve issues quickly through live-agent hand-off. Use a built-in NLU engine to connect Microsoft LUIS and IBM Watson Assistant to identify map entities and intents. 
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Why We Picked Streak CRM

Built into Gmail, Streak ensures efficient email marketing, as users can check if an email is opened or read, deliver mass emails, send follow-ups, schedule emails and more. Additional strengths include data organization and greater productivity via G Suite integration. However, the free version has restrictions on how many emails can be tracked and doesn’t offer detailed tracking data. Reviewers also noted that the user interface needs improvement and that there are technical issues to address. Overall, it’s a decent software with a number of useful features.

Pros & Cons

  • Email Marketing: Robust features include open and read rates, bulk emails, scheduling and more, according to more than 82% of users who mention email marketing.
  • G Suite Integration: The software ensures efficient process by connecting with G Suite, as noted by almost 90% of reviewers who mention this aspect.
  • Free Plan: Every user who references the free plan indicated it’s very useful and caters to almost every requirement.
  • Centralized Data: The software aids efficient data management, as noted by every reviewer who mentions this feature.
  • Reminders: Every user who refers to this feature liked the ability to frequently follow up
  • Ease of Use: More than 62% of reviewers who reference this feature noted the platform is easy to navigate.
  • Customer Communication: Streak aids effective customer engagement according to all users who mention this feature.
  • Customer Support: According to almost 60% of users who mention this element, the customer service needs improvement, with slow responses and irregular quality cited as a couple issues.
  • Lack of Free Features: While the free plan is useful, 80% of reviewers felt it would be helpful to have more features.
  • Location: Every user who mentions this feature observed that the software doesn’t reflect senders’ geographical location.

Key Features

  • Pipelines: Streak CRM lets you create an unlimited number of pipelines, and with a Professional or Enterprise plan, you can also create unlimited rows (called items) within each pipeline. Filters, groups, sorting and search features let you configure pipelines based on the view you need and then save that view to share with team members. You can also link related pipeline items for quick navigation between the two. 
  • Boxes: Each box represents a contact, lead or whatever else you want to track. They act as the building blocks of your pipeline and are what you move through the stages. Boxes can contain information like emails, contacts, comments, notes, tasks, file attachments, data fields and more. 
  • Customizable Workflows: The software allows you to configure your workflow to fit your processes. You can add, delete or move pipeline stages, as well as color-code them for easy tracking. 
  • Alerts: The view tracking feature sends a notification when a recipient reads your message. You can sort emails in your Sent folder based on whether they’ve been viewed or not, so it’s clear which contacts require follow-up. 
  • Mail Merge: If you need to send mass emails that include personalization, this feature has the necessary capabilities. You can pull data from your pipeline to personalize elements like company info or recipient name. The preview mode lets you proof emails before sending. 
  • Send Later: You can schedule emails to send at a predetermined time and edit or cancel them from the draft view. 
  • Snippets: With this feature, which acts as a template, you can create a library of most-used emails to reuse whenever needed. Shortcuts allow you to insert the content quickly. The templates are shareable among team members. 
  • Reporting: Available with the Professional and Enterprise plans, this feature lets you generate reports based on the data in your pipelines. The system offers built-in sales and pipeline reports that can be customized, downloaded and shared via email. Sales reports let you track information like the total value currently in your pipeline, the value per stage, close rate, projected close value and more. Pipeline reports include total interactions, stage flow, the number of boxes assigned to each user and the number of boxes in any given stage. 
  • Permissions: With a Professional or Enterprise plan, you can control who views and edits information in the system. Owners act as the administrators, with the ability to edit teams, roles, pipelines and other settings. Members are limited to viewing pipelines and contacts, and can’t change user roles or team members. 
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Why We Picked Freshdesk

Freshdesk garners praise for its user-friendly interface and intuitive design, which minimizes training time for new agents and gets them up to speed faster. This is particularly important for businesses with high agent turnover or seasonal spikes in support requests. When compared to competitors offering a steeper learning curve, Freshdesk allows teams to become productive quicker, leading to faster issue resolution and improved customer satisfaction. However, Freshdesk's free plan, while suitable for small teams or those starting out, can be limiting for businesses requiring advanced features. Features like custom automations, powerful reporting, and integrations are often reserved for paid plans. This can be a dealbreaker for businesses seeking a comprehensive help desk solution without a significant upfront investment. Here, competitors offering more robust functionalities in their free tiers might be more suitable. Overall, Freshdesk shines for its user-friendliness, scalability, and mobile accessibility. The ability to customize the platform to fit specific workflows and the availability of mobile apps for agents and customers are valuable assets. However, its limited free plan functionality and potentially complex reporting can be drawbacks. Freshdesk is best suited for small and medium-sized businesses seeking an easy-to-use and scalable help desk solution, particularly those with limited technical expertise or a mobile workforce. For larger enterprises with complex workflows or multilingual customer bases, competitors offering more powerful reporting capabilities or broader language support might be a better fit.

Pros & Cons

  • User-Friendly Interface: Freshdesk is praised for its intuitive design and straightforward navigation. This minimizes onboarding time for new agents and reduces the learning curve, allowing them to become productive more quickly. Think of it as a user-friendly smartphone app compared to a clunky, feature-laden desktop program. This ease of use translates into faster issue resolution and improved overall efficiency.
  • Scalability & Customization: Freshdesk caters to businesses of all sizes, from startups to large enterprises. Its flexible plans and customization options allow businesses to tailor the platform to their specific needs. For instance, a small team might prioritize a simple ticketing system, while a larger organization can leverage features like custom automations or in-depth reporting for more complex workflows.
  • Mobile Accessibility: Freshdesk offers mobile apps for agents and customers, enabling them to access the platform and manage inquiries on the go. This is particularly valuable for remote teams or situations where agents need to be available outside the office. Imagine a field technician using the mobile app to update a customer ticket while on-site, improving responsiveness and streamlining the resolution process.
  • Limited Free Plan Functionality: While Freshdesk offers a free plan, it can be restrictive for businesses with growing needs. Features like custom automations, advanced reporting, and integrations are often reserved for paid plans. This can limit its usefulness for businesses seeking a comprehensive help desk solution without upfront investment.
  • Reporting Complexity: Freshdesk's reporting capabilities, particularly in lower-tier plans, can be cumbersome to navigate and require some technical expertise to generate insightful data. Some users report that creating custom reports or filtering data can be time-consuming, hindering efforts to effectively track key performance indicators (KPIs) and measure support team effectiveness. Imagine sifting through an overflowing email inbox to find a specific message compared to having a well-organized filing system with clear labels.
  • Limited Multilingual Support: Freshdesk's interface and support resources are primarily available in English. This can be a drawback for businesses operating in international markets or with a multilingual customer base. While some basic translations are available, they might be limited or not comprehensive, potentially hindering effective communication with non-English speaking customers and agents.

Key Features

  • Ticketing Management: Deliver higher quality customer service with collaborative ticketing. Convert customer issues from different channels into resolvable tickets. Offers: 
    •  Team inbox to prioritize and assign tickets based on keywords. 
    •  AI-supported ticketing to improve agents’ efficiency and save time. 
    •  SLA management to measure agents’ performance and set customer expectations for response times. 
  • Omnichannel: Consolidate various support-related communications channels like email, phone, chat, website, WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter to ensure a seamless customer experience as well as faster query resolution. 
  • Service Management: Create service tasks and field technician groups for tickets on the basis of location, priority and other aspects. To manage field operations, it also includes: 
    •  Scheduling dashboard to keep track of appointments, tasks and field team workloads. 
    •  Mobile field service to keep technicians updated on the fly. 
    •  Automated time-tracking to monitor billable hours. 
    •  Single swipe attachment of customer signatures to the service tasks via the mobile app. 
  • Reporting and Analytics: Schedule reports at regular intervals and customize them according to various requirements. Access actionable insights using data in different chart styles and visualizations. 
  • Customization: Customize workflows, customer portal and agents for optimum productivity based on specific business requirements. Its customization can be leveraged in the following ways: 
    •  Customized ticket forms. 
    •  Custom URL for smooth customer experience. 
    •  Building and integration of customized apps. 
    •  Custom segmentation of customers for personalized support. 
  • Automation: Automate notifications to agents and customers for any updates in their tickets. Automatically execute maintenance activities and implement actions on tickets based on the time lapsed since an event. 
  • Identity and Access Management: Allow and restrict agents as well as customers to log in to their accounts using single sign on script from anywhere using IP whitelisting and a VPN. 
  • Customer Self-Service: Enable efficient customer self-service with automated suggestion pop ups, knowledge base articles and by converting critical issues in the community into resolvable tickets. 
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Why We Picked Bitrix24

Bitrix24 is a collaboration platform that handles various tasks such as communications, notifications, subscriptions, reporting, workflow management and more. Automation, customization and integrations are a few noteworthy features. However, reviews noted that there are too many features and that the platform isn’t user-friendly. In addition, users found customer support unhelpful. Overall, it has all the basic CRM features along with extras like project management not always found in CRMs. That, along with a free subscription, makes it a good choice for companies on a tight budget.

Pros & Cons

  • Budget-Friendly: 87% of users mentioning this aspect suggested that the software is inexpensive and fits well for any size organizations, providing good value for the price.
  • Workflows: It automates many tasks to make work easier, according to 88% of reviews about workflows.
  • Report Generation: 64% of user reviews referencing this feature indicated the reporting tool is useful.
  • Integration: The platform integrates all the necessary applications that users need, as observed by 67% of reviewers mentioning integration.
  • Customization: Users can customize Bitrix24 based on their needs, according to 66% of reviews mentioning customization.
  • Device Compatibility: It works well on all kinds of devices and various digital networks, according to 75% of users who reference compatibility.
  • User Interface: 57% of users mentioning the UI said it was difficult to understand and use for daily operational tasks.
  • Customer Support: 100% of users who talked about support remarked that it wasn’t prompt and supportive in solving product-related queries.
  • Unnecessary Features: 50% of the users referring to capabilities noted the platform has many unnecessary features that never come to use.

Key Features

  • Pipeline Management: A kanban layout provides a visual view of your pipeline. The software supports custom deal stages and multiple pipelines. 
  • Campaign Management: This feature lets you build dynamic or static audience segments, run advertising campaigns on social networks, and set up campaigns across channels such as bulk mail and instant messaging. It includes campaign templates and metrics. 
  • Call Center Capabilities: Features include: 
    • PBX (private branch exchange) functionality for routing, queueing, voicemail, call transfers and forwarding, employee extensions, and recording.
    • Telemarketing features such as voice or SMS broadcasting, automatic call transcribing and callback requests.
    • Local numbers across more than 50 countries.
    • Integration with RingCentral and other VoIP tools.
  • Customer Support Tools: Post business hours, send canned replies, route and transfer conversations, and view client and supervisor ratings with a live support widget. A helpdesk feature provides tickets, SLAs, statuses and case priority. A multichannel contact center lets service teams provide email and telephone support, live chat, social media support and more. 
  • Document Management: Manage quotes and invoices, create custom documents, set up recurring invoices and build a product catalog. Documents support e-signature, and the kanban layout shows what stage invoices are at. Includes multi-currency support and tax capabilities, with accounting achieved via integrations with Xero and QuickBooks. 
  • Mobile Apps: Free iOS and Android apps are available. 
  • Self-Hosted Solution: The on-premise solution is a scalable platform offering: 
    • LDAP and Active Directory support.
    • Web clustering.
    • Multiple single sign-on (SSO) options and robust security features such as two-factor authentication and RSA encryption.
    • Modules for eLearning, a helpdesk and idea management, which aren’t available in the cloud version.
    • Access to the source code for full customization.
    • Deployment on any major server, including readiness for AWS deployment
    • 30-day trial.
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Why We Picked ConnectWise Manage

ConnectWise Manage is an effective PSA tool capable of executing job costing, time tracking, ticketing, project management, sending purchase orders, connecting to machinery and more. It integrates with accounting, sales, other ConnectWise software and more in addition to keeping users organized by sorting client information, tickets and more. Although ConnectWise Manage occasionally lags in performance, has a high pricing plan, a scattered customer support base and a clunky interface, most users believe it's worth every penny.

Pros & Cons

  • Abundant Features: ConnectWise Manage is equipped with a variety of features such as client communication, time tracking, ticketing, lead tracking, reporting, delivering purchase orders, quoting and more, according to 62% of users.
  • Integratable: Approximately 69% of users reported that ConnectWise Manage integrates with a vast amount of products including other ConnectWise solutions, Automate, Auvik, and LogicMonitor as well as certain sales and accounting solutions.
  • Arrange Client Information: Users remain organized by sorting client contact information, crucial documents, tickets and more, as reported by nearly 100% of users.
  • Highly Configurable: Roughly 57% of users reported that ConnectWise Manage is modifiable to align with their business needs.
  • Overwhelming Setup: When conveying how they felt about implementation, 42% of users stated that the setup tables are not user-friendly and there's an overwhelming number of customization choices.
  • Dated Interface: Approximately 71% of users conveyed that the interface is ugly, old and clunky compared to Zoho and Bullhorn. Users also report that there's a tough learning curve.
  • Inconsistent Customer Support: ConnectWise Manage's customer support is on a hit-or-miss basis, according to 90% of users. Some customer support agents allocate the best solutions and some don't. There's also a slow response time in offering the ideal troubleshooting resources.
  • Lagging Mobile Capabilities: Roughly 100% of users stated that ConnectWise Manage's mobile app does not match with its desktop or cloud counterparts.
  • High Price Tag: The overall cost of the system combined with its varying levels of support comes with a high price tag according to approximately 100% of users.
  • Slow as Molasses: Precisely 100% of users say ConnectWise Manage has a slow loading time when performing various tasks, including opening the right help tickets.

Key Features

  • Help Desk: ConnectWise Manage can track all ticket requests as they enter the system through different avenues, such as live chat, phone and email. ConnectWise Chat allows clients to enable instant online chat functionality and logs the information learned through these communications. The help desk feature also includes a customizable ticketing dashboard where users can view factors such as time-to-resolution history, team resources and total billable hours. 
  • Agreements: This tool automates the management of client contracts along with recurring billing parameters. Agreement templates are included in the system and can be customized to adjust factors such as support coverage and billing rates. The program can also help prioritize tickets based on client expectations. 
  • Account Management: ConnectWise Manage contains a centralized system where all customer interaction is stored, including purchases, communications, tickets and products so that reiterative information isn’t entered and the sales process can be streamlined. The program also develops standardized workflows for tasks such as client onboarding and ticket resolution to ensure a consistent customer experience. KPI and financial reporting are included to see where a customer stands financially with a company. 
  • Sales and Marketing: This program enables users to create and track sales opportunities. Campaign metrics such as links clicked and emails opened can also be monitored to assist with lead scoring. Customizable HTML email templates are available to help target specific groups. Automatic notifications of deals to close, opportunities that were won and agreements to renew keep sales teams up-to-date and ensure that nothing slips through the cracks. 
  • Procurement: ConnectWise Manage can sync up with QuickBooks easily to facilitate operations between accounting and inventory management. The program allows users to visualize materials and products that need to be ordered per set minimum stock levels. The solution can also adjust inventory count and manage inventory quantities. Information can be shared between sales and procurement to provide more visibility into the work of other departments. 
  • Time Tracking and Billing: The system tracks billable and non-billable hours and can allocate them to specific agreements and SLAs. Accountability tools are included in the program to make the process of obtaining approvals less of a hassle. Time on-site can also be tracked through the solution so that users can ensure that they are getting paid for all of the time that they spend working on a project. 
  • Project Management: Sales opportunities can be quickly converted into projects so that nothing slips through the cracks between workflows and so that project-related tasks can begin immediately. ConnectWise Manage also gives users visibility over different project aspects such as resources, roadblocks, timelines and statuses. Project templates can be customized and used to streamline project workflows and ensure consistency. 
  • Reporting: ConnectWise Manage’s reporting functionality includes the ability to see how many assets an organization has on-hand along with inventory levels. Inventory management costs can be calculated based on this information. Tickets can also be reviewed, assigned and closed through this tool. 
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Why We Picked Spiceworks

Spiceworks is a cloud-based platform that offers on-the-go ticket management for Android and iOS devices. Users said it is easy to navigate and integrates well with active directories. Many customers also liked its network monitor feature that carries out tasks like CPU utilization and reports on hardware and memory.

However, some users also said that the UI could undergo some redesign for a better user experience and more usability. Because it lacks customization and automation options available, tasks can take a lot of time. In all, it’s a functional, affordable and feature-rich product that could be an ideal choice for new companies.

Pros & Cons

  • Implementation: According to 100% of users, the software is relatively easy to set up and configure.
  • Ease of Use: Approximately 89% of customers said that it is a simple ticketing system with basic and easy-to-use features.
  • Features: The helpdesk feature allows seamless issue tracking and updates to users while saving significant time, according to 100% of users.
  • Value for Money: According to 100% of users, it is free and works better than many other products.
  • User Interface: According to 50% of users, the user interface is a little bit clunky.
  • Customization: Few customization options are available, which makes tasks lengthy, according to 60% of customers.
  • Automation: Approximately 95% of users said that there's almost no automation available, so agents cannot manage different queues to route tickets.

Key Features

  • Tickets and Tasks: Check IT tasks and incidents regularly, accept and reply to tickets and close them quickly with private comments. Use custom fields to manage millions of tickets, track workflow processes and see response times. 
  • Directory Integration: Merge with the Active Directory to add end-users automatically. Tag them to tickets and authenticate them in the portal. 
  • Team Management: Assign tickets automatically to appropriate agents and check team performance metrics with the dashboard. 
  • Multisite Support: Serve clients from various locations by setting up user portals and individual sites that all roll up to a single master help desk. 
  • Asset Management: Scan subnets with an IP address for all types of hardware, including Mac and Windows, along with switches, routers, printers and more. Gather information regarding the manufacturer, open ports, MAC address, UPS devices, antivirus programs storage and software and hardware details with the on-premises tool. 
  • Software Tracking: Detect any troublesome and unwanted software on Mac and Windows servers and workstations with a downloadable element to optimize system workflows. 
  • Custom Reporting: Generate custom reports on all network assets to get easy-to-export data in the cloud or self-hosted version. 
  • Scheduled Scans: Set inventory scans at a pre-defined time and frequency with automated scanners to ensure everything is up to date and not slowing down the network. 
  • Dashboards: Monitor the connectivity between IT infrastructure and remote sites in real time to identify any issue with the ISP, web application and internal network quickly. 
  • Contract Tracking: Track vendor contract info in a single platform and get automatic alerts of upcoming expiration dates. 
  • Networking Tools: Trace any foreign IP address or troubleshoot a slow network with IP Lookup. Calculate network range, create a new subnet and convert CIDR notation easily to an IP range through Subnet Calculator. Check if a site is unavailable for all users or just ones from the specific network with a website down checker. 
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Why We Picked LiveChat

LiveChat is often praised for its user-friendly interface and ease of setup. It seamlessly integrates with various platforms and offers a wide range of customization options. One of its strengths is the ability to create automated chatbots, which can handle simple inquiries and free up agents for more complex tasks. LiveChat's analytics and reporting capabilities provide valuable insights into customer interactions, allowing businesses to optimize their support strategies. It compares favorably to similar products due to its comprehensive feature set, intuitive design, and robust reporting functionality. These factors are crucial for businesses seeking a reliable and efficient live chat solution.

However, some users have expressed concerns about occasional technical glitches and limited customization options for chatbots. Additionally, LiveChat's pricing can be a consideration for smaller businesses or those with limited budgets. Despite these minor drawbacks, LiveChat remains a top choice for businesses seeking a comprehensive and user-friendly live chat solution. Its strengths in ease of use, automation capabilities, and reporting functionality make it particularly suitable for businesses looking to improve customer support efficiency and gain valuable insights into customer interactions.

Pros & Cons

  • Seamless Customer Support: LiveChat enables real-time communication, allowing businesses to resolve customer queries promptly and efficiently, enhancing customer satisfaction.
  • Personalized Interactions: Agents can access customer history and context, facilitating personalized interactions that build stronger relationships and drive loyalty.
  • Increased Conversion Rates: LiveChat provides an opportunity to engage with website visitors proactively, addressing objections and guiding them through the conversion funnel.
  • Improved Team Collaboration: LiveChat fosters collaboration between agents, allowing them to transfer chats seamlessly and share customer information for effective problem-solving.
  • Comprehensive Analytics: LiveChat offers robust analytics that provide valuable insights into customer behavior, enabling businesses to optimize their live chat strategy and measure its impact.
  • Inconsistent Agent Availability: Users experience frustration when they are unable to connect with a live agent during critical moments, leading to unresolved queries and dissatisfaction.
  • Limited Customization Options: Predefined chat templates and inflexible chat window designs restrict businesses from tailoring the live chat experience to match their brand identity and specific needs.
  • Data Security Concerns: Users are hesitant to provide sensitive information through live chat platforms due to concerns about data privacy and the potential for security breaches.
  • Delayed Response Times: Slow response times can lead to frustration and abandonment, especially during peak hours when users expect immediate assistance.
  • Lack of Proactive Engagement: Live chat software that lacks proactive engagement features limits the ability of businesses to initiate conversations and proactively address customer needs.

Key Features

  • Ticketing System: This module streamlines and simplifies the process of managing tickets. Users can create tickets from email or chat, group related cases with tags, assign tickets, schedule automated follow-ups and track open cases via a dashboard. Any messages sent after hours are saved as a ticket so no conversations are left untouched. 
  • Chat Routing: This feature ensures that customers speak to the most suitable agent based on department (sales or service, for example). Incoming chats can be routed automatically based on criteria like URL, or they can enter a queue for agents to manually select from. 
  • Reporting: A range of reports and analysis tools grant visibility into support efforts for a better understanding of performance. Managers can project staffing needs, monitor agent activity, track effectiveness via ticket statistics, drill down based on tags or groups and view high-level metrics like number of chats. Reports can be scheduled and delivered in multiple formats including CSV and XLS. 
  • Marketplace: LiveChat offers integration with more than 170 third-party tools for CMS, CRM, help desk, analytics, email marketing and e-commerce. Integrations include Slack, Calendly, Dropbox, Salesforce, Google Analytics, Facebook Messenger, ChatBot and MailChimp. 
  • Eye-Catcher: This tool increases engagement with chat widgets by letting users add visuals like images and GIFs that help draw attention to the chat. 
  • Notifications: This feature prevents messages from going unanswered via visual and audio alerts. Users can select the type of notifications to receive — new messages, new chats, etc. 
  • File Sharing: Reps can provide information when needed through this feature, such as sharing tutorials or marketing collateral. Visitors can also share files. 
  • Chat Archives: Users don’t have to worry about losing historical information with the ability to refer to chat histories. This feature is included in all plans, but the Starter package has a limit of 60 days. 
  • E-Commerce: Managers are able to estimate and measure the effectiveness of LiveChat with tools for goal setting and sales tracking. 
  • Security: LiveChat provides robust security via SSL encryption, single sign-on (SSO), two-step authentication, credit card masking, access restriction and audit logs. It’s hosted on U.S. or E.U. data centers and supports IP blocking. 
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Why We Picked Agile CRM

Agile CRM is a unified platform that aids sales, marketing and service efforts through features such as sales tracking, contact management, marketing automation, web analytics, two-way emails, telephony and helpdesk. It provides exceptional automation and is easy to use, even though it’s difficult to set up initially and some reviews indicated the need for a cleaner UI and more modern email templates. However, it also boosts efficiency with customizations and integrations, while having helpful avenues for receiving support. The software is slightly overpriced for the features offered but is robust when it comes to performance. It’s best for small and medium businesses looking to get their workflows organized and automated to avoid manual workloads.

Pros & Cons

  • Automation: 100% of the users who mention this feature said that the platform helps eliminate manual work by automating all the required actions.
  • Ease of Use: The platform is easy to use, with 70% of reviews referencing it stating that the system simplifies tasks and usage.
  • Support and Knowledge Base: 78% of users who mention support suggested customer service and the knowledge base are useful and help resolve queries.
  • Easy Integrations and Customization: Powerful features and integrations help scale productivity and speed up workflows, according to 61% of reviews mentioning integrations and customizations.
  • Not Cost-Effective: 66% of the users who reviewed the pricing mentioned Agile CRM is slightly pricey.
  • No Modern Templates: The platform could benefit from newer and more modern email templates, as noted by 100% of the reviews referring to this feature.
  • Difficult Setup: 75% of users who reviewed the setup suggested that the platform can initially be a little intimidating and challenging.
  • Clunky User Interface: The UI is outdated and not very interactive, according to 100% of the users who mentioned the interface.

Key Features

  • Marketing Automation: Makes building workflows for drip campaigns easy with a drag-and-drop designer. Autoresponders, email scheduling and automated social posts further increase efficiency. 
  • Email Marketing: User-friendly tools help build emails, conduct outreach and track results. Includes a drag-and-drop editor, custom and off-the-shelf templates, personalization, integrated lead scoring, contact list import, real-time alerts, and more. 
  • Multichannel Campaigns: Boost promotion and brand awareness efforts with a diverse approach to reach an audience on their preferred platforms, from social media to email to SMS. 
  • Landing Page Builder: No-code tools and templates remove the hassle from the design process for non-technical users, while a code editor empowers tech-savvy users to customize as they need. Web forms aid lead gen efforts and responsive design ensures a proper layout on any device. 
  • Web Forms and Popups: Pre-configured and customizable templates help capture more leads via website popups and forms. Place anywhere and specify popup timing. Email alerts notify about new form submissions and automated routing sends leads to predetermined campaigns. 
  • Social CRM: Sales, marketing and service teams can seamlessly incorporate social channels into their efforts via integrations with Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and Tower Data. This supports scheduled posts, campaigns, helpdesk responses, lead discovery and more. 

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Creatio

by Creatio
Creatio
Creatio is a versatile platform that combines CRM capabilities with powerful business process management tools. It helps businesses manage customer relationships, automate workflows and build custom apps without extensive coding knowledge.Starting at $25 per user per month, Creatio stands out with its no-code development platform, allowing teams to create and modify business apps through an intuitive drag-and-drop interface. The system is great at handling complex sales processes, marketing campaigns and customer service operations.The platform is particularly well-suited for mid-sized to large organizations that need more than just basic CRM functionality. The recently updated Freedom UI makes it more accessible for everyday users, though some technical expertise is helpful for more advanced customizations.Users like Creatio for its flexibility and vast feature set, including reporting capabilities, lead management tools and customer service features. Some users have noted occasional performance issues, particularly with page load times. New users should be prepared for a learning curve due to the platform's extensive functionality.To thoroughly analyze Creatio, I took a multi-faceted approach. First, I signed up for a free trial to test the platform hands-on and explored the mobile app to understand the user experience across devices. For real-world insights, I reached out to current Creatio users and read reviews on sites like Capterra. Further, I reviewed case studies and watched tutorials to learn and make the most out of the platform's capabilities. Finally, I utilized in-depth research from SelectHub's analysts, who extensively tested and evaluated Creatio.
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Buyer's Guide

Ticketing Software Is All About Simplifying Support Ticket Management 

Ticketing Software BG Intro

If your organization handles a large volume of support requests, then you know that lost tickets, delays in issue resolution and inefficient workflows can be major issues. Ticketing software can prevent these issues from ever arising, by automatically categorizing and routing your tickets.

Ticketing software is an essential tool that supports the day to day functioning of help desk departments. It enables customers to communicate their complaints and organizations to record and organize these complaints. This helps customer service teams address your customers’ concerns in a systematic and efficient manner.

This guide will take you through the ins and outs of ticketing software — its benefits, deployment methods, basic features and more. Let’s dive in!

Executive Summary

  • Ticketing software is a help desk tool that supports the day to day functioning of help desk systems by recording, organizing and categorizing customer complaints.
  • Ticketing software ensures streamlined ticket tracking, faster issue resolution and improved collaboration, which, in turns, helps organizations achieve customer satisfaction.
  • AI integration through chatbots and sentiment analysis, omni-channel support and self-service are some of the upcoming trends in this category.
What This Guide Covers:

What Is Ticketing Software?

Ticketing software is a help desk tool that converts support requests submitted by customers into trackable tickets, making it easier for agents to view and respond to them. It also records, organizes, categorizes and tracks support tickets from submission to resolution, which helps in maintaining a streamlined customer support workflow.

A recent report by Zendesk showed that support ticket volume has increased across all channels. In fact, some channels, like Whatsapp, show an increase of up to 370%! With customer satisfaction at stake, ticketing software has become indispensable in handling these large ticket volumes.

Tools like automatic ticket routing, ticket pipelines and ticket history help streamline the flow of tickets for timely issue resolution. Additionally, automating key processes and repetitive tasks reduces the risk of human error and allows agents to spend more of their time with customers.

Types of Ticketing Software

Ticketing software is not always one-size-fits-all. Depending on the kinds of issues you’re resolving you may need different tools.

The main two types of ticketing software deal with internal needs, like IT, and external issues, like customer support. If your team is mostly resolving IT or software-based issues and bugs, you’ll need a ticketing system for IT teams. If your tickets are mostly queries and complaints from customers, you’ll need a customer service-oriented ticketing tool.

Here’s how these two types compare.

Ticketing Systems for IT Teams

If you’re running an IT desk that mostly troubleshoots software issues and bugs, then you’ll need a ticketing system that’s suitable for IT teams. Tools like bug tracking, remote desktop access, incident management, change management and problem management tools are must-haves for these kinds of ticketing systems. These ticketing systems are an integral part of ITSM.

Ticketing Systems for Customer Support Teams

These ticketing systems are designed for customer support and servicing teams. They handle queries and support tickets from customers, providing an interface for customers to interact with your company’s representatives and get their queries resolved.

Deployment Methods

Ticketing software can be installed on-premise, or you can choose a SaaS (software-as-a-service) platform that provides cloud infrastructure. Both of these deployment methods have their advantages and disadvantages.

On-premise

On-premise deployment entails installing a physical copy of the software on your system, which means that the software can only be used on site. Because of this, on-premise deployment is not suitable for remote help desk systems.

The advantage of this type of deployment is that it’s usually a one-time purchase, rather than an ongoing subscription. This also means, however, that maintenance becomes your responsibility, and you may need to purchase software updates and version changes separately.

Cloud-based

Cloud-based deployment, an increasingly popular deployment method, stores app data on a cloud so it can be accessed from anywhere with a reliable internet connection. This makes it ideal for remote work.

Maintenance is handled by the vendor, reducing your level of responsibility. Because of that, a disadvantage of this model is that any server issues or problems on the vendor’s side can cause your systems to go down as well.

Cloud-based ticketing software platforms are usually subscription-based, which makes them a recurring cost. Software updates and other maintenance costs are generally included in your subscription plan.

Primary Benefits

Let’s look at some of the main benefits of ticketing software and how it can help you successfully manage your help desk system.

Benefits of Ticketing Software

1. Productivity

In 2022, Hubspot found that, despite customer expectations having risen, only 50% of companies have empowered their teams through help desk, knowledge management and collaborative tools.

Streamlined ticket tracking helps your agents avoid confusion and save time. Ticketing software organizes support tickets as they come in according to type and priority, and automatically routes them to the most appropriate agent. Agents access tickets through user-friendly, consolidated dashboards that support collaboration. This helps teams manage each ticket better, and avoid issues like lost tickets or duplicate responses.

By monitoring each ticket’s progress towards issue resolution, ticket histories also increase accountability. This is a useful tool for agents as well as supervisors, providing insight into the quality of your customer support.

2. Faster Issue Resolution

The Hubspot survey also found that getting an immediate response when contacting a company was an important priority for 90% of customers.

A streamlined ticketing workflow can greatly improve your team’s efficiency. AI-based tools like chatbots can be used to automate repetitive tasks and facilitate your customers’ first contact with your help desk system. With these tasks covered, agents can allocate more time and resources to customer handling, speeding up issue resolution.

Categorizing tickets by priority with the software also helps teams find and address urgent tickets quickly. Collaborative tools enable agents to work together to address complaints and provide the best possible resolution.

3. Better Communication

Encouraging collaboration and teamwork within your organization is a great way to both boost morale and increase the quality of your customer service. Ticketing software supports this through its user-friendly interface and pre-built collaboration tools.

The software offers team inboxes, creating a shared inbox for your agents for incoming tickets and queries across multiple communication channels. Team dashboards also contain helpful information like customer profiles and ticket histories, so agents have all the information they need to address your customers.

4. Increased Customer Satisfaction

According to a PWC report, 32% of customers cited poor customer service experiences as their reason for switching brands. Even one bad experience can hurt a customer’s perception of your business. High-quality customer service is paramount for customer retention.

In addition to helping teams achieve faster and more comprehensive ticket resolution, ticketing software also supports multiple communication channels, consolidating tickets from each into one unified dashboard. According to Zendesk, 93% of customers will spend more time with companies that offer support through their preferred communication channel, so it’s important to meet your customers where they are. For more information, see our Ultimate Zendesk Review.

Implementation Goals

Before you select and deploy any ticketing software, it’s a good idea to make a list of your implementation goals. Improved customer experience and smoother help desk operations are some common goals, though your own goals may differ according to your company’s needs and industry requirements.

To get you started, here’s a list of some basic implementation goals to strive for:

Goal 1

Track tickets from submission to resolution

Ticketing software tracks, records and monitors the journey of support tickets from submission to resolution. It not only provides customers a medium through which to communicate their complaints, but also handles the background processes, supporting timely resolution and complete customer satisfaction.

Goal 2

Maintain efficient issue resolution workflows

Efficient and systematic workflows are essential for any business operation. For help desks, streamlined issue tracking and resolution is part of this workflow.

Ticketing software organizes tickets by type and priority level, automatically allocates tickets to available agents and maintains records of each ticket’s history from submission to resolution. This keeps your help desk system organized and ensures smooth operations.

Goal 3

Monitor customer service quality

In addition to ticket tracking tools, ticketing software also provides agent performance monitoring and reporting tools, which can provide insight into the overall quality of your customer support.

Tracking agent performance, both across teams as well as on an individual level, helps your company maintain consistent quality customer support experiences across the board.

Goal 4

Improved collaboration

Collaboration improves performance. When teams can rely on and consult each other, they feel more connected to their workplace, and can address customer complaints more comprehensively.

Features like shared inboxes, ticket sharing and ticket splitting enable teams to work collaboratively on tickets.

Goal 5

Better analytics and reporting

Customers’ needs are ever-changing, and keeping up with them is no easy task. Analytics can help you understand what customers want, where you fall behind and how you can best service your customers.

Ticketing software comes with custom dashboards, dynamic data visualizations and automatically generated reports to give you insight into your customers’ experience. Taking customer feedback into account can help you strategically improve your support experience.

Basic Features & Functionality

Ticket Tracking

Track tickets from submission until resolution. You can maintain an activity log or ticket history for each ticket to record all actions performed by agents, including adding or removing tags, marking spam and more.

You can also create and manage ticketing pipelines to track ticket stages and progress over time.

Search, Sort and Filter Tickets

Organizing and managing tickets makes it easier for agents to view and work on them.

Use built-in tools for searching tickets, sorting them in ascending or descending order, and filtering tickets based on channel, type, ticket status and other relevant tags.

Automatic Ticket Routing

Automatically assign tickets to support agents based on set criteria, like ticket type and priority level, predefined ticket distribution rules, such as round-robin, ring to all, random assignment or max utilization.

Custom Tags

Tags help you categorize tickets according to type of issue, priority level, ticket status and more. You can customize tags and labels according to your organizational needs.

Priority Setting

Different tickets may have different priority levels. For example, you may want to prioritize an urgent repair request over a product exchange request.

Priority setting allows you to prioritize the ticket as urgent, high, medium or low based on its content, requester or importance. Support teams are automatically assigned higher priority tickets first, ensuring urgent requests are answered in a timely manner.

Ticket status

Monitor the progress made on tickets without having to go through the ticket history and conversations.

Statuses are set by agents as open, on hold, escalated or closed to show how close a ticket is to being resolved and whether escalation or more intervention is required.

Linked Tickets

Though most customer service requests can be resolved by one agent, sometimes requests have multiple components and require more personnel involvement.

Linked tickets support collaboration by creating sub-tickets within a main ticket, breaking it down into multiple tasks and assigning them to individual teams.

Shared Tickets

Agents can share the ownership of tickets with other team members, allowing others to work on the ticket and view its progress. If an agent is struggling with a request, this tool allows more qualified personnel to easily step in.

Ticket Merging and Splitting

Sometimes a customer may submit multiple tickets about the same issue, or multiple tickets through different channels. You can merge these tickets into one thread, avoiding potential confusion and miscommunication from multiple tickets.

There may also be cases where a customer submits two different support queries through the same ticket. You can split the ticket into two and assign them to different teams in order to ensure both requests are addressed.

Ticket History

Follow the history of a ticket from submission to resolution. You can access an activity log of all actions performed on the ticket by agents, including adding or removing tags, marking spam tickets, status updates and more.

Ticket histories can be used for archival and record-keeping purposes, as well as to monitor performance. Supervisors can use them to check how long it took for an agent to resolve a particular ticket, what steps were taken and other relevant details.

Advanced Features & Functionality

Agent Collision Detection

In fast-paced environments with high ticket volumes, it may sometimes happen that two different agents attempt to respond to the same ticket.

Agent collision detection alerts agents when they open a ticket that another agent is already working on. This prevents confusion and duplicate responses, saving time and resources.

Convert Ticket Replies to Knowledge Base Articles

If you’re receiving the same support query again and again, you can create a knowledge base article to answer it so that future queries about that issue can be redirected to that article.

You can also cut down on the time and labor of writing knowledge base articles by converting your support agents' responses into knowledge base articles.

Convert Multi-channel Conversations to Tickets

Offering omni-channel support means dealing with multiple support requests across multiple different channels. Bringing these queries together on one unified platform helps ensure no support request is missed.

You can convert all customer emails, chat conversations, critical issues raised in community groups or forums, and phone calls into tickets. These tickets are then categorized accordingly and routed through to the right agents.

Customer Segments

Different categories of customer may have different needs. You can categorize customers based on their subscription plan, region or location, types, industry and other criteria, and manage these categories accordingly. Segments also help you offer more personalized customer service.

AI Integration

AI tools can help you reduce agent workloads and free up valuable resources . Chatbots can be used to address common or relatively simple issues, and route customers to agents as needed.

AI also simplifies processes through automated ticket categorization and routing. Tickets are categorized by ticket or issue type, assigned a priority level and then routed through appropriate channels to the right agents.

Additionally, AI tools, like sentiment analysis, can read and analyze the tone of a ticket and suggest appropriate responses.

CRM Integration

Integrating with common CRM software, such as Salesforce, PipeDrive and SugarCRM, and with collaborative software, like Slack and MS Teams, helps you provide a more comprehensive customer servicing platform and simplifies information sharing and reporting.

Current & Upcoming Trends

Customer needs and demands can be incredibly dynamic, especially in the ever-changing digital landscape. Keeping up with shifts in technology is essential for customer retention.

Failure to keep up with the times is one of the leading causes of previously successful companies losing their market share. With that in mind, let’s look at some of the latest trends for ticketing software.

Trends for Ticketing Software

1. AI Integration

AI tools, like chatbots and AI-based self-service, are becoming increasingly popular. With the rise of generative AI and tools like ChatGPT, AI is becoming more and more life-like. But can it replace human agents completely?

While one-third of people surveyed by PWC said that they value interacting with a human over AI, a report by Zendesk shows that 69% of customers are happy to deal with AI for simpler queries. Responsible use of AI, alongside human agents, can help organizations greatly improve customer experience.

While chatbots are some of the more obvious examples of AI usage, the true value of AI lies in more complex tools, like ticket sentiment analysis and automated organization methods.

Sentiment analysis analyzes a ticket for sentiment-based keywords, helping to determine how the customer feels, and then suggests appropriate responses. AI-based ticket categorization and routing can be used to organize tickets, assign them a priority level and route them through appropriate channels to the right agents.

2. Personalized Customer Service

66% of customers surveyed by Salesforce said that they expect companies to treat them as unique individuals and offer personalized customer service. However, only 34% feel that companies do that. Personalization can make customers feel more valued, which in turn boosts their loyalty to your business.

Data gathered from customer interactions can be used to create customer profiles and tailor services to customer’s needs and preferences. This can be as simple as offering support through a customer’s preferred communication channels. The PWC report mentioned above found that 82% of customers are willing to share some personal data in exchange for personalized service.

But personalization should be balanced alongside responsible use of customer data. Data privacy and security are still major concerns for consumers — around 47% of people surveyed by Cisco in 2021 said that they had switched companies in the past due to privacy concerns. Transparency regarding the data you collect and how you use it can go a long way in winning the trust of your customers.

3. Omnichannel Ticketing Support

Customers today interact with brands on a variety of different platforms. It’s no wonder they expect to receive support through the channels of their choice as well. Omni-channel support ensures that your organization has a presence everywhere, and enables customers to reach out to you more easily.

93% of customers surveyed by Zendesk said that they would spend more time with companies that offered support through their preferred communication channels.

Additionally, according to a Salesforce report, top performers in the customer service industry are 7.6x more likely to offer outstanding omni-channel support than their underperforming counterparts. This shows that omni-channel support is one of the most critical trends determining success in customer service in recent years.

4. Self-Service Tools

According to Zendesk, 89% of customers prefer to find solutions to their problems online without having to contact anyone. Many customers like the convenience of self-service tools, especially for issues that are relatively minor. It’s no wonder that according to a Forbes article, self-service was one of the top emerging trends in 2023.

Self-service options, like community-based ticketing support and knowledge bases, can both help customers efficiently and reduce the workload on your help desk teams, freeing up time and resources. McKinsey found that 65% of business leaders cited self-service tools as a major factor in helping reduce ticket volumes.

Community-based ticketing support relies on creating communities for customers to interact with each other, as well as company representatives, to find solutions without having to go through customer support. In addition to helping individual customers, this also creates a permanent resource for other customers to reference in the future.

Similarly, knowledge bases are collections of articles, usually answering frequently asked questions (FAQs), that act as online guides or user manuals for customers. Customers can figure out how to use a product or service, or troubleshoot common problems without the need for agent support.

Software Comparison Strategy

Now that you have a sense of what ticketing software does, how do you find the right solution for your company?

The first step is to determine what your company needs. What challenges are you currently facing in customer support? How do you want the ticketing software to address them?

Drawing up your specific requirements can make a good foundation for your search. If you need help, try our requirements template as a starting point for this.

You’ll also want to consider factors like the size of your organization and the volume of tickets you handle on a day to day basis. The software you choose should be able to handle this ticket volume, and offer options for scaling as your organization grows.

Once you’ve narrowed down your options, make a list of potential vendors and start reaching out to them. Be sure to ask them any questions you might have about the software before making a purchasing decision. Some vendors also offer free trials, so you can see how the software functions in your workplace before you commit.

Cost & Pricing Considerations

Several factors can affect the cost of a ticketing software. One major consideration is the deployment method. On-premise software is usually a one-time cost, while cloud-based software tends to use subscription models. If you decide to go for the former, check whether the cost of updates and maintenance is included with the one-time payment, or whether you would need to pay separately for version upgrades down the line.

Cost can also vary depending what features you need. Most vendors offer multiple pricing tiers, with fewer features available for cheaper versions. A program with basic functionality may not cost a lot, while a more advanced version will likely be more expensive.

The Most Popular Ticketing Software

Software selection can often be quite overwhelming. With so many options out there, where do you even start? Well, here’s a helpful list of the best ticketing software, based on the research of SelectHub analysts, to put you on the right track.

Jitbit

Jitbit is a multilingual ticketing software for help desk systems. It offers features like ticket routing, a knowledge base, ticket filtering and categorizing, canned replies, an auto-responder, file attachments and asset tracking. Jitbit caters to small, medium and large businesses.

Jitbit

Real-time ticket tracking and management with Jitbit. Source

Happyfox

Happyfox is a ticketing platform that can integrate with your website and email to collect, categorize and route customer support requests in the form of tickets. With multilingual knowledge bases, omni-channel support, a best-in-class ticketing system and AI integration, Happyfox offers an extremely comprehensive ticketing and customer service platform.

Happyfox

Viewing ticket histories on Happyfox. Source

Freshdesk

Freshdesk is a cloud-based solution for ticket management and issue tracking, with tools like omnichannel customer engagement, quick query resolution and automatic appointment management. It’s easily customizable, with options for agent roles, ticket forms and portals, and allows users to manage identity and information access for better data security.

Freshdesk

Viewing and responding to a ticket through Freshdesk. Source

TeamSupport

TeamSupport is a B2B customer support and ticketing solution. It includes features like customer distress index, omni-channel support, agent rating, and ticket tracking and management. A customer-focused platform that provides detailed, insightful customer profiles, it allows organizations to build stronger relationships with their clientele.

TeamSupport

CSAT tracking with Teamsupport. Source

Vision Help Desk

Vision help desk is a customer support and ticketing tool that offers a fast, secure and user-friendly solution for ticket tracking and support. It collects customer requests from across communication channels and consolidates them on a unified interface. Vision also offers a free platform for use by NGOs and charity organizations.

Vision Help Desk

Vision helpdesk ticket management dashboard. Source

 

 

Questions To Ask Yourself

To guide your search, ask yourself these questions:

  • What’s our budget?
  • How large is our organization and what’s our typical ticket volume?
  • Do we require only basic tools or more advanced features?
  • Do we have any industry specific requirements?
  • Do we need remote agent support?

Ticketing Software Key Questions To Ask

 

 

 

Questions To Ask Vendors

Use these questions as a starting point for conversations with vendors:

About the Software

  • Is it compatible with my existing CRM?
  • Does it require extra plug-ins or third-party integrations?
  • Does it offer data analytics and visualization tools?
  • Does it offer self-service tools like knowledge bases?
  • What kind of data security measures does the software offer?

About the Vendor

  • Do you offer 24/7 support?
  • What kind of maintenance services do you offer?
  • Do you offer onboarding and training resources?
  • Have you worked with companies in my industry?
  • For on-premise software, is the cost of updates and maintenance included in the price?

Next Steps

Ticketing software can simplify your day to day operations and help you ensure no customer is ever left dissatisfied.

We hope this guide helped you understand the benefits of ticketing software and what to consider when comparing different products. Still feeling overwhelmed? Try our free software comparison report to get in-depth insights into top software leaders, and find the solution that helps you serve your customers even better.

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Additional Resources

About The Contributors

The following expert team members are responsible for creating, reviewing, and fact checking the accuracy of this content.

Technical Content Writer
Kriti Sahay is a Technical Content Writer at SelectHub, writing content for Help Desk and Call Center Software. Kriti is based out of New Delhi, India. When she's not handling Buyer's Guides and other informational articles, she can be found experimenting in her kitchen, street shopping, or painting!
Technical Research By Joan Akash
Senior Analyst
Joan Akash, a Senior Research Analyst at SelectHub, holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Management with a specialization in Marketing. Her expertise as a researcher and reviewer spans diverse software categories, including Project Management, Customer Relationship Management, Live Chat, and Help Desk. Beyond her professional pursuits, Joan is spiritually driven, with a passion for teaching children and a penchant for reading biblical blogs and crafting poetry.
Technical Review By Manan Roy
Principal Analyst
Manan is a native of Tezpur, Assam (India), who currently lives in Kolkata, West Bengal (India). At SelectHub, he works on categories like CRM, HR, PPM, BI, and EHR. He has a Bachelor of Technology in CSE from The Gandhi Institute of Engineering and Technology, a Master of Technology from The Institute of Engineering and Management IT, and an MBA in Finance from St. Xavier's College. He's published two research papers, one in a conference and the other in a journal, during his Master of Technology.
Content Editor
As an editor, Dianna Dragonetti leads a team of five writers in writing about a variety of software, with an emphasis on how these tools empower businesses. Categories include accounting, learning management systems, content management systems, supply chain management, and electronic data interchange.