Service desk software usually comes in two flavors – on-premises tools or cloud solutions. With cloud help desk software, you get an almost infinitely scalable solution without the hassle of having to set everything up from scratch on your company’s computers.
There are many web-based help desk solutions your business can take advantage of. Selecting the right tool will help your agents tackle support requests faster and provide a better service for your users.
Why Use Cloud Help Desk Software
It’s likely your business already relies on several cloud software solutions. A lot of companies use cloud software for email, internal communications, accounting, and much more. It’s not because cloud software is inherently better than on-site solutions, but it does offer several advantages.
- You don’t need to update cloud software
- Most platforms provide direct support for their customers
- Cloud software is available regardless of where you’re located
One downside to web-based help desk solutions is you often need to pay for them on a subscription basis. Instead of being able to make a one-time purchase, your licensing costs will vary depending on how many agents your company has on staff.
Enterprise software is seldom available as a one-time purchase. However, paying for a cloud help desk software subscription tends to be cheaper than setting up a similar solution on site.
With on-site tools, you can run into various issues due to incompatibility with the hardware and human error. Using cloud software, your team can simply log in to begin work.
5 Top Cloud Help Desk Software Options
The options below offer cloud help desk solutions for small businesses and large enterprises alike. Prices vary depending on how many agents you want to sign up. Keep in mind these tools are in no particular order.
1. Freshservice
With Freshservice, your team can set up knowledge bases to help them take care of incoming support requests. This cloud-based service enables you to process tickets coming in via email, phone, or your dedicated user portal.
Customers can use the same portal to access basic troubleshooting guides, helping cut down on service requests. With Freshservice, users can evaluate your agents and you get access to performance-related metrics.
Price: The Blossom plan starts at $19 per month per agent and offers a 21-day trial.
2. Zendesk Support
Zendesk is an all-in-one cloud platform offering solutions for both sales and support services. Its Support suite enables you to process tickets from multiple channels which include social media, community forums, phone, and live chat.
With Zendesk, you can set up public knowledge bases for your team to help build up. This way, users can troubleshoot simple issues on their own or reach out to you if they need additional help. You can also use the platform to set up custom workflows for support requests and keep track of agent performance using analytics tools.
Price: Zendesk support plans start at $19 per month per agent (the Team plan) if you want access to the features we mentioned before.
3. Zoho Desk
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Zoho offers a broad range of cloud-based services for businesses, including project planning and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools. The Zoho banner also includes a help desk solution called Zoho Desk.
With Zoho Desk, you can receive and monitor tickets from multiple channels covering social media, phone, and live chat.
As per our previous picks, Zoho Desk enables you to set up a public knowledge base for users browse through at their leisure. You can also create a private library of documentation for internal reference.
Zoho Desk includes basic chatbot functionally for its live chat and provides you with in-depth reports covering agent performance.
Price: The Standard plan costs $12 per agent per month.
4. Kayako
Kayako offers both cloud and on-site help desk solutions for businesses. Its web-based help desk option lets your agents engage with support requests coming in via live chat, email, and custom mobile apps.
Using Kayako, your team gets access to a shared inbox they can use to chat about complex tickets and collaborate on other projects. They’re also able to create an in-depth knowledge base your users can access to help them solve issues on their own.
Finally, Kayako enables you to monitor agent performance including resolution times, customer satisfaction, and a host of additional metrics.
Price: Kayako Inbox plan starts at $15 per agent per month.
5. SolarWinds Service Desk
With SolarWinds, you get access to a library of IT solutions for modern businesses. SolarWinds® Service Desk is one of the many tools in their suite.
Using Service Desk, you can process incoming tickets from your service portal. The platform enables you to create this portal, so users can find information on how to troubleshoot issues. Your team also gets access to a private knowledge base which can contain more in-depth documentation.
Service Desk enables you to set up customer satisfaction surveys and team performance monitoring tools.
Price: SolarWinds Service Desk plans start at $19 per agent per month with a 30-day trial available.
Conclusion
Cloud solutions are becoming more popular among enterprises, and it’s easy to understand why. With cloud help desk software, you don’t have to worry about local hardware configurations, setting up tools from scratch on every computer, and providing on-site support. Instead, you pay for a license (usually depending on how many agents you have) and that’s it, you’re good to go.
When it comes to cloud help desk software, there are plenty of options to choose from and these five options are among the best:
- Freshservice: The Blossom plan costs $19 per agent per month and you can sign up for a 21-day trial
- Zendesk Support: The Team plan starts at $19 per agent per month
- Zoho Desk: The Standard plan costs $12 per agent per month
- Kayako: The Inbox plan starts at $15 per agent per month
- SolarWinds Service Desk: The Team plan starts at $19 per agent per month
* As of August 31, 2020, all pricing is in USD.