Best help desk ticketing systems in 2024

With so many products, services, and systems in use across today’s business landscape, it’s only natural that more issues will arise. With an increased volume of inquiries and requests constantly arriving from all channels, proper processes must be in place to handle them effectively. To tackle these challenges, ticketing software provides organizations with a tool to receive, consolidate, and prioritize all support requests to resolve them quickly, efficiently, and accurately.

Today, we’ll explore help desk ticketing systems, their benefits for modern organizations, and the best software currently available in the market.

What is a ticketing system?

A ticketing system is a software-based solution designed to manage handling various inquiries and issues. It is a centralized platform for tracking these interactions from initiation to resolution. Typically utilized by customer support teams, IT departments, and various service-oriented industries, a help desk ticketing system allows users to create, prioritize, and assign requests efficiently.

Why do organizations need ticketing tools?

Though generally associated with customer support operations, ticketing systems can also be versatile tools for optimizing other business teams.. One key area where a help desk ticketing system may provide value is in IT service management (ITSM). By offering a unified location for managing all tech-related incidents, problems, and changes, this ticketing software enable IT teams to efficiently fulfill service requests and implement changes while adhering to established protocols.

Furthermore, a ticketing system can promote internal collaboration and project management. Allowing teams to create and prioritize tasks within a consolidated system facilitates transparency, accountability, and alignment of efforts across departments.

Best ticketing systems in 2024

1. Freshdesk

Freshdesk is an AI-powered help desk software from Freshworks designed for ticketing, ease of use, and rapid resolution of customer complaints. With seamless ticketing experiences and self-service options across various channels, it improves customer support operations. Freshdesk's AI-driven automation routes tickets intelligently, ensuring smooth collaboration among team members for swift and precise resolutions. With Freshworks' built-in AI engine, Freddy AI, Freshdesk enables agents to deliver outstanding service consistently, delighting customers every time.

Key features:

• Self-service: Launch self-service options and help customers find answers on their own.

• Workflow automations: Automate routine, time-consuming tasks to improve team efficiency.

• SLA management: Ensure customers get responses and resolutions on time by setting up SLA reminders and escalations.

• Agent productivity features: Enable agents to perform at their level best with canned responses, custom ticket views, scenario automations, and in-app notifications.

• CSAT: Track and manage customer satisfaction with feedback forms.

• Collaboration: Enable your team to collaborate with each other and resolve customer issues faster.

• Reporting: Get insights on customer service performance and KPIs with reports and live dashboards.

• Marketplace: A diverse range of applications (WFM, field service, telephony, chatbots, etc.) accessible in one unified platform. 

• Mobile app: Support on the go with the Freshdesk mobile app available on Android and Apple

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Pricing

Pricing starts from: $0

Free trial period: 14 days

Freshdesk pricing

Advantages:

Reduced Ticket Volume: Empower customers with a self-service knowledge base, deflecting repetitive complaints and freeing agents for complex issues.

Improved Agent Productivity: Automated workflows, collaboration tools, and AI-powered assistance empower agents to resolve issues faster and focus on delivering exceptional service.

Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Offer a convenient and consistent customer experience across all channels, leading to happier and more loyal customers.

Why customers rave about Freshdesk?

Freshdesk offers a modern and intuitive user-friendly interface that makes it easier for agents to navigate and manage tickets.

“The product maintains a record of customer interactions so you can respond efficiently to new requests and manage the resolution of issues. It allows you to effectively track a large number of customer interactions and easily manage them. We manage about 49 interactions per week, and this product makes it easy to keep track of all these conversations.” — Verified user review, Trust Radius

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2. Freshworks Customer Service Suite

Freshworks Customer Service Suite is an AI-powered ticketing software known for its comprehensive and intuitive approach to managing customer interactions across multiple channels. It caters to businesses of all sizes, offering scalability and flexibility to grow with your company. It simplifies the customer support process by centralizing emails, social media messages, live chat, and phone calls into a single, easy-to-manage platform. With its user-friendly interface and extensive customization options, Customer Service Suite makes it easy for businesses to set up a sophisticated customer support center without extensive technical expertise. 

Freshworks Customer Service Suite combines the power of self-service bots, conversational messaging, and ticketing into a single help desk. CSS is built on generative AI technology, using Freddy AI—Freshworks’ built-in AI engine. Freddy unlocks self-service for customers, and empowers reps to solve problems swiftly, and gives leaders the insights they need to maximize business growth.

The unified, omnichannel solution backed with generative AI can elevate support capabilities with more engaging experiences and improved agent productivity.

Key features

From bots to conversational experiences, ticketing, and collaboration, Freshworks covers the entire customer service journey. It helps with the following: 

• Omnichannel support: Meet your customers on whatever channel they like to use. From email and phone to chat, text, popular social media apps like WhatsApp, Facebook messenger, Instagram, and Google Business Messages—all from a single window for truly unified support experiences.

• Self-service automation: Freddy Self Service, available on any channel, helps with faster and more personalized resolutions. Freshbots can help deflect up to 70% of queries, according to the Freshworks Customer Service Benchmark Report 2023–thus reducing wait times and improving overall customer engagement. 

• Elevating agent productivity: Freddy Copilot is an always-on assistant who can suggest responses, recommend next-best action, and summarize events for support reps. Agents receive valuable insights to enhance their actions. This ensures a personalized and proactive approach to customer engagement.

• Enabling seamless collaboration between teams: Resolve complex queries effortlessly with Freshworks’s robust ticketing capabilities. Assign tickets to the right agent with the help of AI capabilities and solve queries quickly and efficiently. With the help of natural language prompts, admins can easily build complex chatbot flows, create training plans for agents, set up automation, and more for faster resolutions. 

• Making data-driven decisions: Freddy Insights can analyze performance data for opportunities to remove bottlenecks and optimize productivity. It can even recommend actions to solve problems and execute them.

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Perfect for: 

Businesses that need an omnichannel customer service suite

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Why do people like Freshworks Customer Service Suite?

Your current systems can be easily integrated with the Customer Service Suite, which offers a user-friendly interface for your agents. In addition, the suite can seamlessly expand to accommodate your business's growth.

Some other benefits include:

• User-Friendly: Its intuitive interface reduces training time and boosts agent productivity.

• Scalability: It grows with your business, adapting to changing needs seamlessly.

• Efficient Ticket Management: It streamlines support processes, ensuring responsiveness and quality.

• Omnichannel Support: It consolidates customer interactions across channels for consistent service.

Backed by Freddy AI—our powerful AI platform—Freshworks Customer Service Suite provides an intuitive interface that enables you to interact with the software using natural language. It is easy to set up, configure, and manage—allowing you to save time and resources. 

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3. Freshservice

Freshworks’ Freshservice is a cloud-based IT Help Desk and service management solution that provides robust ticket management features, incident, problem, and change management capabilities, IT operations management, SaaS management capabilities, and more. It offers all the tools organizations require to efficiently oversee their ITSM processes and ensure services are continually available for users.

Essentially, Freshservice is a unified hub for managing and resolving all IT incidents users report. With it, clients can quickly prioritize and assign incidents to appropriate IT staff, ensuring timely response and minimal service disruption.

Key features

• SLA management helps resolve tickets based on priorities while automating escalation rules to communicate about SLA violations

• The ticket summary generator meticulously analyzes ticket exchanges, distilling them into clear and concise summaries

• Automated workflows expedite repetitive tasks, reducing manual effort and allowing IT teams to focus on more complex undertakings.

• Workload management provides an overview of work assigned to team members, ensuring that employees aren’t overwhelmed and that tickets are responded to in a prompt manner.

• Public and private notes can provide end-users with updates on their tickets or facilitate improved internal collaboration to resolve requests faster.

Ticket field predictions can preemptively identify fields such as type, priority, and group.

Perfect for: 

Businesses of any size are seeking a comprehensive IT ticketing system to help with change management, incident management, problem management, project management, and more.

Pricing: 

Begins at only $19 per user per month for our Starter package

4. Help Scout

Help Scout is a customer support platform that offers a shared inbox, help center, and live chat software to assist in efficiently managing all customer communications.

Key features

• Automated workflows 

• Easily ‘@’ team members

• Collision-free inbox

• Individual and team assignments

Pros:

• Real-time chat and a robust knowledge base enable quick and accurate responses.

• Ease of use and implementation is ideal for non-technical agents.

Cons:

• Lack of integration with popular third-party platforms, like Salesforce

• The docs feature is outdated and lacks certain useful features

5. Zoho Desk

Zoho Desk helps businesses manage customer communication via phone, email, live chat, SMS text, social media, and more. It also excels at assigning calls to agents based on their department or familiarity with a repeat user.

Key features

• Reply assistant

• Field predictions

• Ticket assignment

• Notification rules

Pros:

• Knowledge base, community, and embeddable self-service empower users to resolve issues autonomously.

• A vast array of productivity tools like work modes and teams can improve operational efficiency.

Cons:

• Some of the most helpful automation features are only available with the most expensive plan.

• Integration with existing infrastructure may prove to be challenging.

6. Kayako

Kayako is a customer service software focused on enhancing agent productivity and building customer loyalty. By offering custom views, tags, and conversation assignments, support teams can better track open requests and assign conversations to the right reps.

Key features

• Self-help knowledge base

• Customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores

• Self-service ticket status

• SLA notifications

Pros:

• Easily view all customer interactions in a single location with Customer Journey SingleView.

• Extensive automated workflows can route conversations, resolve common issues, and update statuses.

Cons:

• Distributing and receiving large emails can sometimes be an issue

• Multi-channel reporting only available with top-tier plan

7. Zendesk

Zendesk is an AI-powered support platform offering a straightforward interface that’s easy to scale as a business grows. It leverages extensive automation features for service teams to enhance and expedite operations.

Key features

• Conditional ticket fields

• Multiple ticket forms

• Skills-based routing

• Customizable triggers

Perfect for: 

Companies desiring a solution with robust omnichannel capacity that always keeps end-users updated on ticket progress

Pros:

• Extremely customizable dashboards that can be tailored to provide insights into the most relevant KPIs

• Capable AI chatbots enhance self-service options and improve response times.

Cons:

• Starter plan pricing may be prohibitive for startups and small businesses

• An overabundance of features and a stodgy interface result in a poor UX

8. HappyFox

HappyFox is a help desk software that emphasizes multi-channel support for tickets arriving via email, web, phone, and social media. It’s integrated with various business applications for accounting, feedback, CRM, commerce, and more.

Key features

• Private collaboration notes

• Ticket templates

• Task management

• Canned responses

Perfect for: 

Any-sized organization looking to employ ticketing systems for department-specific processes

Pros:

• Flexibility in offering agent-based pricing and unlimited agent packages may provide better value for large enterprises.

• Distinct software for customer support, IT operations, human resources (HR), and all teams to ensure solutions meet specific needs

Cons:

• Limited social media integration can restrict omnichannel approaches

• SMS and chat come at an extra fee, further complicating omnichannel strategies

9. Front

Front is a customer operations platform that combines support and sales efforts to deliver sufficient service at scale. It optimizes customer communication by merging help desk and email capabilities with automated workflows and real-time collaboration for support agents.

Key ticketing features:

• No-code workflow automation

• Smart rules

• AI chatbots and agent assistance

• Auto-tags

Perfect for: 

Businesses looking for a comprehensive communication platform while managing the significant monthly fees

Pros:

• Seamless escalations can ensure interactions are transferred from a chatbot or another agent without losing context.

• Significant workload balancing capacity ensures that employees don’t experience burnout and no ticket falls through the cracks.

Cons:

• It is quite pricey across the board, particularly for the high-end package

• Limited knowledge base can restrict chatbot and self-service capacity

10. ProProfs Help Desk

ProProfs Help Desk is a cloud-based support platform designed to help businesses build relationships with users. It provides a centralized dashboard, helping companies handle both internal and external requests more efficiently.

Key ticketing features:

• Straightforward ticket prioritization

• Shared ticket ownership

• SLA monitoring

• Parent-child ticketing

Perfect for: 

Mid-sized businesses seeking an affordable ticketing system that’s highly integrable with email platforms

Pros:

• Automated ticket assignments, security updates, and chatbots help expedite repetitive processes, freeing up availability for live reps.

• Extensive live chat capacity enables real-time communication to quicken responses and resolution times.

Cons:

• No merge option to consolidate multiple tickets from the same end-user

• Lack of integration capacity may pose challenges in connecting with existing infrastructure

11. HubSpot Service Hub

HubSpot's Service Hub is an AI-powered customer service solution that delivers support at scale with unified customer insights. It provides impactful self-service tools and an omni-channel help desk that unifies tasks to facilitate prioritization.

Key ticketing features:

• Playbooks

• Conversation intelligence

• Shared inbox

• Ticket routing and automation

Perfect for: 

Companies wanting a highly integrable solution that offers distinct plans for establishments of any size

Pros:

• Excellent internal communication tools that enhance transparency between service and sales teams

• An integrated content management system (CMS) promotes more personalized interactions based on visitor behavior and interests.

Cons:

• Plans are only available as annual commitments, which means you can’t get out early if you don’t like the platform

• Though lower-tier plans are affordable at first glance, extra features and third-party integration fees can add up quickly.

12. LiveAgent

LiveAgent is a full-featured help desk and live-chat software designed to personalize customer interactions. It offers a capable chat widget, while also providing an omnichannel universal inbox, built-in call center, and robust customer service portal.  

Key ticketing features:

• Internal tickets and notes

• Universal inbox

• Canned responses

• Multilingual support – 43 languages available

Perfect for: 

Large organizations with global client bases seeking to enhance real-time communication

Pros:

• The customer portal, knowledge base, forums, and FAQs provide ample self-service options for users to answer queries independently

• Strong email synchronization offers message forwarding, notifications, templates, and exporting.

Cons:

• The mobile app could be improved, particularly in its navigability

• Lack of integration with CRM systems can create gaps in workflow

13. AzureDesk

AzureDesk is a help desk system that provides users with easy access to pertinent information and support. It centralizes all customer-facing information for a more strategic customer service approach.

Key ticketing features:

• Unlimited mailbox

• Ticket fields

• Ticket tracking

• Self-service portal

Perfect for: 

Companies looking for an easy-to-use, broad solution that can be employed for general ticketing processes

Pros:

• Ask questions, make suggestions, seek advice, or review messages with private internal notes.

• Custom tags can improve handling and understanding of tickets when handling high volumes of requests.

Cons:

• The one-size-fits-all plan may limit its application for businesses of specific sizes and specialities.

• Restricted customization, while available features are complicated to utilize

14. SpiceWorks

Spiceworks help desk is purpose-built for IT pros, aiming to promote improved internal IT support. It assists in managing tickets, providing omni-channel support, and tracking agents’ performance.

Key ticketing features:

• Knowledge base

• Automated responses

• Customizable web portal

• Advanced reporting capacity

Perfect for: 

Smaller organizations operating a tight budget that still desire a basic ticketing system

Pros:

• Offers both web and self-hosted versions

• Ability to generate multiple ticket templates to capture relevant details from unique users

Cons:

• Inventory system sometimes produces inaccurate information

• Lags behind similar systems in ability to unify tickets from all channels in a single location

15. SupportBee

SupportBee is a web-based email support tool that assists companies in organizing their customer service emails efficiently. Multiple teams can collaborate on cases, correlate all support emails in a single system, and collect contacts from multiple addresses and forms.

Key ticketing features:

• Shared inbox

• Knowledge base

• Customer portal

• Private notes

Perfect for: 

Small companies that emphasize email as their main communication channel

Pros:

• Available through desktop, mobile, and within your existing email platform, promoting accessibility from any location

• Workflow is very similar to email, resulting in the reduced learning curve.

Cons:

• High volumes of incoming emails can occasionally cause the platform to lag

• While very affordable, it does come at the expense of useful features that can be found in similar solutions

16. Vision Helpdesk

Vision Helpdesk is a multi-functional help desk, service desk, and live chat software that provides tools for companies to manage their customer support and IT resources efficiently.

Key ticketing features:

• SLA rules

• Ticket properties customization

• Automated client notifications

• Ticket auto-close

Perfect for: 

Organizations want a system that offers a vast array of proactive automation capabilities while also working with a smaller budget 

Pros:

• Round-robin or rule-based distribution is available to balance agent workloads while still ensuring end-users are connected to relevant personnel

• Extensive omnichannel potential through email, call, chat, social media, and APIs

Cons:

• A lack of default reports can limit analytics and insights capabilities

• Dated interface that weakens UX

17. Jira Service Management

Jira Service Management allows for easy receiving, tracking, and managing of end-user requests. It offers straightforward categorization of service incidents and changes by organizing and prioritizing tickets in a single place.

Key ticketing features:

• AI-powered virtual agent

• No-code dynamic forms

• Request queues

• SLA management

Perfect for: 

Organizations desiring a full ITSM solution in addition to ticketing and help desk software

Pros:

• Comprehensive customer support and ITSM capabilities can enhance cost optimization if you plan on utilizing all of its features

• Single source of truth where end-users can report a ticket and access a knowledge base from the same platform

Cons:

• Not ideal for using as a project management ticketing system

• Limited capacity to generate robust customer profiles, restricting personalization efforts

18. Hiver

Hiver is a collaboration platform that assists organizations in engaging with customers, employees, and vendors. It provides multi-channel communication abilities, self-service features, and robust automation capacity to ensure all issues are taken care of quickly and accurately.

Key ticketing features:

• Automated reminder emails

• SLA monitoring

• Automated ticket closing

• Prevents duplicate replies

Perfect for: 

Businesses focused on email communications who already utilize the Gmail platform

Pros:

• Enhance collaboration among teams with notes and @mentions to ensure timely and accurate responses

• AI assistance can help generate outgoing emails and also summarize incoming messages to reduce manual effort

Cons:

• No option to create new tickets unless it’s attached to an email

• Lack of distinction between messages creates difficulties in referencing past interactions

19. Team Support

TeamSupport is a comprehensive software solution that manages the entire post-sale customer experience, focusing on revenue growth, reduced churn, and improved satisfaction.

Key features

• Suggested solutions

• Sentiment analysis

• Ticket collision prevention

• Related tickets

Perfect for: 

Businesses desiring a dynamic solution that offers use for the entire customer life cycle

Pros:

• Powerful search tool assists in quickly and easily locating tickets, knowledge base entries, and wiki articles

• Ability to define custom ticket types, ticket tags, and action types to meet unique support needs

Cons:

• Clunky interface with excess of features that can limit its usefulness for organizations operating in niche spaces

• Tickets are automatically rearranged based on priority, which can lead to long wait times for customers if agents aren’t always attentive

What are the different types of ticketing systems?

Different ticketing systems can enhance support in various business efforts. When researching and selecting a provider, make sure that its help desk ticketing features are well-suited to your unique organizational needs. Now let’s take a look at the different types of ticketing systems.

Help desk ticketing system

While customer service ticketing systems encompass many customer interactions, help desk ticketing systems are tailored specifically for technical support and service management.

Help desk platforms serve as a centralized platform where users, whether they’re internal employees or external customers, can submit their requests or report problems. Each submitted request is logged as a ticket containing the requester's contact details, a description of the issue, and its current status. Agents utilize the ticketing system to track, prioritize, and assign tickets to the appropriate support agents, ensuring that problems are addressed on time and within specified service level agreements (SLAs).

IT ticketing systems

IT ticketing systems help manage and resolve technical incidents and service requests within an organization's IT infrastructure. The process typically begins when users require assistance, prompting them to submit a ticket. The ticket may contain pertinent details such as the nature of the problem, its severity, associated assets, and other relevant information.

Once a ticket is created, it undergoes a series of automated workflows within the ticketing system. These processes may include categorization, prioritization, and assignment based on predefined criteria.

Customer service ticketing systems

Customer service ticketing systems usually initiate support tickets when an individual contacts the customer service team via email, phone, live chat, or social media. These requests are then routed to specific agents with the appropriate expertise to address the issue, ensuring that each inquiry receives prompt attention from the right support agent.

For instance, a customer may submit a ticket through an electronics retailer’s online customer support portal reporting a critical issue with a recently purchased laptop. The ticket is automatically categorized as a ‘hardware problem’ and prioritized as ‘urgent.’ A qualified hardware technician will review the ticket, gather additional information, and diagnose the problem remotely. 

Software development ticketing systems

Software development tickets may originate from stakeholders, such as product managers or clients. They generally contain information such as the task description, priority, assignee, and any relevant dependencies.

For instance, a product manager can submit a request for a new feature that allows users to filter search results based on location in a mobile application. The ticket is designated as a ‘feature request’ and classified as ‘high priority’ due to its importance for enhancing user experience (UX). The development team then reviews the ticket and assigns the task to a front-end developer with experience in mobile app development.

What are the benefits of ticketing systems?

Ticketing systems provide multiple benefits to businesses of all sizes. Whether your company is a one-person online storefront, a mid-market business, or an enterprise grade consumer goods retailer, ticketing systems can offer massive value for money and streamline your customer support operations. The exact benefits will depend on how you plan to utilize the application, but, in general, may include:

• Improved organization and efficiency: By centralizing information and automating workflows, ticketing systems streamline processes, reduce manual effort, and ensure that tasks are promptly addressed.

• Enhanced accountability: Ticketing software promotes accountability by documenting all actions and resolutions related to each ticket. Stakeholders can easily access ticket histories to review progress, monitor performance, and verify SLA compliance.

• Improved collaboration: A centralized platform for sharing information, updates, and feedback can enhance collaboration among team members. Employees can coordinate efforts to resolve issues more efficiently through ticketing features such as comments, notifications, and real-time messaging. 

• Data-driven insights: Ticketing systems generate valuable data that can be used to analyze trends and measure key performance indicators (KPIs). Assessing relevant metrics helps organizations gain a deeper understanding of their operations and identify opportunities for improvement.

Essential features of help desk ticketing software

Distinct providers will offer varying ticketing tools based on their area of focus; some may have a tunnel vision on IT support, while others may be broader in scope. You’ll want to ensure that the software you employ provides features relevant to your business requirements.

Common attributes of ticketing software may include:

Multi-channel support

Ticketing systems are versatile in their ability to be integrated across various communication channels to manage requests from different sources. Whether emails, phone calls, social media messages, or live chats, ticketing software can centralize incoming interactions from multiple channels into a single platform. This unified approach ensures that all customer inquiries are captured and tracked consistently, regardless of the channel through which they were received.

Ticket assignment, prioritization, and ticket views

Ticket assignment involves routing incoming tickets to the most appropriate personnel or teams based on predefined rules or criteria like skill, workload, or even round-robin. Once distributed, prioritization functionalities allow for the categorisation of requests based on urgency or impact. Straightforward visual representations of priorities, such as colour-coded labels or filters, further facilitate efficient task management and decision-making.

Automation capabilities

Automation streamlines ticket creation by allowing for predefined templates and rules. When a user submits a request, the system can automatically categorize it based on predefined criteria such as keywords, user information, or history. This reduces manual effort and ensures tickets are appropriately tagged for faster resolution.

SLA management

Ticketing software makes it easy to define SLAs for different types of tickets. This may involve setting response time goals and resolution targets based on the level of service stakeholders anticipate. Establishing clear SLAs strengthens agents’ and end-users' understanding of the expected service standards.

Agent productivity

Ticketing systems often include internal communication tools such as chat functionalities and internal notes, collaboration tools, and AI-powered tools within requests. These features empower agents to resolve complex issues more efficiently, share insights, and provide assistance when needed. Many systems also offer knowledge bases, where team members can access articles, FAQs, and troubleshooting guides.

Self-service options

Self-service portals where users can submit their tickets and access self-help resources are also often included in ticketing systems. These portals may provide forms that guide users through relevant information to expedite the resolution process. Additionally, individuals can track the status of their tickets, view past interactions, and communicate with support agents if needed, all within the self-service portal.

Integrations for rich customer context

Customer relationship management (CRM) software is commonly integrated with ticketing systems to give agents sufficient data to personalize their interactions. This connection consolidates support tickets into the CRM system alongside other customer information such as contact details, purchase history, and preferences. By unifying this data into a single repository, representatives gain a holistic view of each user's journey, allowing for more targeted communication.

Help desk ticketing reports and analytics

Ticketing systems allow organizations to easily generate custom dashboards tailored to their specific objectives. The software typically allows users to create custom reports by selecting relevant data fields, applying filters, and visualizing data in various formats. These analytics may provide insights into customer demographics, ticket trends, or the effectiveness of support channels. 

AI capabilities

Since the advent of conversational AI, ticketing systems have made significant progress in delivering improving customer experiences. Chatbots and virtual assistants use generative AI and natural language processing (NLP) to interpret human language and guide users through troubleshooting steps. Predictive analytics in modern ticketing systems offer advanced insights and custom dashboards that make decision-making fast and simple.

Best practices for ticketing systems

Competent ticketing systems often provide enhanced flexibility, allowing businesses to mold it to fit their specific business goals. But there are some standardized practices you’ll want to employ to ensure that your system is operating to the best of its potential.

• Define clear goals: Understand why you need a ticketing system. Designating clear objectives will guide your implementation process, whether it's for internal IT support, customer service, or project management.

• Customize ticket categories: Tailor categories and priorities to suit your organization's needs. This helps streamline ticket management while verifying that each request receives appropriate attention.

• Set SLAs: Establish service agreements to define response times for different requests. This establishes expectations for customers and support teams while helping prioritize tasks efficiently.

• Regularly review: Continuously monitor your ticketing processes, workflows, and system configurations to identify opportunities for refinement. Embrace feedback from stakeholders to drive ongoing improvements.

How to implement a ticketing system?

Integrating a ticketing system into existing organizational infrastructure can often be intimidating. But it doesn’t have to be – with sufficient research, planning, and support, most businesses find the help desk ticketing system implementation process to be more straightforward than they anticipated.

Connect your support channels.

Firstly, integratemessaging channels like email, phone, chat, and social media with the ticketing platform. Assess which channels users most frequently leverage to determine which ones to integrate. Select a provider that offers integration capabilities with these channels or supports third-party integrations.

Set up SLA policies and targets.

After integrating relevant channels, you’ll need to set appropriate SLA policies to communicate clear expectations to your staff and end-users. To achieve this, identify ticket priorities based on factors such as urgency, impact on business operations, and customer needs. For example, critical issues affecting production systems may be prioritized over routine inquiries. Once ticket categories are established, define specific targets for each one, including initial response and resolution times.

Bring in your support team.

Next, you should consult your support team to gather their input on current pain points and requirements. Once a ticketing system meets their needs, be sure to offer sufficient training and onboarding sessions to familiarize them with the new software. Remember to tailor the training to address specific responsibilities within the support team, such as ticket categorization, prioritization, and SLA management.

Configure support workflows and automation

First, map out your organization's existing workflows for handling support requests. Define roles for each stage, including support agents, supervisors, and stakeholders. Then, configure the help desk ticketing system to mirror these workflows, creating custom ticket categories and fields to align with your specific needs.

Additionally, most ticketing systems provide robust automation features to eliminate manual tasks and streamline repetitive processes. Identify routine activities ideal for automation, such as ticket routing, prioritization, status updates, and notifications.

Add customer contacts and integrate other business tools.

Existing contact data should be imported into the help desk ticketing system, while customers should also be able to submit their own information directly when creating tickets. Create a centralized database of contacts within the ticketing software, including names, emails, phone numbers, and organization affiliations.

Integrating your ticketing system with existing tools and software can enhance customer information. Identify key platforms used within your organization, such as CRM systems, project management tools, and monitoring software. 

Define support metrics to be tracked.

Identifying which metrics to track involves understanding the KPIs that align with your organization's goals and customer expectations. For instance, a business struggling with slow resolution times will likely want to monitor its average response times and mean time to resolution (MTTR). To expedite resolution processes, the company may refine its routing strategy, enhance its knowledge base, or optimize escalation protocols.

How are different industries using helpdesk ticketing systems?

Retail & ecommerce

Suppose a customer purchases a product from an online store but needs help with the product, such as a missing component, the consumer submits a support ticket through the e-commerce platform's support portal, detailing the issue and providing relevant order information. This ticket is then automatically categorized and assigned to the appropriate agent. The representative then investigates the issues, providing updates on the investigation status and resolving the problem promptly.

Travel & hospitality

Imagine a scenario where a hotel's computer system experiences a technical glitch, preventing staff from checking-in guests. A hotel staff member registers a support ticket through their IT helpdesk portal, describing the issue’s impact on operations. The ticketing system will immediately prioritize the ticket ‘high’ based on its severity, distributing it to the relevant support team. They’ll acknowledge the ticket, examine the root cause of the problem, and implement a solution to restore service.

Education

Consider a university professor who submits a ticket requesting a custom application to support a research project. The ticketing system categorizes the request and assigns it to the appropriate development team within the IT department. Team members will then collaborate with the professor to gather additional requirements, design the application, and incorporate the necessary functionalities.

Banking & finance

Let’s say that a banking institution wants to implement a new online feature to enhance customer experience (CX). The request is submitted, and the ticketing system categorizes the request as a project, allowing for the creation of a project plan and setting milestones for development. Throughout the project lifecycle, stakeholders from different departments collaborate through the ticketing system, reviewing progress and addressing issues as they arise. The system also assesses timelines, budgets, and deliverables, enabling managers to identify risks and ensure alignment with strategic objectives. 

Healthcare

For a healthcare provider, a user may submit a ticket requesting support in updating their contact information. Since this issue is likely to be considered low priority compared to other incoming tickets, it’s automatically prioritized as such, ensuring that it’s still handled in a timely manner but not before more urgent scenarios. A support agent will acknowledge the ticket, verify the patient's identity, and process the requested changes as soon as time allows and by privacy regulations. 

Manufacturing

Suppose a manufacturing company is launching a new product line and needs to coordinate various tasks across different departments. The project manager creates a ticket for each task within the project, detailing requirements and deadlines. Throughout the project, the ticketing system tracks resource allocation and team productivity, allowing the manager to identify bottlenecks and ensure alignment with overall objectives.

How to combat common challenges with ticket management systems?

As with any new system, some difficulties may arise when using help desk ticketing management software. If they do, remember that most can be swiftly resolved with a little attention to detail, problem-solving acumen, and teamwork.

• Overwhelming ticket volume: Many incoming tickets can occasionally overwhelm support teams. Automation features should be implemented to streamline routing and prioritization to address this. You can also set up triggers to automatically assign tickets, escalate urgent issues, and send notifications to relevant stakeholders.

• Lack of integration: If the ticketing system isn’t connected with other relevant tools, it may lead to operational inefficiencies. Integrate your system with CRM software, communication channels, project management platforms, and other applications. APIs, third-party connectors, or built-in integrations can also be leveraged to facilitate data exchange between disparate systems.

• Inadequate reporting: Measuring performance and making data-driven decisions can be challenging without robust analytics capabilities. You should customize your ticketing dashboards to track key metrics critical to overall goals. Regularly examine these KPIs to identify areas for improvement and ensure resources are being allocated effectively.

• Security concerns: When using a ticketing system, security breaches or non-compliance with regulations can pose significant risks to your organization. It’s critical to implement adequate encryption, access controls, and user authentication mechanisms to combat these challenges. Remember to update the system regularly to address security vulnerabilities and adhere to industry best practices.

How to choose the best ticketing system software for your business?

When selecting a ticketing software from the list above, it’s crucial first to assess your business requirements to recognize which specific features to seek out. In general, companies across all industries will benefit from an easy-to-use, highly integrable, and scalable ticketing system.

Evaluate ticketing needs

First, analyze the expected volume and complexity of tickets and the types of issues to be managed. This will help determine whether you require a system with broad or narrower functionalities and what type of subscription or service package you need. Don’t forget to seek feedback from potential users within the organization to understand their preferences. Once you’ve considered these factors, compare features, UX, and support options to determine which provider best fits your company.

Ease of use & implementation

Start by evaluating the user interface (UI) of potential ticketing systems. Look for intuitive designs that facilitate easy access to essential functionalities. Actively evaluate how user-friendly the system is for both employees and customers.

Then, assess the level of support the provider offers, including documentation, training resources, and customer support channels. Identify systems that offer comprehensive implementation assistance, including guidance on data migration, customization options, and integration with existing platforms.

Scalability

Examine each ticketing software's capacity to handle increasing volumes of requests over time. This may involve assessing whether its infrastructure is designed to scale horizontally or vertically to meet growing demands. Seek out load balancing and clustering features that enable systems to distribute workloads efficiently and maintain responsiveness as volume increases.

Automation & time saved

To identify the automation tools most beneficial to you, you must first identify the most repetitive tasks involved in managing your support tickets. Examine the range of features each provider offers, such as workflow automation, rule-based triggers, and ticket auto-assignment. Your organization may be keen on optimizing particular processes, such as routing, prioritization, or responses, to free up time for your real-world team to focus on more complex activities.

Integrations

It’s paramount to sufficiently evaluate the compatibility of each potential ticketing system with your existing technologies, considering supported integration protocols, APIs, and pre-built connectors. For instance, connection with an email platform can provide the ability to automatically convert emails into support tickets, allowing agents to manage them within the ticketing system. Other popular integrations include CRM software, knowledge bases, bug tracking systems, and more.

Measuring ROI

For starters, you’ll need to know the total cost of ownership (TCO) for implementing and maintaining the ticketing software to assess your return on investment (ROI) accurately. Consider upfront expenses and ongoing costs such as subscription fees, training, and support. Then, compare the TCO against the expected benefits of improved operational efficiency, reduced support costs, and increased user retention. By conducting a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis, you can determine an approximate ROI before committing to a contract.