Ultimate Guide in Finding Helpdesk Software

Help desk software allows customer support users to receive, process, and respond to service requests. Customers could get in touch with the help desk solution in case they have a question or a problem. A respective employee from the company then addresses the question.

In many companies, a help desk has one person with a phone number and a high or less organized idea of how to handle the problems that come in. In larger companies, a help desk consists of a team of experts using software to help track the status of problems and other special software to help analyze problems to the customer’s satisfaction.

Help Desks institute a multi-tiered troubleshooting approach by having personnel with extensive technical knowledge available.

Generally, helpdesk software consists of at least 3 parts, namely Ticket Management, Automation Suite, and Reporting & Optimization. Jointly, these 3 functions form the crux of a helpdesk operation.  The other important features of helpdesk software are as listed below:

  • Technology – it has got point & click configuration, Web-based accessibility & interface, easily available in Mobile, ipads, etc.
  • Service request fulfillment – Incident, Problem, and Service Request tickets are easily managed through a single and extensible solution, standard email protocols, easy email-to-ticket conversion, quick ticket templates, Simple Automated Ticket Routing & Assignment, Complete Audit Trail, etc.
  • Communication & Correspondence – Two-Way Email Correspondence, Reassign Ticket From Email, Email Notifications on Ticket Updates, SMS Text Message Notifications, Add Ticket Notes Directly From Email, etc
  • Help Desk Management – Basic and Advance Ticket Searches, Multiple Time Zone Management, Export Reports to PDF, Print View, or TSV, Support Multiple Companies, Locations, Departments, and Projects, etc.
  • IT Asset Management –  discover all hardware and software assets by scheduling automated asset discovery, offers Windows Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) capabilities, allows you to create a database of software titles, and license deployments per asset allow you to generate asset reports and get information based on location, license counts,  department, asset type, purchase and warranty dates, asset status, and more. 

A help desk is designed to enable IT, professionals, to work more efficiently. Help desk software eliminates a lot of tiring manual processes. A help desk automates the whole process by using email.

Instead of the user having to wait to call or visit their IT dept, they can just send an email defining the issue. Then, the help desk system will receive and log that issue automatically.

This is convenient for both parties involved not only does it maintain communication, but it also keeps organized, traceable records of all issues that are submitted, plus allows a perfect schedule to be established and communicated. The other benefits that it offers are

  • It helps to work more efficiently & effectively.
  • They work on several tasks at once, making better use of their time.
  • These systems are paired with a portal that gives users a single place to create new tickets, view the status of open tickets, and closes out solved issues i.e. one-stop help for all users.
  • Keep track of time spent on a trouble ticket.
  • Help Desk Software can prioritize the tickets that are more important or less.
  • Many problems are reoccurring and can be fastly solved based on work done previously. Help desk software allows technicians to search old tickets to quickly find solutions.
  • Can keep track of due dates, which can be assigned automatically or manually for the projects that need to be completed
  • Help tickets can be automatically assigned.
  • A help desk system allows you to gather just as required information, organize it better, and do even more with it. 

Some of the vendors that provide help desk software are :

  • Freshservice –  It has got simple end-user interface. End-user adoption has been high. Great tool for ticket management. It is customizable and user-friendly to an amazing degree. Better integration with other apps. Bug reporting integration is inbuilt and it is not an additional paid option. 
  • Freshdesk – Easy to configure. Flexible in many ways (SLA policies, ticket management rules, etc.), Includes forums and solutions sections but it is not especially ITIL aligned or for large service desks.
  • Vision Help Desk –They have an advanced feature – Satellite Helpdesk that allows managing support for multiple companies from one place with a single database and different client portals. Offer Anti-Spam Feature Nice Intuitive ticket and problem linking. Though till date they don’t offer live chat software

There are many other vendors that provide helpdesk software like ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus, Zoho Support, KronoDesk, Live Chat, isupport, etc.

There are a galore of help desk systems that are available to fix customers’ requests. There are some critical factors that need to be considered while searching for a help desk system. Some of them are:

  • Knowing & preparing a budget for the purchase. There are help desks that range from too high to too low. With the budget in mind, one can decide to what maximum you can pay with maximum tools.
  • Working out on what are the priority feature/tool that is required by the organization.  This tool will help manage the tickets and track the flow of work. 
  • Check e-mail compatibility
  • The security interface
  • Personalize the email templates
  • Check the need for a Web or Email interface
  • Check for the ticket management features
  • Make sure the software is branded and professional
  • It should be user-friendly, supportive & easy to operate.

As this list justifies, the helpdesk software is designed to make the IT professional’s life easier. With help desk operations, interactions are easy, information’s organized, and the process is more efficient.  

In addition, by following the best practices, the Help Desk system will enable the enterprise to have a base for the IT department not only to meet the needs of the user but for the IT department to link into core areas within the company.  

Therefore, the Help Desk will be one component in enabling the enterprise to meet its strategic goals and also create and maintain the customer relationship along with saving the brand image.

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