Do any Warriors use Zendesk? Has it improved your Business?

22 replies
Hi Warriors! I just have a quick question.

I wanted to know if any of you are paying for Zendesk software to improve your customer/email support.

I noticed that a lot of large and reputable Online Companies are using Zendesk to support their customers, instead of developing something custom-made themselves.

Is Zendesk really that good?
Do any of you Warriors use Zendesk for your business?


Here is the price list: Zendesk Pricing | Plans starting from just $20 a year


I'm interested in considering it, as one of my businesses is in the process of expanding.

I like to have things as automated and simple as possible, for both my Clients and my Staff.

At the moment, I just use regular email support.
I'm wondering how much of a difference Zendesk may make for my business.

Thanks for your input!
-Andrew
#business #customer #email #improve #improved #warriors #zendesk
  • Profile picture of the author RestlessBlaze
    Andrew, i will recommend freshdeskand most importantly helpscout. I like helpscout, because it only use email to bring full fledged customer support.

    I know, i dont like to create tickets. I love email communication. But as a company, its really hard to handle customer support in emails. But helpscout solves this problem. Check it out.
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  • Profile picture of the author Andrew Davis
    @RestlessBlaze:
    Thanks very much for sharing!

    I had a look at them both, Help Scout really does look quite useful.
    I'll look deeper into that one.

    Do you mind telling me if you use the Free package or the Standard one?
    https://www.helpscout.net/pricing/
    (No problem if you prefer not to)

    The Free version can work great if you have a very small team, but it's quite limited for a slightly larger business/team.

    If I have 5 staff handling emails, that's $75/month on this software. ($15/user/month).

    Trying to figure out if the staff/customer experience and convenience will be worth $75/month.
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    • Profile picture of the author RestlessBlaze
      Originally Posted by Andrew Davis View Post

      @RestlessBlaze:
      Thanks very much for sharing!

      I had a look at them both, Help Scout really does look quite useful.
      I'll look deeper into that one.

      Do you mind telling me if you use the Free package or the Standard one?
      https://www.helpscout.net/pricing/
      (No problem if you prefer not to)

      The Free version can work great if you have a very small team, but it's quite limited for a slightly larger business/team.

      If I have 5 staff handling emails, that's $75/month on this software. ($15/user/month).

      Trying to figure out if the staff/customer experience and convenience will be worth $75/month.
      Email them, they are really helpful people and i even got their response on sunday.They will tell you, what you need. Actually, i was looking into this, coz one of my friend is opening customer support outsourcing company. He asked me to find best helpdesk. I came to conclusion helpscout is best. Because i love emails and usually, clients also love to communicate via emails. So, 2 options

      1) email them and ask for demo or something.
      2) Let me know, i will ask my friend which option he went for as he is handling customer support for Top internet marketers
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  • Profile picture of the author nmcc
    I have clients using Zendesk for various support things - the challenge is evaluating them all and then finding out months down the line that there is a gotcha for what you had in mind for your business flow. They all end up being as good or as bad, depending on your perspective, as the others. Just bite the bullet and go with one!

    For the smaller clients, they normally have one or two setup as full time support and then the third agent is a fictitious name that several other support people use when demand is high and they have to help out.
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  • Profile picture of the author Sagar Mehta
    I've found Zendesk to be extremely easy to use. It maybe a bit expensive, but the software is really powerful and has a nice flow to it.

    I especially love their keyboard shortcuts - makes working on the helpdesk very fast.

    However, like others have said before, you'll have to do some trial and error here. There are all kinds of features in Zendesk and Freshdesk, but you won't know which suits your business better until you've run it for at least a month each.
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  • Profile picture of the author CyberAlien
    I've never used ZenDesk, but I do definitely use a ticketing system. If you're dealing with a large volume of emails and need to easily track replies and past communications, I'd consider it absolutely necessary to be using some type of help desk system.
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  • Profile picture of the author WillR
    I've been using Zendesk for the last 6 months or so and love it. Before that I was using regular email support but I find it much easier to have everything in the one place.
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  • Profile picture of the author Andrew Davis
    Thanks for all the replies everyone!

    Right now I'm considering between Help Scout and Zendesk as my options.

    I'm probably leaning more towards Help Scout for now, because I like the fact that it doesn't look like a ticket system, but rather a natural 1-to-1 email communication.
    (I know that tickets can be 1-to-1 as well, but it gives me a "Robotic" feeling)

    When I've communicated through the ticket systems of other companies, I've experienced not being able to reopen a Closed ticket, and so-forth. (I don't know how many work that way)

    Starting new tickets and having multiple tickets in my email can get a little confusing.
    I guess one could feel more restricted and distanced from the company.

    Maybe I'm overthinking things :p but I try my best to put myself "in my customers shoes" when making plans.


    Originally Posted by Help Scout

    https://www.helpscout.net/pricing/
    Can one account support multiple mailboxes?

    Yes, the Standard plan allows unlimited mailboxes. That way you can support multiple products, departments or companies from one account.
    Ok, it looks like the Standard $15/Month plan would work out fine for my team.
    A very small investment, it should be worth it.


    Thanks again for all your suggestions!
    -Andrew
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  • Profile picture of the author WillR
    I think you are over-thinking things.

    You posted this thread two weeks ago and you still haven't decided :-)

    Just choose one by the end of today and move on. Zendesk is more than adequate.
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    • Profile picture of the author Andrew Davis
      Originally Posted by WillR View Post

      I think you are over-thinking things.

      You posted this thread two weeks ago and you still haven't decided :-)
      Haha, yeah I could be. :p

      Actually, I replied late (yesterday) because I've had too many new clients in these past weeks (no time to come on WF).

      I've been overwhelmed with orders, so I've been busy non-stop.
      I'll have to hire and expand my team soon.


      I did actually contact Help Scout yesterday, immediately after my previous post.
      I'm in talks with them at the moment.

      It seems that the Standard 1-User ($15/Month) "may" not be optimal for me.
      I'm now understanding the difference between "Mailboxes" and "Users".

      I could probably make it work with a Standard 3-User account ($45/Month), and I can upgrade to 5-User ($75/mo.) later on, as we expand.


      If Help Scout does not meet my needs and expectations, I'll immediately give Zendesk a try.


      @ TryBPO:
      Thanks for the insight! That's good to hear that it's worth the expensive price you're paying.

      Originally Posted by TryBPO

      (They suck you in with the cheap pricing, but if you're handling lots of tickets across several businesses, you'll probably need to upgrade)
      Yeah I'm realizing this, with all the various Help Desk services.
      The price multiplies very quickly, when you have more than 1 person handling your emails.
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      • Profile picture of the author vitaliy50
        Andrew,

        I hope you make the right decision.

        What matters is how you grow and what sort of customer service features will be important to you. And how much you want to pay.

        For example, back in 2011 I thought that the customer service software market was fragmented and lacked cohesion. It's the same way right now. You have Zendesk, an enterprise level, and HelpScout - who I believe charge waay too much for what they offer.

        What I mean by that is we need more than a help desk: we need a community too. Users should post questions, problems, ideas and praise, and agents should be able to communicate with everyone without leaving the admin panel.

        For over two years we developed Helprace – a help desk, self-service portal and a customer community that's rolled into one package. No clumsy integration, no enterprise-level confusion. At the same time, we're not selling a trupmed-up Gmail interface like so many people out there. Actually I'm not selling anything - We're currently 100% free.

        You can check out our demo here and see for yourself: company.helprace.com
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        • Profile picture of the author Jill Carpenter
          I'm going to throw a stick in your cog.

          I was using zendesk - and I will admit, going with the $20 and knowing it goes to charity was nice.

          But I just picked up a nifty little plugin here that is highly customizable, and while I'm still in the process of setting it up, it is looking fantastic!

          http://www.warriorforum.com/warrior-...-easy-fun.html
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          • Profile picture of the author WillR
            Originally Posted by Jill Carpenter View Post

            I'm going to throw a stick in your cog.

            I was using zendesk - and I will admit, going with the $20 and knowing it goes to charity was nice.

            But I just picked up a nifty little plugin here that is highly customizable, and while I'm still in the process of setting it up, it is looking fantastic!

            http://www.warriorforum.com/warrior-...-easy-fun.html
            The problem with solutions like that (created by marketers) are that they often end up not supported a few months down the track. Marketers like to move on and create their next product and so you end up left with an unsupported platform. This has played out over and over again with countless Wordpress themes and plugins created by marketers.

            That is why I would always recommend you choose a well supported solution such as Zendesk because the chances of them still being around in a years time is way way bigger than that of a marketer.
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            • Profile picture of the author Jill Carpenter
              Originally Posted by WillR View Post

              The problem with solutions like that (created by marketers) are that they often end up not supported a few months down the track.
              Under normal circumstances yes - but this particular person is not a drop and run marketer in my experience.
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            • Profile picture of the author ProEFI
              Originally Posted by WillR View Post

              The problem with solutions like that (created by marketers) are that they often end up not supported a few months down the track. Marketers like to move on and create their next product and so you end up left with an unsupported platform. This has played out over and over again with countless Wordpress themes and plugins created by marketers.

              That is why I would always recommend you choose a well supported solution such as Zendesk because the chances of them still being around in a years time is way way bigger than that of a marketer.
              Jill,
              Thanks for the mention... and the subsequent vote of confidence.

              I'm the creator of Sonic Reply - the plugin that Jill mentioned. It's unfortunate that product creators can be painted with such a broad brush as Wil describes. I've seen it happen too.

              True, it happens, but it's unfair to label every plugin creator that way. Follow me for ANY period of time and you would know that's not true.

              For the average joe, Zendesk is overkill. For an affordable alternative that has rock solid metrics, along with rock solid support then I encourage you to try out Sonic Reply.

              I had a create webinar with Jason Fladlien on the call today. Of course he uses Zendesk... but he's got a staff of 12 support staff and a dedicated support staff manager. Rapid Crush takes customer support very seriously - they are the industry leaders when it comes to providing customer support. But they also pay big dollars per year just to use Zendesk.

              Sure Zendesk is a fantastic platform, but it's not economically feasible for many online entrepreneurs. Our company does $100K/yr and we built Sonic Reply for OUR business. Then we rolled it out for our customers.

              Is it supported now, and into the future? Damn right it is (and no yearly support fees either).

              Andrew Hunter
              Plugin Results
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              • Profile picture of the author WillR
                Originally Posted by ProEFI View Post

                Jill,
                Thanks for the mention... and the subsequent vote of confidence.

                I'm the create of Sonic Reply - the plugin that Jill mentioned. It's unfortunate that product creators can be painted with such a broad brush as Wil describes. I've seen it happen too.

                True, it happens, but it's unfair to label every plugin creator that way. Follow me for ANY period of time and you would now that's not true.

                For the average joe, Zendesk is overkill. For an affordable alternative that has rock solid metrics, along with rock solid support then I encourage you to try out Sonic Reply.

                I had a create webinar with Jason Fladlien on the call today. Of course he uses Zendesk... but he's got a staff of 12 support staff and a dedicated support staff manager. Rapid Crush takes customer support very seriously - they are the industry leaders when it comes to providing customer support. But they also pay big dollars per year just to use Zendesk.

                Sure Zendesk is a fantastic platform, but it's not economically feasible for many online entrepreneurs. Our company does $100K/yr and we built Sonic Reply for OUR business. Then we rolled it out for our customers.

                Is it supported now, and into the future? Damn right it is (and no yearly support fees either).

                Andrew Hunter
                Plugin Results
                Andrew,

                I'm a product creator myself and have even created and sold various Wordpress plugins over the years. There are definitely exceptions to the rule and it sounds like you are one of them. Unfortunately though I've had many bad experiences over the last 5+ years with plugins and softwares being promoted for a few months only to end up not working and not supported a few months later. Sadly it does happen too often and that's because we are dealing with marketers who just want to cash in and then move on to the next product.

                But the fact you came here and spoke up does tell people a lot about you. Unfortunately developers like yourself are the exception these days, not the rule. So keep on doing what you are doing!
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    • Profile picture of the author vitaliy50
      Originally Posted by WillR View Post

      I think you are over-thinking things.

      You posted this thread two weeks ago and you still haven't decided :-)

      Just choose one by the end of today and move on. Zendesk is more than adequate.
      I respectfully disagree..

      After all, you are picking a software that will deal with a very important part of your company - one that drives your profit and success as a company. It will be hosting lots of personal data, your company information. Don't forget you'll be training many agents down the road to use this software.

      So what I suggest is getting to work. This means signing up to 5-10 different customer service vendors and poking around them for a few weeks. Back to back - actually use it for your processes. Get your clients involved, ask them "what sort of email do you like better" etc.

      Don't just sign up for one trail, open it up, click some buttons, look at the features and decide through that - that can prove deadly in more ways than one.

      There are way too many companies out there picking out a vendor, and a month or two in, deciding it was a grave mistake. Then they go fuming on social media, message boards and review sites crying how much their vendor sucks. That's why my advice is - don't go by anyone's advice
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  • Profile picture of the author TryBPO
    Helpful? Yes....God, yes...

    It's not cheap for us. We're paying around $300/month for the service right now. (They suck you in with the cheap pricing, but if you're handling lots of tickets across several businesses, you'll probably need to upgrade)

    It helps us keep track of how quickly tickets are being replied to, allows us to sort/filter them to the right agents that can help, find tickets that are slipping through the cracks (VERY hard to do via email), etc.

    I've heard good things about Freshdesk and HelpScout but I haven't used them myself...
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  • Profile picture of the author jeskola
    Yes well worth it - actually the best thing is they bought my other favorite tool Zopim which i use for live chat... and it integrates very well.

    Well worth it!
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    Don't look to MAKE money - look to HELP people and you will make all the money you can ever want.

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  • Profile picture of the author simonmc
    Have a look at cerberus from webgroupmedia. It acts like email but has loads of useful features for managing your mail.
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  • Profile picture of the author spontaneous
    Most help desk software these days come with a trial. You should take up the trial offer and try to get an hand-on of the different softwares. Setting up a web-based app will just take a few minutes. So you should shortlist a few apps based on your requirements and then try them.

    Happyfox help desk software has simple, intuitive interface and affordable for small business. Unlike other help desk, it provides 24X7 customer support at no extra cost. Proactive customer service is possible by building a knowledge base.

    Setting up process is explained for guidance.
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