By Troy Hagerty and Steve Cullen
Disclaimer: The following article is intended to be an unbiased and objective view of a security technology provider. This is an unpaid blog article and the views here are the views of ARORA Solutions and not the views of the technology provider. ARORA Solutions is technology agnostic, working to support clients with tools that work for them and within their business context.
From the young, fresh start-up, all the way to the established enterprise level organization, all IT professionals must deal with the same tedious and terrifying task: Managing their assets while keeping track of the avalanche of tickets associated with each asset, both physical and virtual. The good news is that there are a wide range of ticketing systems available as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) for organizations of all shapes and sizes. It might be a daunting task to narrow down your choices, but that’s where we hope to shed some light on some of the most well-known options available out there.
We took a look at some of the most recognizable names on the market today, and here is what we found about each one.
SolarWinds Web Help Desk - A Technician’s Best Friend
https://www.solarwinds.com/web-help-desk
This platform is primarily geared towards helpdesk technicians who are focused on addressing issues that come into their ticketing inbox, report, and maintain their knowledgebase. The pricing is decent with smaller organizations with an on-prem back-end option starting at $700/technician and a cloud-hosted version starting at $842/technician. While it can centralize all of your asset management needs, it doesn’t track installed licenses, which could potentially widen potential attack vectors if an additional platform is needed. Key Considerations:
Has multiple centralized repositories to keep all relevant information stored. This includes Customer Service/email ticketing, Asset management, SLA management, Incident reporting, Knowledge Base, Billing management, etc
With all relevant documentation, asset management, learning modules, etc in one location, it makes all relevant repositories easier to maintain and deploy any changes.
Might be a wee bit expensive for small to mid-sized organizations.
Doesn’t track installed licenses, depreciation isn’t built in
Helpdesk – Pretty, but Powerful https://www.helpdesk.com/
Don’t let the cute aesthetic fool you, this platform is a powerhouse. The scalability and ability to include additional external integrations with such tools as GitHub, Jira, Shopify, etc makes this a fine cloud-based tool for any organization. The centralization of all communications within the web app make keeping up with your clients much easier. Furthermore, if you want to try the platform for yourself with no obligation, you can get access to it for a 14 day trial. Key Considerations:
Scalable infrastructure shows that it can grow with whatever organization that chooses to use it as its main ticketing system. UI is very pleasant, and all communication can be centralized within the web app, including email, live chat, etc
Additional external integrations include Jira, Shopify, GitHub, Salesforce, among others
Great option for those who have a cloud-based only infrastructure, but those who want an on-prem option will be out of luck.
It’s a little more expensive than other offerings out there, and without proper filters set on your organization’s email server, there’s a chance that email communications with the tickets may get sent to your spam folder by accident.
Zendesk – Large and customizable https://www.zendesk.com/
Being one of the biggest SaaS platforms on the market, this is a great choice for an organization of any size. Just like Helpdesk, Zendesk is scalable to fit your organization’s needs and with its integrations being fully customizable, it can be set up however you want with integrations and various options such as Sell, Support Suite, Guide, Chat, among other options. Starting at $5/agent, for small organizations, the platform can be a great option, but be wary of the number of solutions you use over the course of time. There have been reports that while the initial starting cost is desirable, the bigger your organization grows, the bigger the price tag grows. Key Considerations:
The biggest SaaS customer service platform on the market with different platform options available, such as Sell, Support Suite, Guide, Chat, among others
The pricing system seems simple, starting at $5 per agent, but it does continue to grow from there, each with their own pricing system.
Allegedly (per our assessment of multiple web reviews), if you wanted to speak to someone from Zendesk, there are reports that the customer service for Zendesk is lacking. However, we were not able to confirm or deny these reports.
Freshdesk – The Gold Standard https://freshdesk.com/
This is considered by some reviewers as the “gold standard” for offerings to smaller businesses. What stands out from its competitors is the ability to have access to a “free tier” version of the platform. With this, customers can get a feel for how to the system operates before committing to a full contract, giving more decision-making power to the customer. Naturally, the free tier doesn’t give you access to all that the Freshdesk has to offer. Extended features require an upgrade to the higher pricing tiers. Key Considerations:
Considered by some to be the “gold standard” for smaller business offerings
The free tier allows customers to get a feel of the system for longer before committing to a contract
Additional specs are available like tickets from social media, knowledge base, support widget, custom reporting, etc.
A good number of the additional features are only available in the higher pricing tiers
High-end analytics features not currently in place, but reports that it is in the works
Jira – Niche, but a Developer’s Dream https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira
Best known as a project management and bug tracking tool for engineering and software development teams, this platform is well-known to many developers out there. With its robust customizability to match your workflow’s needs, Jira can be a game changer to your organization. Like with other platforms previously discussed, the initial startup cost can seem reasonable, but that price can increase quickly the more your organization grows. Moreover, since the platform is meant for developers, the platform has been reported to be complicated and difficult to configure without outside help. Key Considerations:
Can be altered to fit your organizational needs
While it’s robust and very customizable, some report that it can be difficult to configure if you don’t know what you’re doing
Online reports that there isn’t a self-hosting option anymore, as of July 2022
Cost per user starts off fairly well, but can add up