In today’s fast-paced business environment, providing exceptional customer care is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity. To meet rising customer expectations and streamline support operations, businesses are increasingly turning to specialized customer care tools. These tools are designed to enhance efficiency, personalize interactions, and ensure customer satisfaction across all touchpoints. If you’re looking to upgrade your customer service strategy, understanding what constitutes a must-have customer care tool list is crucial.
This article delves into a comprehensive list of essential customer support software solutions. We’ll explore a range of platforms, highlighting their key features, starting prices, and trial availability to help you make informed decisions for your business needs.
1. Zendesk
Zendesk stands out as award-winning customer service software designed to enable businesses to deliver rapid and personalized customer support at scale. It empowers agents to manage customer interactions effectively across various channels from a unified workspace, eliminating the hassle of switching between different systems. Agents gain access to comprehensive customer insights, including past support interactions, and can leverage over 1,500 plug-and-play integrations to create a holistic 360-degree customer view. Collaboration is also streamlined, allowing agents to connect with teammates and other departments via Slack or Microsoft Teams directly within Zendesk.
Artificial intelligence is deeply integrated into the Zendesk agent workspace, helping customer service teams manage larger volumes of tickets while maintaining high customer satisfaction levels. AI capabilities include automatic ticket identification and labeling based on priority, intent, sentiment, and language, as well as agent capacity and skill. This ensures that tickets are routed to the most appropriate agent efficiently. Real-time AI guidance is also provided to agents, offering ticket summaries and tools to refine the tone of their responses. Built upon over 18 billion real service interactions, Zendesk’s AI is designed to understand customer service nuances and facilitate personalized support from the outset.
Furthermore, Zendesk provides advanced reporting and analytics, enabling businesses to identify operational inefficiencies and adapt to evolving customer needs swiftly. Enterprise-class security features are also in place to protect customer data. Ease of use is a key characteristic of Zendesk, designed to maximize agent productivity and ensure businesses can respond at the speed of customer expectations. Zendesk offers a complete, out-of-the-box customer service solution, eliminating the need for extensive developer involvement or third-party consultants, resulting in rapid value realization and a low total cost of ownership.
Pricing: Plans start at $19 per agent/month. A 14-day free trial is available.
2. Intercom
Intercom provides a customer support solution centered around automation and messaging to enhance internal customer service teams. Intercom Messenger acts as an extension to existing business support frameworks. Intelligent routing ensures inquiries are directed to the most suitable agents based on their skills, availability, and customer history.
The platform efficiently generates tickets from Messenger and other communication channels, including email, and consolidates them into a shared inbox. Intercom Messenger facilitates live support via chat and offers self-service options, allowing customers to find solutions at their own pace.
Intercom’s AI tool, Fin, delivers conversational support by addressing frequently asked questions or suggesting relevant help center articles. Fin can also summarize inbox conversations and automatically populate ticket details. The platform also features a marketplace with over 350 integrations, expanding its functionality and adaptability.
Pricing: Plans start at $39 per seat/month. A 14-day free trial is available.
3. Salesforce Service Cloud
Salesforce Service Cloud delivers a robust customer service platform that equips agents with an omnichannel workspace for comprehensive customer support. Agents can access all relevant context for each ticket within their workspace, including customer contact details, previous interactions, and purchase history. The Swarming feature enhances team collaboration by allowing agents with specific expertise to join dedicated Slack channels for case resolution.
Salesforce Service Cloud enables agents to customize workflows and automate ticket routing to the appropriate support personnel. Additionally, its reporting and analytics features, complete with pre-built dashboards, empower management to monitor team performance across all channels. Reports can also incorporate Swarming metrics, such as top responders and the proportion of open and resolved cases.
However, it’s worth noting that Salesforce can be complex and may require a longer learning curve for users. Given that Salesforce is not solely focused on customer experience and offers a broader suite of sales and marketing products, businesses primarily aiming to enhance their customer service might find solutions specializing in customer experience more streamlined and goal-oriented.
Pricing: Plans start at $25 per user/month. A 30-day free trial is available.
4. Front
Front is a customer service solution designed to allow users to automate workflows and integrate multiple channels into a unified shared inbox. This shared inbox centralizes customer inquiries, automatically consolidating them from various channels and directing messages to the most qualified agent.
Each customer interaction is logged, providing agents with access to a complete customer history for informed support in future interactions. Front includes integrated collaboration features to facilitate team communication on tickets and unified reporting for analytics on team performance and customer satisfaction metrics.
Businesses can also establish a help center to promote customer self-service. Knowledge base administrators have control over user permissions, determining who can create, edit, and publish content. The help center is integrated with the live chat system, allowing customers to seamlessly switch between self-service and direct customer support.
Pricing: Plans start at $19 per seat/month. A 7-day free trial is available.
5. Tidio
Tidio is a customer service platform tailored for small and midsize businesses. Featuring a help desk ticketing system, Tidio enables users to organize and manage customer requests within a shared inbox. The software can convert emails, live chats, and social media messages into tickets that are routed to the team inbox.
Tickets are highly customizable, allowing users to add notes and create custom tags. Tidio can automatically assign tickets to agents and close them upon resolution. The software also supports automated satisfaction surveys post-interaction.
Tidio’s live chat tool includes prewritten responses to help agents quickly address common questions. The chat window shows what customers are typing in real-time, allowing agents to prepare responses even before the customer sends the message. Tidio also offers Lyro, a conversational AI chatbot, to assist customers with automated support.
Pricing: Plans start at $29 per month. A free plan and a 7-day trial are available.
6. Bitrix24
Bitrix24 provides online customer support software designed to offer omnichannel support and manage customer requests from a single, unified platform. Businesses can configure the system to queue requests by channel and customize it with prewritten responses and wait time rules.
Every customer interaction across all channels is logged into the CRM. The system gathers customer data and automatically creates a new lead profile if a customer does not already exist in the database. Bitrix24 also features both pre-built and customizable activity reporting tools.
Bitrix24’s integrated video calling capability allows agents and customers to connect face-to-face for issue resolution. With screen sharing and recording features, agents can visually demonstrate solutions, guide customers through steps, and record sessions for future reference or training. Videoconferencing is also available for broader team collaboration, accommodating group discussions with up to 48 participants simultaneously.
Pricing: Plans start at $49 per organization/month. A free plan and a 15-day free trial are available.
7. HappyFox
HappyFox is a customer service solution and help desk management software provider. It features a ticketing system that aids teams in organizing requests and offers a single customer view for omnichannel support. With automation, customizable workflows, and AI-powered chatbots, HappyFox helps automate routine tasks.
Managers can utilize HappyFox to effectively manage work schedules. They can define team work hours and configure schedules to align with service level agreements. The scheduling feature also accounts for non-working hours when calculating time-based conditions.
HappyFox also provides self-service options, such as an online knowledge base, enabling customers to find answers independently without needing to submit a support ticket. Customers can also track support tickets, participate in community forums, and access help center articles and FAQs, all within a unified self-service portal.
Pricing: Plans start at $29 per agent/month. A free trial is available.
8. Zoho Desk
Zoho Desk provides customer support software equipped with tools and automation options designed to streamline agent workflows. For example, Zoho Desk offers omnichannel support through a single-view dashboard, enabling agents to manage customer issues in one central location. The ticket management system allows for ticket organization based on status, due date, and priority.
Additional features of Zoho Desk include self-service resources, SLAs, AI functionalities, an advanced response editor, and integrated analytics. The platform allows users to track customer data and generate reports with key performance metrics. Users can also create custom dashboards to visualize and monitor specific ticket metrics.
Zoho Desk also features Zia, an AI-powered assistant, which can detect customer sentiment based on their language and automatically route tickets to agents with relevant context. Zia can also auto-tag tickets and alert agents to unusual activity within the ticket workflow.
Pricing: Plans start at $7 per user/month. A free plan and a 15-day free trial are available.
9. ServiceNow
ServiceNow is a cloud-based customer service tool tailored for enterprise-level operations. It includes a customer self-service portal that allows users to create service requests or access help center articles without direct agent interaction. Customers can engage in community forums to ask questions and share experiences.
Businesses can automate workflows to assist agents with repetitive tasks. Users can design processes to identify, log, resolve, and close incidents, minimizing redundant data entry. Teams can also create cross-enterprise workflows to provide comprehensive end-to-end views of service processes.
ServiceNow also offers customer service management (CSM) tools enhanced with generative AI technology. The Now Assist tool offers AI-driven suggestions for responses, and ServiceNow’s AI provides recommendations to guide agents in taking the next steps towards ticket resolution.
Pricing: Contact ServiceNow for pricing details.
10. LiveAgent
LiveAgent is a customer service tool with a strong focus on live chat functionality. Key features include real-time typing view, customer service website monitoring for proactive chat engagement, and proactive chat invitations based on agent availability and status. LiveAgent’s universal inbox gathers help requests and routes them to specific agents.
Beyond its chat tool, the help desk includes built-in call center software with both inbound and outbound call capabilities, a ticketing system, a knowledge base, and reporting and analytics tools. Businesses can record calls, set up IVR flows, and monitor activity in real-time. Customers can request callbacks instead of waiting on hold, preserving their place in the queue.
Users can configure LiveAgent’s workflow automation tools using its Rules feature. Rules can automate routing, tagging, and ticket resolutions. LiveAgent is also customizable with a library of integrations to connect with various third-party tools.
Pricing: Plans start at $9 per agent/month. A free plan and free trials of 7 or 30 days are available.
11. Freshdesk
Freshdesk, a customer service product from Freshworks, offers a platform for support teams to manage, prioritize, and respond to customer requests from a central location. Its ticketing system consolidates requests from various channels into a team inbox. Trend reports help teams analyze ticket activity and patterns.
Users can configure ticket fields to automate the routing, categorization, and prioritization of incoming requests. Custom ticket statuses can be created to help agents track the stage of each ticket. The system can also detect when a customer concludes a conversation with phrases like “Thank you,” preventing accidental ticket reopening.
However, it is important to note that the Freshworks platform comprises three separate systems: Freshdesk, Freshchat, and Freshcaller. Each system operates in its own workspace, requiring agents to navigate between different tabs to access complete customer information. This separation can potentially slow down customer service and lead to agents missing crucial context.
Pricing: Plans start at $15 per agent/month. A free plan and a 14-day free trial are available.
12. Hiver
Hiver is a multichannel customer service help desk specifically designed to integrate with Google Workspace. Instead of introducing a completely new platform, Hiver adds essential customer service features to existing Google tools, including shared inboxes, analytics, and SLAs. Hiver is an ideal choice for businesses looking to enhance their Google-based communications without migrating to a new system.
Hiver’s shared inbox features customizable views, allowing users to select conversation categories and filters to personalize their email display. With Conversation ID, users can track email threads by assigning a unique number and easily retrieve them on demand. It also includes notes and @mentions, enabling team collaboration without the need for forwarding or copying into email threads.
Additionally, businesses can create a knowledge base to host FAQs, instructions, and troubleshooting guides. Customers can navigate articles using an embedded search bar. If customers cannot find the information they need, they can submit a support ticket directly from within the knowledge base.
Pricing: Plans start at $15 per user/month. A 7-day free trial is available.
13. ProProfs Help Desk
ProProfs offers a comprehensive help desk solution for customer support. The software enables teams to manage, track, and resolve tickets efficiently. It includes a shared inbox for team collaboration, providing agents with a unified view of all conversations. Agents can prioritize tickets, automate routine tasks, and tag teammates for collaborative efforts.
Agents can access a customer’s complete ticket history and export conversations as PDFs for record-keeping. Private notes facilitate internal team communication through side conversations, and collision detection helps prevent multiple agents from working on the same ticket simultaneously.
ProProfs also provides additional features such as a knowledge base for self-service, allowing customers to find answers to common questions and issues independently. Its live chat software enables real-time support via a web widget. ProProfs also offers surveys to collect feedback and track customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores.
Pricing: Plans start at $19.99 per operator per month. A free plan and a 15-day free trial are available.
14. Help Scout
Help Scout’s customer care software consolidates customer data, interactions, and history into a shared inbox, equipping agents with necessary context for each request. Its inbox features include private notes for internal collaboration and collision detection to prevent agent overlap on the same issue.
Help Scout’s AI tools, AI Summarize and AI Assist, enhance agent productivity. AI Summarize condenses lengthy email threads into concise bullet points, while AI Assist suggests text completions as agents type replies. AI Assist can also refine content, adjust tone, and translate text into different languages.
Businesses can deploy short-form surveys and gather customer satisfaction ratings directly on their website or within their app. Help Scout also maintains an apps and integrations directory, offering over 100 integrations for support, marketing, e-commerce, communication, CRM, and analytics platforms.
Pricing: Plans start at $20 per user/month. A 15-day free trial is available.
15. HubSpot Service Hub
HubSpot Service Hub offers a shared inbox that provides agents with immediate access to customer history, ticket details, and queue information. Integrated with HubSpot’s CRM, Service Hub synchronizes data across HubSpot’s suite of tools. Agents can also utilize a mobile inbox for on-the-go support.
With HubSpot Service Hub, businesses can create customer portals and custom feedback surveys. The customer portal allows customers to view, open, and respond to their support tickets and access the company knowledge base.
Users can automate follow-up responses based on survey results to gather deeper insights on customer feedback. Reporting and analytics dashboards provide key performance metrics, including rep productivity, response time, and support volume. Each dashboard can accommodate up to 30 reports.
Pricing: Plans start at $18 per month for two users. A free plan is available.
16. Kustomer
Kustomer is a customer service platform designed to help support teams effectively manage customer interactions. It consolidates customer data from diverse sources into a timeline view, giving agents a chronological thread of customer history, preferences, and interactions. Agents have access to prewritten replies, suggested actions, and ticket tagging options.
Kustomer features AI tools that employ natural language processing to discern customer intent. It can analyze conversations and track customer sentiment, enabling businesses to identify both satisfied and dissatisfied customers. Support teams can also leverage Kustomer’s AI to categorize and route conversations based on customer historical data.
The platform includes live reporting and analytics dashboards that display real-time customer service metrics. Kustomer retains data for reporting for up to two years. Users can perform one-time data exports or schedule regular report exports.
Pricing: Plans start at $89 per user/month.
17. Gorgias
Gorgias is a customer service software solution that offers a help desk with a shared inbox system for support teams to collaboratively handle customer queries. Gorgias integrates seamlessly with e-commerce platforms like Shopify, allowing agents to access crucial customer details such as customer data, order information, and order history directly within the support interface.
The software provides automation features including AI-powered responses, prewritten replies for frequently asked questions, and templates to manage repetitive inquiries efficiently. AI can analyze incoming tickets to identify their intent, automatically closing spam messages and addressing legitimate requests such as order status inquiries.
Gorgias also offers a customizable interface, allowing businesses to design workflows that automatically assign, tag, and close tickets. Prewritten responses enable agents to deliver consistent answers to common questions. The system can also be configured with rules to identify VIP customers and prioritize their support requests.
Pricing: Plans start at $10 per month. A free trial is available.
Conclusion
Choosing the right customer care tools is a critical step in enhancing your customer support strategy. The tools listed above represent some of the must-have customer care tool list options available in the market today, each offering unique features and benefits. From AI-powered automation to omnichannel support and detailed analytics, these platforms are designed to help businesses of all sizes improve efficiency, personalize customer interactions, and ultimately, drive customer satisfaction. Evaluate your specific business needs, consider your budget, and explore the free trials offered to find the best fit for your organization and ensure you are equipped with the essential tools for superior customer care.
