Service Desk software offers SMBs a unified and centralized platform to manage multiple key operations like IT support, inquiries from customers, internal service requests, and more. But, selecting the best tool for your business is a daunting task – as the service desk software market is fragmented with a wide variety of options.
Here, we’ll walk you through the essential features that your service desk software must have, tips for comparison, and key considerations to help you make an informed decision while selecting a service desk software for your organization.
First and foremost, let’s lay down the groundwork to understand what a service desk software is, and how it differs from other similar software that is often confused with.
What is Service Desk Software?
An IT service desk is the central communication hub of an organization – and an enabler to manage service requests, IT support tickets, and incidents. It acts as a bridge between end-users (customers, employees) and support teams (IT, customer support, HR).
It addresses both immediate technical issues and broader business needs, and enhances users' workplace technology experiences.
The service desk software also ensures swift resolution of technological needs like password resets and troubleshooting.
In addition to direct support, the IT service desk integrates into critical processes such as:
- Supplier and partner onboarding
- Employee onboarding
- Business continuity planning
- Service monitoring
- Incident and request management
- Change management
- Reporting
…and more. The comprehensive role of service desk software is vital to the smooth operation and coordination of an organization’s IT services.
Service Desk Software vs. Help Desk – What is the Difference?
The vocabulary around service desk software can be confusing – as even professionals in the industry may not be fully familiar with the difference between a service desk software, a help desk, and an IT service management (ITSM) software. Let’s discover how they are different from one another.
IT Service Desk | IT Help Desk | ITSM |
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In a nutshell, you can understand the relationship between these three terms as follows:
- Help Desks address immediate support needs.
- Service Desks focus on optimizing and improving IT operations.
- Both fall under the comprehensive umbrella of ITSM, which ensures IT services align with organizational goals.
You might be wondering – specifically, why do SMBs need a service desk software anyway? The answer to that question is simple: The right service desk software can truly transform support operations for SMBs.
Let’s dive into that further in 3 steps:
- Better & Faster Issue Resolution: With an agile and strong service desk software, SMBs can track issues from the moment they're reported until they are resolved. Instead of dealing with a flood of emails, support teams can use ticketing queues to prioritize, track, and manage workloads. This even helps SMBs save time and money as they would automate repetitive support tasks.
- Better Compliance: For businesses aiming for ISO or ITIL compliance, having a system that tracks all service requests with timestamps is a must.
- Better User Experience: Customers and employees alike appreciate having a clear and consistent support experience.
How to Choose the Best Service Desk Software for Your SMB
Selecting the best IT service desk software for SMBs comes down to balancing the right features that your organization needs, spotting the top-level usability, pricing, and integrations with your existing IT stack. Here are key factors to consider:
Most Important Features to Look For
When comparing service desk software tools, look for these key features that will ensure smooth operations:
- Ticketing System: The heart of any service desk. It should be easy to create, prioritize, and track tickets. Look for solutions with multi-channel support (email, chat, and phone).
- Automation: Reduces repetitive tasks through automated ticket routing, escalation, and notifications.
- Self-Service Portal: Let users submit tickets, browse FAQs, and resolve simple issues on their own.
- ITIL Compliance: For businesses that value standardization, ITIL-compliant tools offer incident, problem, and change management.
- Customizable Workflows: Adapt workflows, forms, and notifications to align with specific needs.
- Reporting & Analytics: Insightful dashboards help you measure response time, ticket volume, and areas for improvement.
Again, your organization might need more or other features to be custom-made for your business needs. Therefore, make sure that your selected vendor’s IT environment is able to accommodate your needs, while offering the above-mentioned basic features of a service desk software.
The best IT service desk software allows you to customize workflows, ticket categories, and reporting dashboards to suit your specific needs.
Together with that, factor in the integrations – they are vital for any software purchase process. Does your selected service desk vendor support integrations with tools you’re already using? Popular integrations include:
- Slack / Microsoft Teams (for collaboration)
- CRM Tools (for customer insights)
- IT Asset Management (ITAM) Systems (for managing IT equipment, like ALVAO!)
- Automation Platforms (like Zapier or Power Automate)
Finally, even the most powerful service desk software is useless if your team finds it difficult to use. Prioritize software with an intuitive interface, easy setup, and straightforward ticket creation. Look for drag-and-drop builders for workflows and forms.
Now, let’s consider some other boxes that you need to check while choosing your next (or first) service desk software:
- Start with a Free Trial: Most service desk software providers offer free trials, so take advantage of them before you commit to a contract with a high financial volume and longitude.
- Carefully Assess Scalability: Will the software support your team as it grows? Choose tools that can scale.
- Check User Reviews: Look for testimonials or case studies from other SMBs and make sure that you opt for a trusted software.
- Ensure Training & Support: Choose a provider that offers training, onboarding, and ongoing customer support & success. Ask your sales representative to go through interactive demos with you to make sure that you’re buying the features that exist in real life.
- Don’t Miss Out on Languages: Does your selected software support the business language that your organization speaks? Make sure that you’re not opting for a German-language-only software when your team is mainly English-speaking! This will only halt the success of software adaptation in the organization.
Conclusion: Choose the Best Service Desk Software for Your Business
Selecting the best service desk for your SMB can feel overwhelming, and we get that. Make sure that you’re focusing on features, usability, and scalability - and you’ll be well on your way to making a smart choice.
Remember, the best IT service desk software is the one that fits your company's needs, not just the one with the most features. Whether you’re an IT manager or a business owner, investing in service desk software is one of the smartest decisions you can make for your company’s future.