Ticketing As A Service — What It Is & How To Do It Right

Even the worst concerns are no match for your agents’ de-escalation skills – they understand the service and the needs of almost your entire clientele. Unfortunately, you cannot hire an infinite number of agents.

There’s still a chance that they will resolve some requests late. One thing that will resolve that and other workflow problems? Customer service ticketing software.

It’s a given that you want to make every software purchase count. You can do so by knowing how to do it right.

And with ticketing as a service, we can definitely say you can never go wrong with providers that offer automation, easy assignment to agents, and triage chatbots.

There’s still more to giving your agents the assistance they truly deserve. Here, we’ll discuss how help desk ticketing systems work and what considerations you should make when choosing one for your team.

By the end, you’ll know the pros and cons you have to weigh – all based on our testing of ticketing services. That means you can become a ticketing system expert in no time.

Ticketing System Definition & What It Is

It streamlines the organization of concerns, which makes a ticketing system one of the must-haves for any help desk software, CRM, and even VoIP solution. Based on our testing of some ticketing tools, we found that they can also:

The best part? You’ll have issues resolved in a timely manner. In turn, this makes your agents calm, proud, and/or engaged – all of the things that make the provision of good customer service therapeutic.

Do All Businesses Need a Help Desk Ticketing System?

The answer here is no. Some exceptions include companies with a small customer base and those that require in-person support.
But, there’s a “but.” While not all businesses would automatically need ticketing as a service, there are too many benefits that we can’t just ignore. Let’s check the case of companies that require face-to-face support.

Say that there are only five members in the support team,handling one customer each at 9 AM. Another set of five or more customers come to the office, while two agents receive messages on social media and a few emails.

The physical office can definitely hold the line, but what about all the general inquiries you get online? They’ll probably stress out your agents. It’s just the start of the work day, meaning those can pile up until the afternoon. Don’t forget: The effects of work-related stress include:

With support ticketing, you can alleviate these. The focus is shifted to what your team aims to do: provide the best support out there. This is just one of the many benefits of having a support ticket for each concern.

How Does Ticketing as a Service Work?

As mentioned earlier, ticketing as a service may come as a standalone tool or as a feature of one. For example, it’s included in some of the top AI tools for customer support. Meanwhile, some CRM and VoIP tools have it in their arsenal as well.

That said, the support ticketing capabilities of this software are possible with some tech. Here are the key innovations behind these tools:

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is a fancy way of saying you have a computer connected to the internet and you’re using it as a service. This includes storage, software functions, and networking – which translates to the basic processes of ticketing, from data entry to automation.

Cloud computing makes it fast for agents to access customer data online while still allowing businesses to upscale the service whenever they grow.

CRM Integration

Most of the highly-rated CRM tools for startups have ticketing systems built in. It’s easily a must-have.

CRM processes usually require agents to have real-time information on what’s happening with each customer transaction – the most vital factor in assisting them.

With ticketing systems as a feature of CRMs, all stakeholders will have a comprehensive view of the concern.

Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing

Machine learning is what enables the automation and – for some – the sentiment analysis feature for your tickets. Some even more powerful ones, like Freshdesk, employ artificial intelligence in helping agents compose emails and messages, comprehend concerns in tickets, and even build chatbots as front liners for basic concerns.

Aside from these three, there can be many other tech innovations behind ticketing tools. That leaves you curious about one thing: How can these tools actually benefit you?

Key Features and Functionalities of Ticketing as a Service

With a ticketing system’s wide range of features, you can manage customer concerns better on time and with confidence. This provides you with tons of benefits along the way.

Simplified Ticket Assistance and Management

As it’s the primary purpose of any ticketing service, it comes as a centralized platform to create, track, and manage support tickets.

One of the best things about this feature is that you can generate your tickets from all the support channels you use. That includes:

You can do that repeatedly without doing any manual intervention, ever! But, there’s more to ticketing customer service.

Automated Workflows for Streamlined Ops

This is probably the part we loved the most when testing ticketing systems for review. We see that you can set up different kinds of automation actions for different support problems, including the ones in the table below:

To set these automation actions up, all you have to do is find the automation tool of the app. There, you’ll be able to set the triggers so that whenever they happen, your desired action does so.

Even better, you won’t have to start from scratch when setting up. Some tools already have libraries of automation triggers for different industries.

SLA Management

Your customers need to have managed expectations when it comes to the duration and extent of their subscription or purchase. Service level agreements (SLA) are perfect for this.

But what if your agents have to look up each customer’s details just to pull up their SLAs? The management of such a document is already part of robust ticketing systems. It’s even optimal in providing excellent service.

For example, if a high-priority ticket is approaching its response time limit, the system can send a reminder to the assigned agent prompting them to prioritize and address the ticket promptly.

Or worse, if a ticket’s resolution time is about to be breached, the system can notify the manager or escalate the ticket to ensure it receives immediate attention.

Simply put, you can meet or exceed expectations when it comes to your service commitment – a certain set of metrics that can be considered legally binding contracts.

Self-service Features

Let’s start with knowledge bases that can serve both customers and teams. In fact, this is the first and most crucial step in scaling up a SaaS business. Having a few allows businesses to integrate their internal info to provide agents with quick and easy access to relevant information while handling customer tickets.

When faced with a customer inquiry, agents can search the knowledge base directly within the ticketing system, retrieving articles, FAQs, or solutions related to the customer’s issue.

This integration empowers agents with valuable information at their fingertips, enabling them to provide accurate and timely responses.

Meanwhile, ticketing systemslet you build knowledge bases for your customers. The trick here is to set up automation actions with your chatbot. For instance, let’s say that whenever the inquiry is “How do I make a purchase?”. The bot will send the FAQ section for sales.

How Good Is Freshdesk’s Ticketing As a Service?

In Freshdesk’s ticketing system, building knowledge bases is as simple as creating a Google doc. There, you can easily apply edits to be in sync with the contents of your website.

Even better, Freshdesk lets you turn FAQ pages into organic marketing efforts. It has an SEO function as well to help you input keywords naturally for better website ranking.

The next type of self-service option is user forums. This is where you can invite big stakeholders to make honest reviews of your product, serving as a great marketing tool, too.

Apart from letting users talk to each other, agents and other business stakeholders can discuss on forums. Wanna know a relief about this online space? You can create a forum subsection for issues, too. This adds up as another channel your customers can reach out to you.

Analytics and Reporting

One crucial aspect of ticket management is its ability to gather and analyze data through reporting. Here, you’ll have better accuracy with data-driven decisions.

Real-life uses for reporting and analytics include:

To quickly view and monitor these metrics, you can take advantage of modern ticketing systems that provide intuitive dashboards. These dashboards offer a visual representation of key performance indicators, allowing team leaders to easily grasp the overall ticketing performance at a glance.

By doing so, teams can identify bottlenecks, prioritize critical issues, and optimize their workflow for maximum efficiency.

Customer Service Ticketing Pros and Cons

Just like with any type of software, ticketing solutions have their fair share of the good and the bad. And while there are cons, we can assure you there are ways to alleviate them.

These disadvantages can significantly affect how your support team delivers its service. However, remember that, while ticketing solutions may have their drawbacks, they can be effectively managed if you know about them.

Hacks Companies Use to Prevent the Drawbacks of Ticketing Services

Yes, implementing new systems will always be a challenge. That doesn’t mean you have to suffer from them first before a smoother operation. Here are some tricks that you can use for better implementation:

• Ensure there’s proper training: Nothing beats how well your team understands the software. It’s the foundation of the adoption rates, which is vital in successful implementations.
• A gradual rollout works best: You can’t just require people to use this software right after they learn how to use it. Instead, you have to start with a pilot team or department that would test the product. This can even make them promoters and experts.
• A dedicated system admin: There has to be at least one expert, a manager whose only task is to oversee the ticketing operations.
• Build your own workflow automation actions: To tailor the ticketing system best to your needs, it’s only wise to build custom actions. This is where you can lessen the reliance on automated responses.

• Gather feedback: If you’re sure that the system has benefited the entire support operation, think again. Your customers and agents have to think of one thing or two regarding how tickets are handled. This way, you’ll be able to adjust promptly should there be any alarming issues.
• Provide continuous support: Aside from having a system admin as your internal support, you can regularly call for other stakeholders to build a knowledge base for the ticketing system. You can even use the software’s knowledge base capabilities.
  Optimize: Based on the feedback given by your agents, you can make adjustments. Customization is easily doable with CRMs and project managers that have ticketing features.
• Incentivize: This is totally optional, but who doesn’t love incentives? This way, you can gamify the processes and add goals.

Ultimately, the key to successfully overcoming the challenges of ticketing services lies in selecting the right software that aligns with your specific needs and adopting effective strategies to implement and optimize its usage within your organization.

How to Find the Best Help Desk Ticketing System (for You)

Let’s get down to business. Before making the best out of any software, you have to know how to choose one that’s optimal for your business.

Understand Your Business’ Ticketing Needs

Take note that you shouldn’t be alone in this process. Here, you’ll be asking several questions and checking some things with all the related departments.

We’ve prepared a step-by-step guide that you can follow.

1. Meet with All the Stakeholders

This includes representatives from different departments, such as customer service, IT, operations, and management. Schedule meetings with each department to understand their specific ticketing needs, challenges, and desired outcomes.

A collaborative approach like this ensures that the chosen ticketing system addresses the unique requirements of each department. You will be able to more easily determine which service is a more effective and comprehensive solution.

2. Make a Checklist of the Features You Need or Some Questions

When talking with the key stakeholders, you can build a list of questions or features based on the agreed needs and desired outcomes. Here are some you can try:

Encourage open and honest communication when raising and answering these questions with your stakeholders. This way, you’ll know how critical each need is and weigh these before making a final decision.

Checking Security and Compatibility with Your Current Systems

One essential aspect is GDPR compliance, which safeguards customer data and privacy. It is vital to confirm that any chosen software adheres to GDPR regulations to maintain data integrity and protect customer trust.

In terms of compatibility, look for ticketing systems that offer built-in integrations with your existing tools and systems, such as CRMs or knowledge bases.

The good news is that many ticketing systems now provide Zapier integration, allowing you to connect with many other applications and tools beyond the built-in integrations. This flexibility expands your options and streamlines workflows by automating data transfers between platforms, enhancing efficiency and productivity.

Ensure Proper Testing via a Free Trial or a Testing Team

Test your ticketing system properly before implementation to ensure it meets all your requirements. The first thing you should do is take advantage of free trials or demos offered by ticketing software providers.

Next, you can create a dedicated testing team or assign individuals to thoroughly evaluate the system’s functionality, usability, and compatibility.

During the testing phase, focus on key areas like ticket creation, assignment and escalation, reporting and analytics capabilities, automation features, user interface, and overall performance.

By conducting rigorous testing, you can gain firsthand experience with the system and make an informed decision based on its performance and suitability for your business needs.

Or, if you don’t have the time to spare, you can read our guides for VoIP, CRM, and ticketing software. We’ve done the heavy research and testing for you. All you need to do is compare some software solutions and choose one that’s right for you.

Enter Freshdesk: One of the Top Ticketing Software Providers

We get it: You might be in a hurry, waiting for a direct recommendation. One of the software tools we’ve tested is Freshdesk. With it, you get the following:

Ready to streamline your customer support? Try Freshdesk today and experience the benefits of its AI-powered assistance.

Our Other Customer Support Software Guides

Looking for more software guides? We’ve got you covered! Explore our comprehensive collection of guides on various software categories, including VoIP, CRM, and ticketing solutions.

Discover the best software options tailored to your business needs and make informed decisions:

Ticketing as a Service Done Right

This type of software is full of promise. But you have to do your part of implementing it effectively for it to be considered a success.

By streamlining the management of tickets, businesses can enhance collaboration, improve response times, and make data-driven decisions. Just note that selecting the right one requires careful consideration with all the teams that will be involved.

Make sure to include all stakeholders and departments in the decision-making process. They will be the ones using the tool every day.

Now that you know how ticketing as a service works, it’s time to explore your options – or feel free to check out Freshdesk, our top tool for ticketing.

FAQs