The top 10 customer support platforms for small businesses in 2024

Unlike large corporations where there are many layers between management and the public, in small businesses people at all levels of the organization interact with customers. This is a unique opportunity to build personal relationships and receive direct feedback on a product or service. However, for all growing companies there comes a point where allowing customers to contact employees directly becomes problematic. Email volumes increase, inquiries get lost and tracking individual conversations becomes increasingly difficult across multiple inboxes. The problem is even more acute with the advent of the Omnichannel. If these problems are familiar to you, it may be time to think about a specialized support tool like a customer support system for your team.

If your small business is ready to try customer support software, here are ten great options for growing companies:

In a nutshell, messages are centralized in one location to assign tasks efficiently to the right individual or team. The system offers various organizational tools like message statuses, tags, and custom fields to streamline issue tracking. Collaboration features such as saved replies and internal comments boost team productivity compared to a traditional email inbox setup. By adding internal users at no extra cost, cross-departmental communication on customer matters becomes seamless. The internal user role caters to employees who don’t directly engage with customers but regularly collaborate on customer-related tasks.

For a more advanced support approach, Usedesk goes beyond traditional inboxes by incorporating a built-in live chat feature. This live chat can be easily accessed from any page on your website through a help widget, allowing swift management of incoming chats via the omnichannel inbox. To preemptively address customer queries, Usedesk aids in guiding customers to relevant answers even before they initiate contact with your team. Moreover, Usedocs, the platform’s knowledge base tool, empowers you to create a tailored help center with solutions to common queries, all without requiring coding skills. The messaging tool further enhances proactive support by suggesting pertinent articles from Usedocs when customers appear confused, while also serving as a platform for announcements and feedback collection. In addition to self-service options, Usedesk lightens the workload on your team through customizable workflows. These workflows operate on simple "if this, then that" conditions, enabling automation of repetitive tasks like message tagging, scheduling appointments, and managing escalations.

By leveraging data, Usedesk acts as a web-based support system that seamlessly integrates with various popular applications and services such as CRMs, e-commerce platforms, and project management software. This integration ensures that everyone on your team stays aligned and informed, ultimately enhancing visibility and supporting informed business decisions.

One of its key features is the real-time chat function, enabling customers to receive immediate assistance. Additionally, Tidio incorporates chatbots that can handle basic inquiries, allowing human agents to address more complex issues efficiently.

Moreover, Tidio supports multiple communication channels, including chat, email, and social media, empowering customers to engage with businesses through their preferred means of contact. Requests can be easily managed from a centralized interface, facilitating assignment to specific agents or groups for swift resolution.

The platform also boasts automation capabilities like automated responses and chatbots, accelerating query handling and enhancing the overall quality of customer support. To further assist customers, Tidio offers a knowledge base tool that enables users to find answers to common questions independently.

The software provides robust reporting features to monitor team performance and track request volumes effectively. Additionally, Tidio seamlessly integrates with various popular applications and services, such as CRM systems and e-commerce platforms, enhancing its versatility and usability for businesses of all sizes.

Price: A free trial is available, with plans starting at $ 18 per user per month.

Hiver is a valuable tool designed for teams utilizing Gmail, offering seamless integration to transform your inbox into a robust customer support hub. It caters to businesses leveraging Google Workspace, aiming to enhance customer service without the need for platform switches. The platform excels in streamlining request organization, delegation to team members, and monitoring progress directly within Gmail. Through functionalities like tags, request statuses, and internal notes, Hiver ensures efficient task management and timely completions.

Enhancing teamwork, Hiver boasts collaboration features like response templates, collision detection, and internal comments. These tools facilitate smoother interactions among team members, fostering a cohesive workflow. Moreover, automation tools are at your disposal to simplify repetitive tasks and streamline processes, boosting overall efficiency.

Seamless integration with various Google Workspace apps and services underscores Hiver’s user-friendly nature, making it an ideal choice for businesses entrenched in the Google ecosystem. This integration not only simplifies implementation but also ensures swift adaptation to any changes, promoting operational agility and flexibility.

Price: A free trial is available, with plans starting at $ 12 per user per month.

Cayzu offers a comprehensive customer support software tailored for teams with remote employees, focusing on small teams managing customer inquiries from any location. This cloud-based solution equips users with essential features like multi-channel support, automation capabilities, and robust reporting tools.

The platform streamlines request management and collaboration by centralizing customer inquiries within a single interface. Assigning messages to specific agents or teams facilitates workload distribution and ensures prompt task completion. Moreover, built-in collaboration tools like internal comments and notifications enhance team efficiency.

In addition to request management, Cayzu excels in multi-channel support, accommodating communication via email, chat, social media, and phone. This flexibility allows customers to engage with the support team through their preferred communication channel. Automation features within Cayzu streamline routine tasks like request classification, agent assignments, and priority settings, enhancing operational efficiency.

Cayzu’s reporting and analytics capabilities offer in-depth insights into team performance, request volumes, and product-related issues. This data empowers teams to make data-driven decisions and continuously enhance the quality of support services.

One of the standout features of Zoho Desk is its efficient request management and multi-channel support capabilities. Teams can conveniently handle customer requests from a unified interface, with the flexibility to assign messages to specific agents or groups. This functionality helps in evenly distributing workload and ensuring prompt resolution of tasks. Moreover, Zoho Desk supports multiple communication channels including email, chat, social media, and phone, enabling businesses to engage with customers across various platforms seamlessly.

Automation and self-service are key strengths of Zoho Desk. The platform offers robust automation tools that streamline repetitive tasks and processes, enhancing operational efficiency. Additionally, Zoho Desk features a knowledge base tool that empowers customers to find answers to common queries independently, thereby reducing the strain on the support team and enhancing customer satisfaction.

With Crisp, teams can efficiently handle customer requests through a unified interface, enabling messages to be assigned to specific agents or groups for better workload distribution and timely resolution of tasks. Moreover, Crisp supports various communication channels like chat, email, and social media, ensuring seamless interactions with customers across different platforms.

One of the standout features of HappyFox is its emphasis on task management and automation. By leveraging workflows and automation tools, the platform simplifies routine tasks, enabling teams to focus on resolving more intricate customer issues. Workflows play a pivotal role in automating repetitive processes, while automation rules facilitate the automatic assignment of tasks, request categorization, and prioritization, thereby optimizing workflow efficiency.

Zendesk is a widely acclaimed customer support solution known for its scalability and advanced features, catering to businesses of all sizes, including small enterprises. This platform offers a plethora of tools to effectively manage customer inquiries, automate processes, and deliver support across various channels.

One key feature is request management and workflows, enabling teams to handle customer requests efficiently from a unified interface. By assigning requests to specific agents or groups, Zendesk helps distribute workloads and ensures timely resolution of tasks.