Freshdesk vs Salesforce Service Cloud

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Our analysts compared Freshdesk vs Salesforce Service Cloud based on data from our 400+ point analysis of Help Desk Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Product Basics

Freshdesk is a cloud-based customer service solution that ensures increased satisfaction and engagement. It simplifies ticketing with customization options for agent roles, ticket forms, portals and more. Users can manage identity and information access for improved data security.

It offers field service modules that include omnichannel customer engagement, quick query resolution, automatic appointment management and a map view that lets users track dispatches in real time. Android and iOS support allow field employees to plan, monitor and track appointments, updates and customer communication conveniently. Its other offerings include widget customization, scheduled and customized reports, intelligent ticket assignment and more.

  • Pros
  • Easy to use interface
  • Scalable for large teams
  • Automation capabilities
  • Reporting & Analytics
  • Mobile app available
  • Cons
  • Limited free plan
  • Customization options
  • Reporting can be complex
  • Higher pricing for some plans
  • Limited multilingual support
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Salesforce Service Cloud, a help desk software from Salesforce.com, streamlines customer service operations for businesses of all sizes. It offers a comprehensive suite of tools for managing customer inquiries, tracking cases, and providing personalized support across multiple channels.

Salesforce Service Cloud is particularly suited for organizations looking to enhance customer engagement, improve efficiency, and gain a 360-degree view of customer interactions. Its key benefits include automated case management, self-service portals, knowledge base management, and real-time reporting.

The software's user experience is highly customizable, allowing businesses to tailor it to their specific needs. It seamlessly integrates with other Salesforce products and third-party applications, providing a unified platform for customer relationship management.

Pricing for Salesforce Service Cloud varies based on the number of users, support level, and additional features required. Businesses can choose from a range of subscription plans, with monthly or annual payment options available.

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$15/User, Monthly
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$25/User, Monthly
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Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile

Product Assistance

Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support

Product Insights

  • Improved Productivity:  Assign tickets automatically to agents and groups based on various details, including their workloads and skills. Also, auto-assign emails, calls and chats to agents based on keywords and available bandwidth for better productivity. 
  • Better Efficiency: Schedule regular reports to analyze and improve agent performance using different help desk metrics. Measure customer satisfaction based on their satisfaction reports to improve services. 
  • Stronger Teamwork: Facilitate better collaboration between different departments for quicker resolution of customer issues, with linked tickets to keep track of vast issues and team huddle for discussions with experts. 
  • Data Security: Secure confidential data and customer information with state-of-the-art data security. Whitelist IP ranges, restrict login access and set up single sign on script for credentials authentication. 
  • AI Support: Enable faster resolution of customer issues with AI supported chatbots that provide instantaneous answers. 
  • Accessibility: Allow agents exclusive access to login on the go. Conveniently access solutions via website, mobile app and chatbot. 
  • Save Time: Automate mundane tasks so that agents can focus better on resolving customer issues. 
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  • Accelerated Issue Resolution: Salesforce Service Cloud streamlines communication and automates workflows, enabling teams to respond to customer inquiries swiftly and effectively.
  • Personalized Customer Experiences: The platform captures customer data and preferences, allowing agents to tailor interactions and provide personalized support.
  • Improved Agent Productivity: Automated tasks, such as case routing and knowledge management, free up agents' time, enabling them to focus on complex customer issues.
  • Enhanced Collaboration: Service Cloud facilitates seamless collaboration between agents, allowing them to share knowledge, escalate cases, and provide real-time support to customers.
  • Increased Customer Satisfaction: By resolving issues promptly and efficiently, Service Cloud enhances customer satisfaction and loyalty, leading to improved brand reputation.
  • Actionable Insights: The platform provides comprehensive reporting and analytics, enabling managers to identify trends, measure performance, and make data-driven decisions to improve customer support operations.
  • Seamless Integration: Service Cloud integrates with other Salesforce applications, such as Sales Cloud and Marketing Cloud, providing a unified view of the customer journey.
  • Mobile Accessibility: The mobile app allows agents to access customer data and provide support on the go, ensuring uninterrupted service.
  • Scalability and Flexibility: The platform can be customized and scaled to meet the unique needs of businesses, accommodating growth and changing requirements.
  • Cost Savings: By automating processes and improving efficiency, Service Cloud helps businesses reduce operational costs associated with customer support.
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  • Ticketing Management: Deliver higher quality customer service with collaborative ticketing. Convert customer issues from different channels into resolvable tickets. Offers: 
    •  Team inbox to prioritize and assign tickets based on keywords. 
    •  AI-supported ticketing to improve agents’ efficiency and save time. 
    •  SLA management to measure agents’ performance and set customer expectations for response times. 
  • Omnichannel: Consolidate various support-related communications channels like email, phone, chat, website, WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter to ensure a seamless customer experience as well as faster query resolution. 
  • Service Management: Create service tasks and field technician groups for tickets on the basis of location, priority and other aspects. To manage field operations, it also includes: 
    •  Scheduling dashboard to keep track of appointments, tasks and field team workloads. 
    •  Mobile field service to keep technicians updated on the fly. 
    •  Automated time-tracking to monitor billable hours. 
    •  Single swipe attachment of customer signatures to the service tasks via the mobile app. 
  • Reporting and Analytics: Schedule reports at regular intervals and customize them according to various requirements. Access actionable insights using data in different chart styles and visualizations. 
  • Customization: Customize workflows, customer portal and agents for optimum productivity based on specific business requirements. Its customization can be leveraged in the following ways: 
    •  Customized ticket forms. 
    •  Custom URL for smooth customer experience. 
    •  Building and integration of customized apps. 
    •  Custom segmentation of customers for personalized support. 
  • Automation: Automate notifications to agents and customers for any updates in their tickets. Automatically execute maintenance activities and implement actions on tickets based on the time lapsed since an event. 
  • Identity and Access Management: Allow and restrict agents as well as customers to log in to their accounts using single sign on script from anywhere using IP whitelisting and a VPN. 
  • Customer Self-Service: Enable efficient customer self-service with automated suggestion pop ups, knowledge base articles and by converting critical issues in the community into resolvable tickets. 
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  • Lightning Console: Boost agent productivity and optimize team workflows with easy access to information, including knowledge base, customer profiles and subject matter experts via responsive and dynamic dashboards. 
  • Case Management: Help agents resolve cases faster by keeping them connected to answers, activities and intel while assigning issues to the most appropriate sales representative with an AI-powered routing system. 
  • Service Cloud Voice: Equip agents with better insights and tools through Einstein Intelligence for delivering world-class customer support. Simplify setup, purchasing and rollout of contact center telephony with Amazon Connect and Service Cloud Voice integration. Solve customer issues quickly with tools such as IVR, intelligent cloud telephony, CRM data and call routing and storage. 
  • Knowledge Base: Allow customers and agents to get answers through a suite of readily available knowledge bases and articles. Ensure the accuracy of content with robust incident management solutions and KCSv5 verified knowledge management. 
  • Service Process and Automation: Eliminate repetitive and manual chores by automating internal procedures and processes. Design a point-and-click interface to update and create call logs and records, send emails and launch workflows. 
  • Omnichannel Routing: Engage with customers through various support channels such as web, phone, email, mobile Live Agent chats, social media, community sites and video chats. Route cases from different channels to appropriate agents based on priority, complexity and the agent’s availability, capability and capacity.  
  • Telephony Integration: Lower handle times and boost customer satisfaction rates by knowing the history before receiving the call. Automatically log the notes taken during the chat and associate them with related details such as customer records. 
  • Social Customer Service: Manage customer responses and problems from social media platforms through Salesforce Social Studio and service cloud integration. Route social cases to the appropriate agents by using classifiers, language detection and keywords. 
  • Service Analytics: Help agents make informed decisions and offer personalized support to customers by accessing service cloud data and the latest trends and patterns discovered by Einstein. Stay ahead of business issues and concerns by identifying customer and product issues and churning risks with predictive insights. 
  • Visual Remote Assistant: Troubleshoot setbacks and user queries from anywhere through video call assistance along with screen sharing capabilities. Leverage AI-powered character recognition and stay connected even with low bandwidth and offline. 
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Product Ranking

#7

among all
Help Desk Software

#43

among all
Help Desk Software

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Analyst Rating Summary

86
80
83
75
55
60
93
67
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Integrations and Extensibility
Platform Security
Platform Capabilities
Ticket Management
Team Collaboration
Mobile Capabilities
Platform Security
Team Collaboration
Live Chat Management

Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

Freshdesk
Salesforce Service Cloud
+ Add Product + Add Product
Agent Productivity Call Center Management Dashboards And Reporting Email Management Live Chat Management Mobile Capabilities Platform Capabilities Team Collaboration Ticket Management 83 55 93 92 39 58 97 95 97 75 60 67 76 89 100 77 94 79 0 25 50 75 100
83%
0%
17%
67%
0%
33%
0%
92%
8%
0%
100%
0%
83%
17%
0%
33%
50%
17%
86%
0%
14%
57%
29%
14%
0%
45%
55%
82%
0%
18%
60%
0%
40%
100%
0%
0%
92%
4%
4%
63%
21%
16%
83%
17%
0%
83%
0%
17%
94%
0%
6%
76%
0%
24%

Analyst Ratings for Technical Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

100%
0%
0%
74%
0%
26%
100%
0%
0%
89%
11%
0%

User Sentiment Summary

Great User Sentiment 4697 reviews
Great User Sentiment 2232 reviews
89%
of users recommend this product

Freshdesk has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 89% when considering 4697 user reviews from 5 recognized software review sites.

83%
of users recommend this product

Salesforce Service Cloud has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 83% when considering 2232 user reviews from 5 recognized software review sites.

5.0 (22)
5.0 (12)
4.4 (2352)
4.1 (1537)
4.63 (8)
n/a
4.5 (2229)
n/a
n/a
4.4 (509)
n/a
4.5 (43)
4.3 (86)
3.9 (131)

Awards

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated Freshdesk and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Ticket Management and Integrations and Extensibility.

Ticket Management Award
Integrations and Extensibility Award

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated Salesforce Service Cloud and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Mobile Capabilities.

Mobile Capabilities Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

User-Friendly Interface: Freshdesk is praised for its intuitive design and straightforward navigation. This minimizes onboarding time for new agents and reduces the learning curve, allowing them to become productive more quickly. Think of it as a user-friendly smartphone app compared to a clunky, feature-laden desktop program. This ease of use translates into faster issue resolution and improved overall efficiency.
Scalability & Customization: Freshdesk caters to businesses of all sizes, from startups to large enterprises. Its flexible plans and customization options allow businesses to tailor the platform to their specific needs. For instance, a small team might prioritize a simple ticketing system, while a larger organization can leverage features like custom automations or in-depth reporting for more complex workflows.
Mobile Accessibility: Freshdesk offers mobile apps for agents and customers, enabling them to access the platform and manage inquiries on the go. This is particularly valuable for remote teams or situations where agents need to be available outside the office. Imagine a field technician using the mobile app to update a customer ticket while on-site, improving responsiveness and streamlining the resolution process.
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Intuitive User Interface: Salesforce Service Cloud's user-friendly interface makes it easy for support agents to quickly find the information they need to resolve customer issues.
Comprehensive Case Management: The platform provides robust case management capabilities, allowing agents to track and manage customer cases efficiently, ensuring timely resolution.
Seamless Integration with Salesforce Ecosystem: As part of the Salesforce ecosystem, Service Cloud seamlessly integrates with other Salesforce products, such as Sales Cloud, Marketing Cloud, and Analytics Cloud, providing a unified view of customer interactions.
Robust Reporting and Analytics: Service Cloud offers advanced reporting and analytics capabilities, enabling businesses to gain insights into customer behavior, identify trends, and measure agent performance.
Customization and Flexibility: The platform's customizable features allow businesses to tailor the solution to their specific needs, creating a personalized experience for both agents and customers.
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Limited Free Plan Functionality: While Freshdesk offers a free plan, it can be restrictive for businesses with growing needs. Features like custom automations, advanced reporting, and integrations are often reserved for paid plans. This can limit its usefulness for businesses seeking a comprehensive help desk solution without upfront investment.
Reporting Complexity: Freshdesk's reporting capabilities, particularly in lower-tier plans, can be cumbersome to navigate and require some technical expertise to generate insightful data. Some users report that creating custom reports or filtering data can be time-consuming, hindering efforts to effectively track key performance indicators (KPIs) and measure support team effectiveness. Imagine sifting through an overflowing email inbox to find a specific message compared to having a well-organized filing system with clear labels.
Limited Multilingual Support: Freshdesk's interface and support resources are primarily available in English. This can be a drawback for businesses operating in international markets or with a multilingual customer base. While some basic translations are available, they might be limited or not comprehensive, potentially hindering effective communication with non-English speaking customers and agents.
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Complexity: Salesforce Service Cloud is a comprehensive tool, but its complexity can be overwhelming for some users. The learning curve can be steep, and the user interface can be difficult to navigate.
Customization: While Salesforce Service Cloud is customizable, the process can be time-consuming and complex. Users may need to hire a consultant or developer to help them customize the software to meet their specific needs.
Cost: Salesforce Service Cloud is a paid software, and the cost can be a barrier for some businesses. The cost of the software depends on the number of users and the features that are needed.
Reporting: Salesforce Service Cloud provides a variety of reporting options, but some users find the reports to be difficult to understand. The reports can also be slow to generate, which can be frustrating for users who need to access information quickly.
Integration: Salesforce Service Cloud can be integrated with other software, but the process can be complex. Users may need to hire a consultant or developer to help them integrate the software with their other systems.
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Freshdesk garners praise for its user-friendly interface and intuitive design, which minimizes training time for new agents and gets them up to speed faster. This is particularly important for businesses with high agent turnover or seasonal spikes in support requests. When compared to competitors offering a steeper learning curve, Freshdesk allows teams to become productive quicker, leading to faster issue resolution and improved customer satisfaction. However, Freshdesk's free plan, while suitable for small teams or those starting out, can be limiting for businesses requiring advanced features. Features like custom automations, powerful reporting, and integrations are often reserved for paid plans. This can be a dealbreaker for businesses seeking a comprehensive help desk solution without a significant upfront investment. Here, competitors offering more robust functionalities in their free tiers might be more suitable. Overall, Freshdesk shines for its user-friendliness, scalability, and mobile accessibility. The ability to customize the platform to fit specific workflows and the availability of mobile apps for agents and customers are valuable assets. However, its limited free plan functionality and potentially complex reporting can be drawbacks. Freshdesk is best suited for small and medium-sized businesses seeking an easy-to-use and scalable help desk solution, particularly those with limited technical expertise or a mobile workforce. For larger enterprises with complex workflows or multilingual customer bases, competitors offering more powerful reporting capabilities or broader language support might be a better fit.

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Salesforce Service Cloud is widely praised for its user-friendly interface and seamless integration with other Salesforce products, which enables businesses to manage all customer interactions in one place. However, some users have reported occasional performance issues and limitations in customizing certain features, which can hinder the software's ability to fully adapt to specific business needs. Compared to similar products, Salesforce Service Cloud is often regarded as a more comprehensive solution, offering a wider range of features and functionalities. Its strengths lie in its robust reporting and analytics capabilities, which provide valuable insights into customer behavior and agent performance. Additionally, its mobile app allows for remote access and real-time updates, enhancing the flexibility of customer support operations. Salesforce Service Cloud is best suited for medium to large-sized businesses that require a comprehensive and scalable help desk solution. Its robust feature set, ease of use, and integration capabilities make it an ideal choice for organizations seeking to improve customer satisfaction and streamline their support processes.

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