A free online ticketing system is a great idea, especially for small businesses that are yet to get their footing. It may not come with all the benefits of a paid ticketing system but putting it in place makes it easier to manage ticketing and communication with the customers.
Furthermore, you can choose from a wide selection of reliable free online ticketing systems that come with fantastic features. They will serve your needs alongside those of the customers until you are ready to upgrade. Whether free or paid, an online ticketing system sets your company apart from the rest in terms of customer support management.
Ultimately, a ticketing system is a helpful problem-solving resource that handles customer requests and questions in the shortest time possible.
Moreover, it gets both the customer and company rep involved leaving no room for mistakes. Besides this, an online ticketing system also comes with many other benefits, and just like any other software, a few limitations.
Benefits of a Free Online Ticketing System
You do not pay anything
The first obvious benefit is the ticketing system is free, which means you do not have to pay a dime for it. Several companies provide free internal ticketing systems. Even though they are free, the systems offer reliable portals where reps can pull up all their customers' account information and past engagements with the organization without upgraded software.
Better communication with the customer
Another benefit from a ticketing system whether free or paid, is the ease of communication with a customer through an individual thread. Interaction between the customer and the company, irrespective of the client's medium, all log into one central place. If the customer logs in to find a different rep, they do not have to start from the beginning as all the rep needs to do, is transfer the current communication to the original ticket, and continue from there.
Using one individual thread to consolidate all the information also leads to faster resolutions. It also minimizes the likelihood of the service team missing any crucial customer details.
Better Organization of customer support cases
A free online ticketing system or a paid one provides the organization with the ability to catalog and organize customer support cases irrespective of their volume. Each ticket has a label representing each customer, making it easy to prioritize case emergencies and manage multiple instances.
Centralization of information
Centralization of all customer information is another benefit of using either a free online ticketing system or a paid one. One software stores all the tickets that reps can search and reference for any future cases with ease. Moreover, it also helps with better customer service analytics and faster solution solving for present issues.
Easier accessibility
Customers using a free online ticketing system or a paid one can easily access a ticket via email and send their issues directly to the rep in charge of their case. The ease of accessibility that provides the customer with a direct line to the rep gives them a sense of empowerment, which they do not get from generic inbox support.
Some of the ticket system providers also offer cloud-based solutions that enable customers to access and collect their tickets from different sources, including phones, endpoint monitors, email, and web portals.
Disadvantages of a Free Online Ticketing System
Limited features
One of the advantages a paid tool has over a free online ticket system is a broader range of features. A free tool might only be available for the IOS but not for the phone and other endpoint monitors.
You need internet access
Whether you are using a free online ticketing system or a paid one, you cannot access it without an internet connection. Some people would prefer to have offline solutions to accessing their tickets.
Influx of customers
Attracting a large number of customers is suitable for any business. However, if you are running a small business, installing a free online ticketing system can attract many customers with issues. If you have limited resources to hire more customer reps, this becomes a problem.
Wrapping it up
A free online ticketing system does not have the same features as a paid one, but it provides both the customer and company with essential services. It improves a customer's experience and interaction with the company while making it easier for a company rep to handle customer issues with more ease and at faster speeds.
A ticketing system is also a long-term investment, which is why you should learn everything you can about the ones on offer before settling with one of them.
