If you're looking for an effective tool to manage your customer relationships, you've probably come across HubSpot and Zendesk. Both these customer service software are designed to help businesses provide excellent customer service and improve their overall customer experience.
But which one is right for you?
In this blog, we'll compare HubSpot and Zendesk to help you make an informed decision. We will help you choose the best tool for your business by comparing their pricing, ease of use, customer support, and other features.
Looking for the perfect tool to manage customer support? Two big players in the game are HubSpot Service Hub and Zendesk Support. But which one reigns supreme?
So, without further ado, let's dive into the comparison.
HubSpot CRM offers over 500 integrations with popular tools like Salesforce, Shopify, and Zapier. Also, HubSpot's open API allows developers to build custom integrations for unique business needs. This makes it pretty easy for businesses to integrate their support system with their other business tools and automate workflows.
Zendesk Suite also offers multiple integrations, including popular tools like Salesforce, Slack, and Jira. But, compared to HubSpot, the number of integrations is slightly lower. Besides, Zendesk's open API also allows developers to build custom integrations, making it easier to connect with other tools.
Source: Zendesk,2023
Verdict:
Both HubSpot Service Hub and Zendesk Support offer a lot of flexibility in terms of integrations and extensibility. However, HubSpot Service Hub offers more pre-built integrations and a more extensive API. So if you rely heavily on integrations with other tools, HubSpot Service Hub might be a better fit for you.
But if you have simpler integration needs, Zendesk help desk software still offers many options to connect your support system with other tools for an improved service experience.
HubSpot Service Hub offers a shared inbox that allows teams to collaborate on customer emails and assign conversations to specific team members.
With a unified view of all customer interactions, teams can easily manage multiple conversations at once. In addition, HubSpot Service Hub offers tools like canned responses, email templates, and email tracking to help teams work more efficiently and provide better support.
Zendesk Support also offers a shared inbox feature that allows teams to collaborate on customer emails and assign conversations to specific agents.
The platform provides a single view of all customer interactions, making it easier for teams to manage multiple conversations simultaneously. Additionally, Zendesk Support offers features like macros, automation, and triggers to help teams work more efficiently and provide better support.
Source: Drag,2023
Verdict:
Both platforms offer powerful shared inbox features that can help teams manage customer conversations more effectively. While there are some differences in the specific tools each platform offers, both HubSpot and Zendesk are great options for businesses looking to improve their shared inbox management.
|
Highlights |
HubSpot |
Zendesk |
|
Internal Discussion |
8.6/10 |
8.2/10 |
|
Assignment & Tasks |
8.6/10 |
8.4/10 |
|
Tagging Systems |
8.7/10 |
8.1/10 |
|
Templates |
8.7/10 |
8.5/10 |
HubSpot's customer portal feature allows businesses to create a customized and branded customer help center. This feature provides customers with easy access to knowledge base articles, ticket status updates, and more. The platform also offers multilingual support and single sign-on (SSO) capabilities, providing a tailored experience to each customer and allowing for a consistent experience when accessing their account information.
This level of personalization can help customers feel more connected to the business. Additionally, HubSpot provides multilingual support and single sign-on (SSO) capabilities, ensuring a personalized and consistent experience for each customer.
Similarly, Zendesk's customer portal, called Guide, allows customers to track the progress of their support requests, evaluate updates to the knowledge base and community contributions, and locate relevant information through a specialized customer web page.
The free service portal is designed to help customers keep track of the activities that are most important to them and provides a central location for managing their support requests.
Source: Zendesk,2023
Verdict:
Both HubSpot and Zendesk provide strong customer portal solutions. But, Zendesk's user-friendly design, ability to offer a seamless and branded experience, and advanced features, such as custom themes, third-party app integration, and multilingual support, make it a strong contender.
HubSpot's Knowledge Base tool is a self-service support platform that allows businesses to provide customers with helpful information and resources. It is a part of the Service Hub, which includes customer service solutions to improve customer support.
HubSpot's Knowledge Base allows businesses to create a centralized location for all their support articles, FAQs, and product documentation. The platform provides multilingual and SSO capabilities for articles, and articles can be optimized for SEO through HubSpot's built-in reporting dashboards.
Whereas Zendesk's Help Center is an external knowledge base that can be accessed separately from its other customer service tools. The Help Center allows businesses to provide customers access to support articles, FAQs, and other resources. The platform includes contextual self-service, several support centers, and a structured content view.
Customers can track the progress of their support requests, evaluate updates to their knowledge base and community contributions, and track the material they're interested in - all from a centralized location.
Source: Zendesk,2023
Verdict:
Both platforms offer a comprehensive knowledge base tool that allows businesses to provide customers with helpful information and resources. HubSpot may be a better choice for businesses already using its CRM and marketing automation tools, while Zendesk for service may be a better fit for those focused solely on customer service and support.
HubSpot's SLA Handling feature enables businesses to set specific response time targets for their support team and track their performance against these goals. This feature is a part of HubSpot's Service Hub, a suite of customer service technologies designed to help organizations enhance their customer service.
With the SLA Handling functionality, businesses can establish customized SLAs that cater to their specific needs. They can determine response time targets based on the type of request, customer priority, and other factors.
When a customer submits a support request, the SLA Handling feature assigns the ticket to the appropriate support team member based on the SLA criteria set by the business. This ensures that high-priority requests are addressed promptly.
Zendesk offers SLA management functionality through its support platform. Businesses can set up SLAs based on different criteria, such as priority level, request type, or customer segment. Zendesk's SLA management system includes features such as automated reminders, notifications, and escalations to ensure that SLAs are met.
Additionally, businesses can track SLA performance and view detailed reports to identify areas for improvement.
Source: Zendesk,2023)
Verdict:
Both HubSpot Service Hub and Zendesk offer strong SLA handling capabilities to help businesses meet their customer support commitments. However, HubSpot Service Hub's flexibility and real-time tracking make it a more suitable option for businesses that need more customization and control over their SLAs to deliver authentic service.
HubSpot Service Hub provides businesses with a suite of tools to manage customer support requests effectively. The system allows businesses to manage customer inquiries through several channels, such as email, live chat, and phone, all from a single dashboard. This ensures that all customer support interactions are centralized, making it easier for teams to manage and respond to requests quickly.
Additionally, HubSpot Service Hub provides automation tools, such as chatbots, that help businesses quickly address common queries, freeing up support teams to handle more complex issues.
Zendesk Suite is a comprehensive support system that helps businesses manage customer requests and inquiries through multiple channels, including email, phone, and social media. The system also provides businesses with a ticketing system that ensures that all customer support inquiries are tracked and responded to efficiently.
Moreover, Zendesk Suite provides businesses with customer engagement tools, such as chatbots, that help to automate common queries, allowing support teams to focus on more complex issues.
Source: Zendesk,2023
Verdict:
Zendesk Service Suite offers more extensive customer engagement tools, such as social media support, which may be more suited for larger organizations with more complex customer support needs. Meanwhile, HubSpot Service Hub's support system is ideal for businesses that want to manage customer inquiries efficiently while leveraging marketing and sales tools within a unified platform.
|
Highlights |
HubSpot |
Zendesk |
|
Ticket Response User Experience |
8.4/10 |
8.7/10 |
|
Ticket Creation User Experience |
8.5/10 |
8.8/10 |
|
Workflow |
8.5/10 |
8.5/10 |
|
Response Automation |
8.4/10 |
8.4/10 |
|
Contacts and Customer Database |
8.7/10 |
8.3/10 |
|
SLA Management |
7.7/10 |
8.2/10 |
HubSpot Service Hub offers a range of pricing options, starting with the Starter plan, which costs $18 per month, billed annually for $216. This free version of HubSpot includes two paid users, and additional users can be added for $9 per month per user.
The Professional plan for HubSpot Service Hub costs $450 per month, billed annually at $5400, and includes five paid users. If you need more users, each additional user costs $90 per month. The Enterprise plan, which includes ten paid users, costs $1,200 per month, billed annually at $14,400, with each additional user costing $120 per month.
As of March 2023, Zendesk also provides a free trial and a free plan with restricted functionality for small organizations starting with customer care. The paid versions of Zendesk Support are Support Team, Support Professional, and Support Enterprise, each billed at $19, $49, and $99 per agent/month billed annually, respectively.
Source: Zendesk,2023)
Verdict:
When it comes to pricing, HubSpot's pricing plans are more expensive than Zendesk's, but they also come with more advanced features and capabilities. It ultimately depends on your business needs and budget to determine which platform is the better option for you.
HubSpot and Zendesk are both popular customer service platforms with a range of features that cater to different business needs. While both platforms offer a knowledge base tool, ticket management, and automation features, there are some differences to consider.
In terms of knowledge base, HubSpot CRM software offers a self-service support platform that enables organizations to deliver useful information to their consumers. It comes with a customer portal and knowledge base software with multilingual and SSO capabilities, built-in reporting dashboards, and the ability to assess the effect of each page for improvement over time.
Whereas Zendesk Help Center is a self-service support platform that allows businesses to provide helpful information to their customers. It includes contextual self-service, several support centers, a structured content view, and access to the Zendesk community area.
When it comes to SLA handling, both platforms offer functionality to establish response time targets and track performance against those goals. However, unlike Zendesk, HubSpot's SLA handling feature is more customizable, allowing businesses to set response time targets based on the kind of request, client priority, and other factors for better service.
Here's the overall rating breakdown of both.
|
Highlights |
HubSpot |
Zendesk |
|
Meets Requirements |
8.5/10 |
8.6/10 |
|
Ease of Use |
8.7/10 |
8.5/10 |
|
Ease of Setup |
8.3/10 |
7.8/10 |
|
Quality of Support |
8.9/10 |
8.4/10 |
|
Ease of Admin |
8.6/10 |
8.2/10 |
Both Zendesk and HubSpot Service Hub are powerful tools that can help businesses enhance their customer support operations. It's crucial to carefully evaluate each platform's features and pricing to determine which one is the best fit for your business needs.
|
When to Choose HubSpot |
When to Choose Zendesk |
|
HubSpot Service Hub is an all-in-one platform that includes a CRM, ticketing system, and automation tools. It's designed to help businesses build better relationships with their customers by providing a seamless, personalized experience across all channels. |
Zendesk, on the other hand, is a stand-alone ticketing system that integrates with a variety of other tools, including CRMs. It offers a variety of technologies to assist organizations manage customer questions, including email, chat, phone, and social media. |
|
You want to streamline your operations: With HubSpot's automation tools, businesses can automate many of their customer service tasks, freeing up time and resources to focus on other areas of the business. |
You need flexibility: Zendesk offers a range of pricing plans and customization options, making it an excellent choice for businesses that want a flexible solution that can be tailored to their specific needs. |
|
You need a range of integrations: HubSpot offers a wide range of integrations with other software, including CRMs, marketing automation platforms, and e-commerce platforms, making it an excellent choice for businesses that want to connect their customer service operations with other areas of their business. |
Zendesk is designed to be scalable and can handle the needs of businesses of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises. If you're planning to grow your customer service team, Zendesk can easily adapt to your needs. |
Both Zendesk and HubSpot are great tools for managing customer relationships. While HubSpot focuses more on Inbound marketing automation and sales, Zendesk is geared toward customer support and ticket management.
Consider your specific business needs and priorities when deciding which tool to use. HubSpot might be the better option if you're looking for an all-in-one platform to manage your entire customer journey. On the other hand, if you need a tool that's specifically designed for customer support and ticket management, Zendesk might be the way to go. Ultimately, deciding which tool best fits your business requirements is up to you.
We hope this blog helps you make an informed decision between Zendesk vs HubSpot Service Hub and choose the best tool for your customer relationship management needs.
If you want to explore the world of HubSpot and need some guidance, we're here to assist you every step of the way.
Don't hesitate to contact us for any help you need!
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