Kayako - Review 2022 - Fay Suildrued

We previously reviewed Kayako and found it to be average helpdesk software at an average price at the time. Since and then, Kayako (which begins at $xx per user per month) has fabricated expert progress by addressing many of the bug we identified in that review, such equally the level of its complexity. After all, with many options available in the helpdesk Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) product category, information technology'southward important to make the chore of a customer service agent easier, non more than complex. Even though Kayako has undergone many improvements since our concluding review, it still lags behind our Editors' Selection winner HappyFox.

Kayako uses the idea of a conversation equally the bones data entity for every part of the application. A client has multiple options for starting a new chat, from using a chat widget to using social media and email. Once a conversation has been started that requires a customer service agent, it will exist assigned to the next person available. It will be routed based on trigger rules established by the ambassador. Assignments can also exist made manually, if necessary.

Features

Edifice a custom written report is much easier to do now than it was in earlier releases of Kayako. At present you only choose the conditions from a driblet-down listing of options and you immediately meet the results in a Preview pane. Reporting Condition categories include conversations, requester, organization, and service-level agreement (SLA). From there, you can add additional conditions and then salve the results. With a new report built, only click the "Download" push button to save a copy of the CSV file to your local auto.

The Insights page provides a dynamic, dashboard-similar view into the unabridged arrangement. Y'all tin select from conversations, agents, or teams to change the electric current view. Individual buttons on the page change the time period between day, calendar week, or calendar month, and a Agenda widget lets you select a specific range of dates. The same type of information is also bachelor from an SLA perspective by client. This makes it easy to see simply how the team is performing individually or with respect to a specific client.

Kayako used to have a project called "OnSite" that was meant to bring a remote desktop capability to the product. The company basically decided to ditch the project and instead signal people to other solutions such every bit LogMeIn and TeamViewer. Another gratis option is join.me, which offers basic screen sharing functionality. Kayako has taken a similar approach to other functional areas such as Vocalization-over-IP (VoIP). For this, they direct customers to a number of different cloud VoIP vendors.

One footling badgerer I found hither was in the documentation. When you search for VoIP on the Kayako back up website, information technology takes yous to an article which states "This article applies to Kayako Archetype customers who signed up before 2022." It then directs you lot to the new Kayako user guide. If you enter "VoIP" in the Search box on that page, it and then takes you back to the aforementioned commodity with the Kayako Classic bulletin.

Pricing

Kayako's pricing has not changed from our original review. The cost is still the same as the previously mentioned entry price of $twenty per user per month (for the Standard plan). Its mid-tier price (for the Growth programme) stands at $twoscore per user per calendar month, and its highest tier (the Enterprise programme) costs $90 per user per month. Feature functionality for each level remains substantially the aforementioned as when we reviewed information technology before.

The basic trial flow for Kayako is now 14 days long instead of the previous xxx days. That might be too curt for a serious look at the product if you intend to really put it through its paces. I was able to get my trial extended another 15 days with one email asking, so that shouldn't be a real issue.

User Interface and Workflow

New conversations get started from either a user asking for help through one of the many channels or from an agent clicking the "New Chat" button. Kayako Messenger, 1 of the primary channels, is the chat window which can be straight integrated with your company website. Assigning a new conversation to an agent can be handled automatically by using consignment automations. The process for building a new automation consists of calculation a new trigger with the appropriate deportment chosen from the drop-downward boxes.

In one case a new conversation has been started, a timeline shows all interaction with the client plus any additional notes added past the assigned amanuensis or any other squad member. Kayako uses tags every bit a way to identify specific items of interest such as a unique upshot or a new problem. Tag fields tin exist used later to quickly discover the detail and to provide a basis for collecting knowledge useful to other agents. Electric current status can be seen by clicking on the "Insights" icon then adjusting the viewing periods displayed to present by day, week, or month. You can also alter the period by using the same Calendar widget.

Kayako provides a solid security foundation, including a Single Sign-On (SSO) capability and the apply of IP address whitelisting for customer service agents. For customers, you can allow log-in through Facebook, Twitter, or a registered Kayako account. Kayako Desktop is a new Mac Os or Windows app that installs locally and connects with your Kayako business relationship. Information technology provides more of a desktop app expect and experience, presenting the same information along with a real-time condition box, which monitors electric current conversations.

Integration

Kayako provides direct out-of-the-box integration with Salesforce and Zapier. Salesforce integration comes in the class of an app available through the Salesforce AppExchange. Configuring the connectedness consists of logging into the app and then creating a new remote site with permission to communicate with your Kayako account. From that indicate, you tin modify any page inside Salesforce to display information from any Kayako conversation. With this consummate, you can spring from within Salesforce direct to Kayako by clicking whatsoever displayed conversation.

Zapier is an app integration service that lets the user create automation workflows between different spider web services. I previously reviewed Jira Service Desk which also utilizes Zapier for integration with other SaaS products. This pick requires some attempt but it's not too difficult for anyone who'south comfortable writing a elementary macro in Microsoft Excel. On the social media front end, Kayako provides hooks into Facebook and Twitter to either plough an incoming bulletin into a new conversation or append it to an existing one.

Kayako also offers a developer platform that provides a set of application program interfaces (APIs) for edifice your own integration services. This might be necessary if you currently use whatsoever in-firm developed problems-tracking or other non-commercial tool with data pertinent to your helpdesk operation or if you're using helpdesk for some kind of unique business organisation procedure that actually requires heavy-duty customization. For most businesses, nonetheless, the Zapier or Salesforce connections should provide all the customization y'all need. Yet another selection is to utilise webhooks to provide snippets of data from other websites to your customer service representatives. This level of integration is not for the faint of heart but does testify the possibilities available should you wish to invest the time and effort.