Ticketing system: improve the efficiency of your ticket management with these 7 programs

In a world where every minute counts, customer support no longer has the right to improvise. A request that drags on, a response that is forgotten, and an opportunity that slips away, a customer who grumbles... or leaves. That's where the ticketing system comes in: a solution that's often overlooked, but highly effective, for organising and automating the management of requests.

In practical terms, we talk about a ticketing tool or helpdesk software when we want to structure, track and resolve incoming requests, whether they be from a customer or a supplier.whether via email, telephone, live chat or even social networks, in a centralised, clear and, above all, fast way. It's a bit like going from a post-it note stuck to the screen to an ultra-connected dashboard. And spoiler alert: it changes everything.

So if your support team is swamped with incoming messages, if your agents are struggling to prioritise, or if you're dreaming of workflow automation, you've come to the right place. Here we'll tell you everything you need to know about ticketing systems, before guiding you towards the management software that's right for you. And we won't just stop at a list of software: we'll decipher their features, their prices, their interfaces and their little nuggets... all in a frank, accessible and solution-oriented tone.

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What is a ticketing system?

Definition: the art of bringing order to chaos

A ticketing system is a platform that centralises all customer requests within a single interface. Each request, whether it comes by email, telephone, chat or web form, is transformed into a "ticket": a traceable, categorisable and assignable object that can be tracked, commented on, resolved and analysed.

These tickets then become the building blocks of a structured customer service, where each request has its own status, resolution time, service level agreement (SLA) and dedicated agent. In short, we are moving away from wet-finger management to an intelligent system capable of automating, prioritising and personalising responses.

Ticket types: because not all problems are created equal

Not all tickets tell the same story. They can be :

• Support requests: "I can't connect", "My tool is buggy", etc.

• Technical incidents: server problems, outages, blocking bugs, etc.

• Service requests: adding a user, activating an option, changing a plan.

• Customer suggestions or feedback: "Wouldn't it be great if the app did this too?

Depending on their nature, these tickets can be routed differently, assigned to specific teams, and categorised to feed a knowledge base or refine workflows.

How does a ticket management system work?

Here's the heart of the mechanism in 4 simplified steps:

1. Multi-channel reception: each incoming request (email, telephone, chat, social networks, etc.) is captured and transformed into a ticket in a shared inbox.

2. Categorisation and routing: the ticket is automatically classified by type, urgency, channel, product, etc., then assigned to the right person or team.

3. Collaborative resolution: the agent or team can interact, exchange information internally, add notes or files, and provide a response to the customer.

4. Monitoring and analysis: each ticket follows a predefined workflow, with deadlines to be met (SLAs), statuses to be updated, and indicators to be tracked in a dashboard.

🤖 Some platforms go even further with the integration of artificial intelligence: they can propose automated responses, prioritise emergencies, or even categorise tickets automatically thanks to semantic analysis. And when a CRM or a tool like HubSpot is integrated, the magic happens: you have all the customer history you need to personalise every interaction!

Why use a ticket management system? 4 advantages that make all the difference

Switching to ticketing software isn't just about ticking a box in your digitalisation plan. It means rethinking the way you manage customer relations, coordinate your teams and, above all, offer a support experience that lives up to expectations. Here are four good reasons to go digital right away.

Reason no. 1: offer a better customer service (and your customers will notice)

In a world where everyone wants everything, right now (thanks Amazon), customer satisfaction has become a high-level sport. Thanks to a ticketing tool, every customer request is tracked, processed and followed through to resolution, with no risk of being overlooked.

✅ The result?

• Shorter response times,
• smooth interactions,
• and customers who feel they're being taken seriously.

You can even integrate a live chat, connect social networks, or centralise tickets in a universal inbox so you never miss an important message again. In short, we're talking about a well-oiled customer service that inspires confidence.

Reason No. 2: Automate repetitive tasks (and save time, lots of time)

You know those time-consuming tasks: sorting emails, transferring requests to the right department, sending out standard replies? With a good ticketing tool, all this can be automated. Yes, even the routing of tickets can be based on intelligent rules:

• level of urgency
• keywords,
• entry channel
• or customer type.

💡 And with a little artificial intelligence, you can even propose solutions automatically, or prioritise tickets according to their complexity. Result: your agents concentrate on the high value-added cases, while the tool handles the rest. That's what we call optimising your workload.

Reason no. 3: centralise information (and never hear "I'm not aware" again)

Data scattered all over the place? Customer conversations split between three mailboxes, two CRMs and an obscure spreadsheet? Then forget it. Ticket management software brings all the information together in a single portal.

📝 Each ticket contains:

• the history of exchanges
• attachments
• internal comments
• and actions already taken.

The system can even be connected to an internal or external knowledge base, to provide answers more quickly, or automatically in certain cases.

And for managers, it's a guarantee of an overview in real time: how many tickets are pending, what is the average resolution time, which support team is performing best, etc. It's continuous reporting, with clear, shareable and customisable dashboards.

Reason no. 4: monitor performance and improve processes

You can't improve what you don't measure. Thanks to the analysis functions of a ticketing system, you can obtain detailed reports on everything :

• response times
• compliance with SLAs
• satisfaction rates,
• number of tickets handled per agent, etc.

✅ This data allows you not only to identify bottlenecks, but also to fine-tune your workflow. You can readjust service levels, redefine priorities, and even anticipate peaks in activity thanks to predictive analysis.

And the icing on the cake: certain tools like Freshdesk or Zendesk allow you to create customised workflows, with automatic escalation rules, intelligent notifications and à la carte automation. The result: more rigour, less forgetting, and a smooth customer experience, whatever the volume of requests.

Our selection of 7 ticketing software packages: compare them!

Freshdesk

Overview

Freshdesk is cloud-based ticketing software designed to simplify customer support management. It transforms incoming requests (email, phone, chat, social networks) into tickets that can be managed from a single interface.

Key features

Freshdesk simplifies the management of customer requests from a multitude of channels into a shared inbox. This makes it easier for different teams to work together.

• Tickets are automatically sorted, allocated and processed thanks to task automation.
• They also have an integrated knowledge base for quicker answers to common questions, and beeps and alerts for SLAs.

The tool also offers predefined and customisable dashboards for monitoring performance, for example to monitor request volumes, response or resolution times, etc. Freshdesk goes a step further with Freddy AI, which offers intelligent responses and automatically prioritises tickets based on self-assessed difficulty.

What we like

An intuitive interface, good value for money in terms of features, and a real step-up in power thanks to automation and artificial intelligence.

Price

From €15/agent/month with a 21-day free trial.

Freshdesk

+200 reviews

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Customer experience and service simplified thanks to AI

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Jira Service Management

Presentation

A product of Atlassian, Jira Service Management is designed for IT teams. It shines in incident, problem and change management, while opening up to more general customer support.

Main functionalities

Jira Service Management is a suite of tools for IT teams who want to apply ITSM best practice in the areas of incident, problem and change management.

• The solution offers customisable workflows that can be adapted to any type of support scenario and self-service portals for the end user.
• What's more, it is natively integrated with Jira Software to facilitate collaboration between support and developers.
• It can also be used to track IT assets and automate SLA management.

For the teams in charge of management, Jira Service Management has put in place dynamic dashboards where tickets, workloads per agent and processing times are easy to track. It's a complete solution where traceability and operational efficiency are of paramount importance, particularly for complex IT environments.

What we like

Its functional depth for complex environments and its Atlassian ecosystem.

Pricing

Free for up to 3 agents, then from $19/agent/month (around €17).

JIRA Service Management

+200 reviews

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Software that centralises customer relations

Learn more about JIRA Service Management

LiveAgent

Presentation

LiveAgent is an all-in-one platform combining live chat, ticketing, call centre and multi-channel management.

Key features

LiveAgent centralises all your communication channels (email, live chat, telephone, social media) into a single ticketing system.

• Each interaction is transformed into a ticket, enabling fluid and structured follow-up.
• Instant messaging stands out for its speed and its preview function, ideal for anticipating responses.
• The tool also features an integrated call centre, with call recording and automatic distribution.
• In terms of productivity, LiveAgent includes predefined responses, automation rules and a knowledge base.

It integrates easily with your CRM to provide a 360-degree view of the customer. Finally, customisable reports allow you to analyse performance by agent, channel or type of request.

What we like

A comprehensive customer service solution, especially for SMEs.

Price

From $15/agent/month (around €13.5). A free version is available with limited functions.

LiveAgent

+200 reviews

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An omnichannel support tool for all your channels

Learn more about LiveAgent

monday service

Introducing

Based on the monday.com platform, monday service focuses on flexibility to adapt workflows to your business.

Key features

monday offers a visual, modular approach to ticket management.

• Each ticket is represented in a customisable table where teams can add or remove columns, define statuses, task types and priorities according to their own rules.
• monday can be used to create automated workflows to notify, assign or automatically restart actions.
• Finally, monday integrates with existing work ecosystems thanks to its numerous integrations with Slack, Gmail and HubSpot.

A customer portal enables end-users to submit their requests, while teams can monitor SLAs, assign tasks and monitor performance via dashboards. This tool is particularly well suited to agile or fluid working environments.

What we like

Ideal for teams who want a modern interface and customised processes, without any development.

Price

From €26/user/month, with a free trial available.

monday service

180 reviews

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AI-powered Easy-to-use Ticketing System for Great Service

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ServiceDesk Plus by ManageEngine

Introducing

ServiceDesk Plus by ManageEngine is an IT service management veteran. Perfect for companies looking for a comprehensive and robust ITSM solution.

Key features

Designed for complex IT environments, ServiceDesk Plus offers complete ITSM coverage. It manages not only incidents and service requests, but also problems, changes and IT assets via an integrated CMDB.

The tool offers powerful automation for :

• assign tickets
• notify agents
• or trigger escalations.

It also includes a knowledge base, a self-service portal and customised forms. The interface enables customised workflows to be designed for each business process.

On the management side, detailed reports and ITIL KPIs make it easy to monitor compliance with SLAs, distribute workloads and identify friction points. A real cockpit for IT Departments.

What we like

Its ITIL alignment and functional richness for IT Departments.

Price

Price on quotation.

ManageEngine Servicedesk Plus

+200 reviews

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Comprehensive ITSM software for companies of all sizes

Learn more about ManageEngine Servicedesk Plus

Zendesk

Presentation

One of the heavyweights in the sector. Zendesk offers a seamless omnichannel customer experience, from email to social networks, with a strong focus on analytics.

Features

Zendesk is an omnichannel platform for managing tickets via email, chat, phone, social networks and the help centre. This means you can centralise all requests in a single interface, with the ability to implement

• workflows
• routing rules
• and automatic escalations.

Its artificial intelligence engine can suggest responses to agents and classify tickets automatically. It comes with a rich knowledge base, a customer portal and a comprehensive help centre.

Its fully customisable dashboards allow you to report performance, customer satisfaction and resolution times in depth. It's the ideal solution for any growing organisation!

What we like

The fluidity of the user interface, the wealth of integrations, and the scalability.

Price

From €19/agent/month, with a free trial version available.

Zendesk

119 reviews

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A platform for managing customer interactions and support

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Zoho Desk

Presentation

Zoho Desk is the customer support component of the Zoho ecosystem. Perfect for SMEs already using other Zoho tools.

Main features

Zoho Desk transforms each customer request into an intelligent ticket, which is tracked and enriched throughout its processing. The tool manages traditional channels (email, telephone, chat, social networks) and enables everything to be centralised in a clear, customisable customer portal. It includes powerful automation features to automatically categorise, prioritise and assign tickets.

Teams benefit from :

• an integrated knowledge base
• SLA monitoring
• and dynamic dashboards to view performance in real time.

Native integration with Zoho CRM means that customer history can be accessed directly from the ticket. Easy to use and scalable, Zoho Desk is tailor-made for SMEs looking for efficiency.

What we like

Excellent value for money and excellent integration with Zoho CRM.

Price

From €7/agent/month. Free version available.

Zoho Desk

+200 reviews

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Transform Your Customer Service with Contextual Awareness

Learn more about Zoho Desk

Which ticketing system should you choose? We summarise in a comparative table

With so many different products on offer, it's hard to know where to start. Not all tools are created equal, and choosing the right ticketing system means first and foremost answering this question: what does your team really need?

How do you choose your ticket management system?

Criteria to take into account

Before clicking on "Get started", take the time to analyse your context:

1. Volume of tickets: Do you manage a few dozen or several thousand requests per month?

2. Communication channels: Email only, or also social networks, chat, telephone?

3. Integrations: Do you already have a CRM (HubSpot, Zoho, etc.)? ERP? A BI tool?

4. Level of customisation required: Are your workflows standard or complex?

5. Team mobility: Does the tool need to be used on a mobile or tablet?

6. Budget: Do you prefer a monthly payment per agent or an annual package?

7. Expected level of service: Do you have strict SLAs to meet? Do you need advanced reporting?

5 questions to ask yourself before choosing

• Do you want an easy-to-use interface or very advanced options?

• Do you need a customer portal?

• Should support be 24/7 or during working hours?

• Should the tool enable collaborative working on tickets?

• Is automation a must-have for saving time? (Can we really answer "no" here?)

A 3-step approach

Before rushing headlong into choosing a ticketing system, take the time to adopt a structured three-step approach.

1. Start by assessing your current processes: identify the friction points, the time wasters and the types of request that are still flying under the radar.
2. Next, list your priorities: do you need greater responsiveness, customer satisfaction or better centralisation of data?
3. Finally, don't neglect the test phase.

Most tools offer a free version or a trial, so take advantage of this to compare interfaces and features and see if the tool really suits your needs. A good test is better than a long brief.

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What if your next ticketing system became your best colleague?

Choosing a good ticketing system isn't just a matter of software, SLA or workflow. It's a strategic choice for streamlining communication, strengthening collaboration and, above all, improving customer satisfaction thanks to after-sales software, for example.

Whether you're a start-up overwhelmed by requests or an IT department looking for a robust ITSM tool, there's a solution to suit your context. Freshdesk, Zendesk, Jira Service Management, Zoho Desk... They all have their strengths, so it's up to you to find the one that best meets your needs!